Antonie Marinus Harthoorn

With Kenyan independence (1963) Dr Harthoorn's position as senior lecturer at the veterinary college in Nairobi was abruptly terminated (he was replaced without notice by one of his PhD students). He moved to South Africa and continued his work with large African mammals, including elephant and rhinoceros transport. His work was absolutely vital in the creation of many South African game reserves, in particular the Hluhluwe–iMfolozi Park reserve in northern Kwazulu-Natal, where his work with Ian Player was vital in preserving the white rhinoceros. He also had a vital role in the saving of thousands of animals marooned on small islands created by the rising waters of the newly formed Kariba Dam in 1959-1960 in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe). The campaign to save the animals was dubbed Operation Noah.

In the 1960s, the Hungarian-born American film and TV producer Ivan Tors came to Kenya on holiday and visited an animal orphanage set up by Dr Harthoorn and his wife, Sue Hart. Tors was so impressed by the idea that he developed a TV series named Daktari (Swahili for 'doctor') which ran in syndication worldwide for several decades. The name has persisted in the 21st century in various forms in the names of several trademarked drugs. The animal characters from this series, Clarence the cross-eyed lion and Judy the chimpanzee, are still fondly remembered. The Kenyan experience is recorded in Sue Hart's book Life with Daktari.

Antonie Marinus Harthoorn, or 'Toni' Harthoorn (August 26, 1923 - April 23, 2012) was a veterinarian and environmentalist known for his role in the development of large-animal tranquilizers and their impact on the conservation movement. Additionally, Harthoorn's animal sanctuary was the inspiration for the television series Daktari.