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Latest Newsletter
July 2008 |
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News |
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Happy New Year From Everyone at Wilvo's
I hope everyone has recovered from the Christmas/New Year festivities. My phone was relatively quiet as far as wildlife was concerned. I hope that is a sign that animals are safe and well, and not an indication that native animal numbers are diminishing rapidly, due to our human impact!
WILVOS had some great news this week, in that the Gambling Community Benefit Fund, which was established by the Queensland Government in 1994 to help fund community groups, is giving us funds towards our two wildlife workshops with Dr Anne Fowler, a very accomplished wildlife veterinarian, on the 23 rd and 24 th February, 2008.
These will be held in Nambour and are open to everyone. Anne is a fascinating  presenter and will keep us spellbound on the Saturday with husbandry and diseases of birds, and then follow up on the Sunday with a workshop on husbandry and diseases of macropods, possums, echidnas and reptiles. Each workshop goes from 9 am to 5 pm and is $10 per day for WILVO members and still only $20 per day for non WILVO members. Our grant has enabled WILVOS to keep these costs to a minimum. Dr Fowler's workshops usually cost approximately $50 to attend down south so I hope plenty of people take this opportunity to listen to an expert in the field of wildlife care. We are privileged to have her visit up here. If you are interested in attending, please call Nalda on 5445771 or 0419 257418 and book your spot. Our thanks to the Gambling Community Benefit Fund- it is almost enough to make me take up gambling!
Just before Christmas, WILVOS set up a Saturday stall, when Dr Sheree Atkinson celebrated the Yandina Veterinary Surgery's first birthday. This was a fun day, with a pet show and various competitions for the cats and dogs. Though no World Champions were forthcoming, everyone had a good time and the pet owners won some great prizes to put under their Christmas trees for the animals! Sheree is one of the many vets on the Sunshine Coast who give of their time and expertise in helping our native animals. They are wonderful people. Thank you all.
I hope 2008 treats everyone kindly
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Len Beikoff to Present Bird Workshop
Well…Our WILVOS phone roster volunteers are tearing their hair out looking for wildlife carers along the coast when they receive calls for help in these areas. From Caloundra to Noosa, we just don't have enough carers. Our WILVOS hotline 5441 6200 phone number receives an ever-increasing number of calls about distressed birds/animals along this coastal section, and we need more people to even just pick up the animals and transport to wildlife carers. Other individual wildlife carers/groups are on the Sunshine Coast, and are permitted by the Environment Protection Agency but they just don't have the networking to provide this service, so WILVOS have to continually focus on this problem.
At the moment we are working on a letter drop/recruiting program in these coastal areas. Hopefully, it will be a productive investment of time and money. Our recent induction saw some keen new members joining and another induction/new carer's workshop is scheduled for the end of June. Often people will join WILVOS as Friends of Wilvos, (they don't need to attend the induction/new carer's workshops), so they can just enjoy our newsletter and discounted workshops, but then decide to progress further and do workshops and learn how to look after injured or orphaned wildlife. We all started knowing nothing or very little!!!!
 Our education ladies, Roslyn and Adele, who visit the schools are doing an amazing job. They decided it would be a good idea to present sample bags, containing wildlife inspired colour-ins and puzzles, to the children. As Ros and Adele talk to up to a hundred children a week, we decided one-per-child would be just too many sample bags to sew, but give one to each teacher who can then copy the material and pass on to the children. Nevertheless, Marie, ‘seamstress extraordinaire', started sewing and has already made over a hundred bags! I'm sure it's a pleasant change from sewing possum and kangaroo bags!
In the latter part of May we have a wildlife carer of many years, Len Beikoff, from Brisbane, who is going to present a workshop for us on bird care. Even those who don't look after injured birds still like to come along and listen. This is open to all WILVOS members so join now so you can have the privilege of listening to Len's wealth of knowledge.
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Buster is Getting Ready to Pack His Bags
Well……life on the farm could be getting quieter. With two kangaroos, Buster and Mirabelle  (I'm going to stay optimistic with this strange little girl!), going off to their new home soon and Tammy not far off departing into the wilds, I just might have a rest coming up. This doesn't usually eventuate but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Usually at this stage, some poor debilitated kangaroo comes in that needs intensive care – and then, once again, I'm a ‘gonna'!
On the ‘feral' side- we do have some cows we are ‘temporarily' minding for friends and they are a handful in themselves. One adorable little heifer had a calf, which decides it wants to wander all over the property, so we have to get the search party out each afternoon before dark. Being worried about the little horror, we have been milking Mum each morning and afternoon and giving the calf a bottle, just to make sure she is getting enough sustenance. What would I do without animals to look after!
There is a National Wildlife Rehabilitation Conference in Perth in early August and I am seriously thinking that I would like to be there. Probably just pipe dreams but we have to have dreams! Last time I went to one of these conferences it was just down the coast, but I had to take a gorgeous little injured kangaroo with me….this time, if it eventuates I plan on going minus animals! I don't think I would be allowed board a plane with a little joey anyway! Might be more dangerous than my knitting needles!
What fun calls we have had on the WILVOS 5441 6200 hotline this week. Rosemary had to go and pick up a sweet little blue-faced honeyeater from Blanck Street Vets in Maroochydore and was highly amused to see her patient. The little chick was nicely installed in tissues in an ice-cream container, with a well- padded bra propped up like a gazebo beside it. Very comfy!
Another kind gentleman, Rob, from Mountain Creek, has donated an aviary to Wilvos. This is just what is needed at Caloundra with one of our busy wildlife carers down there. Our coastal areas are so desperate for new carers. Our next induction/new carers workshop is only a couple of weeks ago so ring up WILVOS and talk to our membership secretary!
The charges I was babysitting have all gone home. Theresa and Claude's “Little Joe”, the red-necked wallaby, had a lovely time here with my macropods. Though Mirrabelle hissed at him and bossed him, he quite enjoyed the camaraderie, and is probably quite lonely at home without them. We have to find some friends for him, as it is not good for little wallabies or kangaroos to be reared alone.
I am looking forward to the weekend and the ride on a steam train, even if it is only Nambour to Yandina return. I think I am a bit of a train ‘buff'. My idea of relaxation is going down to Brisbane on the train, a journey I have to make every couple of months so my dermatologist can chop out some more sun cancers, the price I pay for being born and bred in Queensland! I love the fact I am away from the telephone and I can have a couple of hours just reading my books – peace and undisturbed quiet!
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"Little" Mirrabelle the Eastern Grey Kangaroo Can Put Up A Fight!.
Our WILVOS 5441 6200 number has some unusual calls, and we do have to resist the urge to go out and pick up stray dogs and stray feral birds….”There is a guinea fowl running along Nicklin Way”!!! We love all animals but have to direct some calls to more relevant organizations. Often people have trouble realizing that we look after Australian Native Wildlife and not ALL distressed animals, though most of us have been known to help out there as well, as we know all animals deserve our care and consideration. Nevertheless as our hands are full with native animals or native animal crises, and they are our priority, we do recommend other organizations.
Recently we had a call, through one of our “Friends of Wilvos” members, for help for a gentleman with a pet cockatiel. The bird fretted whenever “Kes”, her owner, left home, so this friend asked if WILVOS knew of anyone who could construct a  cage to go on the 4-wheeler wheelchair, so he could take “Marble” with him when he went out. This is not something in our usual range of expertise, but this was a special case. One of our members' husbands actually supplied a cage and just made up some quick fittings for the front of the wheelchair. Our wonderful Bob Whiting strikes again! He does many good deeds for people but does not like to be acknowledged, so would not let a photo be taken of him fitting the cage. Thank you Bob…..these people were very appreciative of your time and effort. The birdcage sits in front of him, with the shopping basket. Of course, it gets lots of comments!
The past week has not been one of my favourites - two days spending three hours of each on the road transporting kangaroos to release places, then another 3 hours in the car for a trip to Brisbane and back for a reunion. I despise car travel……I am a train or plane person! I feel the week has just flown and I've missed out on quality time with my animals! I don't like to be away from my macropods for long, as it means more hours of care in the long run, worrying about how stressed they can become. Little Mirrabelle, the eastern grey kangaroo I brought home to keep Buster happy , is the most nervous little animal but is gradually spending more time out grazing with my now ‘big and strong' Buster. She is actually bossy and belts him up, though almost half his size. Nevertheless, she is a worry. Jo reared her from a pathetic little 500 gram joey, which was on her deathbed, and she seems so fragile even at 3.5 kg. Her name does suit her! I do have time to spoil her with my big greys released and the released red-necks only returning maybe once a week.
When I saw a recent television programme showing kangaroo shooting and the associated abbatoirs I felt physically ill. We have domesticated livestock for the purpose of eating, so our wildlife should be left where they belong – in the wild. When money is involved, no animal is safe! Then I again see us chastising Japan for killing whales – a practice I abhor - but is this not “the pot calling the kettle black”?
It was with sadness that I received a phone call from Marjie Spies in Blackbutt to say her husband, John, had died on Monday 26th February, after losing his battle with cancer. John Spies was an incredible wildlife artist, who used his work to promote wildlife and environmental causes. As our WILVOS secretary, Jill, said "Marjie and John have always been genuine believers in the 'greater good'". John will be sadly missed.
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One Of My Most Rewarding Days.
In all my years of wildlife caring, today has been one of my most rewarding. We have plenty of days that are productive but none have been as inspiring for me as today.
Sylvia and I took the lovely “Shamika”, the eastern grey kangaroo, down to Anna the Ophthalmologist at the Specialist Veterinary Clinic for her final visit. It has been seven weeks since her initial cataract surgery and it has been an education in more ways than one.
On our first trip to Albany Creek, Brisbane, we were worried about transporting a grey kangaroo for one and a half hours without stressing her. The good old Rescue Remedy, along with a special ‘carry' bag sewed by our amazing seamstress, Marie James, worked wonders and “Shamika” travelled beautifully, regardless of the frazzled driver and navigator! We always put on a calm and composed front for our animals so as not to transfer any anxiety to them. Pass the Rescue Remedy please!
Our next challenge was taking her down two weeks later, for the actual operation and having to leave her there overnight. With a dog or a cat, this is bad enough, but with a kangaroo it is a major worry. I had never ever left a native animal overnight in a surgery before, so I was apprehensive, but Sylvia and I really did feel confident in the care offered at this specialist surgery, along with their knowledge and understanding of what native animals need, as opposed to domestic animals, though they dealt with both – dogs coming from as far away as Alice Springs and Darwin for cataract surgery.
With the operation on the first eye, Anna was worried because not all of the lens was able to be removed, leaving some lens protein, so rather than delay too long, she operated on the second eye, where all went like clockwork. “Shamika” has had weekly and fortnightly visits up until now and Sylvia has had to administer special drops daily over all this time to prevent any inflammatory reaction and the young grey girl has been very tolerant throughout all this. She is a gorgeous animal!
So today was the culmination of all this stress! Anna was optimistic up until this time but felt this final visit, after prior fortnightly visits, was necessary to determine the success of the operation. She really was quite ecstatic. “Shamika” and another grey kangaroo a little older had both come out of these operations with sight. Their long term prognosis otherwise had been euthanasia, as a kangaroo without sight does not have an optimistic outcome out in the wild, and it would be cruelty to put them in this situation.
We now have the ‘all clear' for “Shamika” to go to her next pre-release stage, where she will be monitored closely. Three to four months ago, this prospect was not looking good. So we are all very happy with the outcome.
None of this would have been possible without Dr Charlotte Ashton-Heinius from the Woombye Veterinary Clinic. When Charlotte first diagnosed “Shamika's” cataracts she said “leave it with me”, which means Charlotte is going to go to untold lengths to find a solution for our native animals! She is a truly amazing lady, and I am always astonished at how she will phone all over Australia and explore every avenue in treating our Australian native animals, as she does with all animals. Wildlife carers really appreciate this as we know it is not an economically viable pastime to treat native animals! Charlotte has the same caring attitude all with her domestic animals… I have often spoken to people waiting in her surgery who tell me how Charlotte has saved the life of their dog, cat, bird or fish! As I've said before -this lady is a legend! To track down a Veterinary Ophthalmologist willing to work on a kangaroo was just amazing in itself!
Once again, I must thank all those who contributed to “Shamika's” operation. In the next week she is going out to her release site, with her three friends – “Kerchak”, “Ella”, and “Bubba”, where they will be in a pre-release paddock for another few months. The Ophthalmologist, Anna, actually wants to go out and visit them in a few months time to check on their progress, even though this is an hour and a half from Yandina and another hour and a half to Anna's Surgery. That is real follow-up care! Grey kangaroos are very slow at releasing into the wild, so in this case this trait is a blessing! We will be able to keep tabs on them as they gradually adapt to their wild living.
Jo, their new carer, has a lovely property and along with her husband, Elvis, (yes, that really is his name!), has set up a wonderful environment for macropods. Since I visited her last, she has another four hammocks hanging on her verandah for her kangaroos. With all her animals in care, Jo still manages to keep her house and paddocks spotless, whips up a beautiful lunch for visitors, and loves looking after “pinkies', the little furless joeys that come in. Another Wonder Woman in wildlife!
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Cockatoos and Bread !
Ok…Ok….I'm not going to bore you all with macropod talk this week. I do love all native wildlife (even the rats are still surviving!), it is just that my kangaroos and wallabies have taken up so much of my attention these past months.
Before I get onto my next diatribe, I just want to thank all you wonderful supportive people out there who have contributed to our special cause of “Shamika's cataracts operation. Sylvia and I were going to meet the costs of this out of our own pockets (hopefully our husbands don't get to read this, or they'll know why they haven't had a good rump steak for weeks!). It restores my faith in human nature that people can care so much about a lovely native animal that they haven't even seen. Thank you all for your generosity, as it means we have so much less to pay out of our own savings to the very well-deserving veterinary specialists. Shamika is going back for weekly checkups, as any radical rise in eye pressure can mean glaucoma.
Yesterday, a friend from Brisbane rang me…..she always calls if she has a wildlife problem, and invariably it is one she has created herself – though she means well. The latest problem involves a group of sulphur-crested cockatoos. (Last year it was a family of rainbow lorikeets that had nested in the nestbox in her yard.) She swears these cockatoos all have ‘beak and feather syndrome”. (Kath always gives them some exotic disease so I'll deal with the problem quickly for her!). I explained that even vets can't give such a swift diagnosis at a glance! Once again, I had to diplomatically explain that the problem was probably nutrition-based, as she was feeding them bread every day.
Bread is very detrimental to the health of our native animals, even if just one person is feeding animals/birds bread. In the majority of cases, everyone in the neighbourhood is feeding bread or some other processed food so the poor animals don't stand a chance.
THE BEST OFFERING YOU CAN MAKE TO OUR BIRDS IS A CLEAN TRAY OF WATER EACH DAY, UP HIGH ENOUGH TO BE OUT OF THE WAY FROM DOGS, AND FROM CATS THAT HAVE ESCAPED FROM THEIR AVIARIES!
Invariably, people feed birds or other native animals and then they become dependent on this food supply and can then make a nuisance of themselves. Cockatoos and galahs are experts at this, as once the food isn't there, or even if it is, they decide to chew up the timber verandah railing or furniture on the balcony. Then of course people want them removed instantly, and expect someone else, i.e. WILVOS 5441 6200, to solve the problem! I remember myself, many years ago, deciding that galahs would like a little extra seed, so I hung some up in a tree each day. Naturally, they then decided it was entertaining to chew up all the orchids I had carefully attached to the tree. Realizing my own stupidity, I just left a hanging tray of clean water out each day and they were happy with this. Maybe they had chewed up all my orchids already – I can't remember!!!
Feeding bread to kangaroos and wallabies also can create a major problem. The animals get into the habit of expecting food from every human and will then jump up and scratch for same. This can become such a problem that the animal has to be removed, or put down. A tragedy that we can all prevent. In my opinion the safest option is to make water the only supplement offered to our native animals….and just grow all those wonderful native grasses and shrubs as a natural food source.
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Shamikas Visit To The Vet.
Somewhere in the December madness, Sylvia and I managed to get Shamika down to the Veterinary Specialist Centre at Albany Creek. It is truly amazing when we find our way somewhere without getting hopelessly lost. Even turning the map upside-down, in true female fashion, doesn't always help!
Travelling in a car with a 7 kg kangaroo, even when she is in a cosy bag hanging off the back of the seat, is always nerve-racking enough, especially as Shamika hasn't been using a bag to sleep in, preferring to lie out on the ground like an adult kangaroo. Nevertheless, she travelled beautifully, well dosed up with Rescue Remedy, which always seems to have a calming effect, whether on humans or animals. I took my share!
The Ophthalmologist, Anna, is a fascinating person who clearly described the forthcoming operation on the cataracts. She took the pressure reading in both eyes and found one was quite high compared with the other. All this information is very interesting as so little is known on cataract surgery on macropods. Anna explained that even in the early days of cataract surgery on dogs, the operation was not always successful, so no guarantees could be made. We hoped it would be similar as with humans, with a positive result appearing very soon after the operation. This is actually not the case, as it can take up to a couple of months for sight to return in a kangaroo.
Anna intended to do just one eye first, but said it would depend on the circumstances as surgery was performed. Initially an incision is made at the top of the eye and the cataract is broken up with a laser and sucked out through this incision. Sorry the terminology is not too technical but this is how my lay mind understood it all!
With the first eye, one piece of lens could not be drawn out, so rather than waste too much time there (anaesthetics are always a little bit of a worry), Anna decided to move on to the second eye, which went perfectly, or as well as was possible. Shamika was kept in overnight and was quite relaxed about the whole issue. The clinic had a little paddock at the surgery and she was quite happy to graze out there, for a short while, from time to time. It was very important to measure the pressure in her eyes for the twenty-four hours after surgery, and watch out for infection, but as all went well, Sylvia was able to pick her up the day after her surgery.
Within a week, Shamika's eyes had begun to clear, and hopefully on her follow-up visit, there will be a good report. We are very optimistic about the outcome.
The holiday has been taking its toll on our native animals, with more cars on the road and the usual incidents of cat and dog attacks. Personally, I've picked up possums, gliders, galahs and, of course, two cute little field rats whose mother had been killed by a cat. (How do these little rats always find me?) The cat obviously thought it was a feral rat, not understanding it was one of our sweet little native mammals. The veterinary surgeon that phoned wasn't sure of the exact identification and neither was I, except we knew it was a native rat, so I took the mother to our whiz-kid on rat identification – Dr Lyndall Pettett! All was revealed, and the little ones are now progressing well.
Though busy animal-wise we have had a short rest on the administrative side with WILVOS. That is now over and we are organizing the next Induction/New Carer's Workshop for those people who would like to join WILVOS and learn about our Australian native animals, and maybe even become an actual carer.
Just call our hotline 5441 6200 phone number for information on this upcoming event. This will be followed in a couple of weeks by a bird workshop, which provides an interesting education for all.
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A Sign of Good Things to Come.
I don't know where to start this week. It has not been a very memorable Christmas for me. Maybe that is a sign of a good year coming up!
My dear father passed away the Thursday before Christmas in the Care Centre at Sundale in Nambour. I cannot say enough kind words about the carers in at Charlton. They looked after Dad so well over the past four years and were always cheery and helpful.
The following day I gained a new understanding of the words ‘life goes on'. Of course, people don't know when these tragedies beset us, so the phone calls for injured and orphaned wildlife keep rolling in. Dad always loved it when I took my little animals in to visit him.
I had been into Sundale to collect Dad's belongings and arrived home physically and emotionally exhausted when my brother rang from Dalby and asked if I could take Dad's chosen burial clothes into the funeral home within half an hour, when Dad would be taken back to his home town of Toowoomba. Just as I was about to hop in the car again and drive back to Nambour, a lady rang to say there was a sick possum in a tree up near the hospital. I tried to calmly ask how I would find this elusive tree, without sounding totally hysterical and “John Cleese” like! Nevertheless, this kind lady gave me excellent directions and so I found the poor ringtail possum, put her in a carry cage and off we went to the vets. She was past help and had to be euthanased, but the vets did have a young injured galah that needed care!!! No worries! Meanwhile, I'd forgotten to leave Dad's favourite photo at the funeral directors so galah and I drove back there. We then proceeded home where I collapsed with a welcome cup of tea and sandwich, and rang friend Sylvia to come and pick up the galah which would be well cared for in her hands.
Of course, my animals are totally aware of the chaos in my life and must have their normal routine,  which is probably a ‘sanity saver'. “Tammie”, the little swamp wallaby, now likes to wake up around five o'clock and bounce around madly in the paddock and up on the verandah until I appear with her bottle. Meanwhile the kangaroos think it is a good time to ‘fight' each other and make a racket. “Bubba” still calls out, pleading for his milk, regardless of the fact he is now over 8 kg and eating grass continually and is only on two bottles of formula a day.
“Kelowna” and “Tom Tom” have a new friend out with them in their release stage. “Jacylyn” is a sweetie and after a week in the paddock is now out enjoying her freedom.
This week also saw Sylvia, with me as navigator ‘extraordinaire', drive “Shamika” down to the specialist centre for her operation. For us to find our way around, even on the north side of Brisbane, is a marathon. Neither of us have any sense of direction, so we set off with many maps and directions and “Shamika” and I in the back of the car, one as nervous as the other! We amazingly arrived ten minutes early. Our only digression was once when we thought we had gone too far, so backtracked, only to realize we should not THINK, we should just believe the map! So now we are keeping our fingers and toes crossed. So little is known about our native animals, compared with domestic animals, and it is just wonderful that veterinarian specialists are pioneering in many fields of their care.
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Bob-a-Job's and the New Year.
By the time you read this we will all be in between the festive Christmas and the festive New Year, my dilemma being – “Can I really stay awake till midnight on Sunday night?”
The year 2006 cannot go past without thanking our wonderful supporters of WILVOS for the year. I am continually inspired by the work done for WILVOS by people who do not actively care for wildlife but want to help in some other way.
One gentleman, Max Collings, has been building wire cages for us for some years. He makes excellent cages which enables our wildlife carers to buy a well designed and constructed cage for an affordable price. Max does not accept any remuneration for this so it is very generous of him. It is such a big help to our new members to be able to set themselves up with the appropriate equipment from the beginning. It is definitely easier than trying to make ones own cage. For myself, if I try to make any type of wire cage I end up looking and feeling like I've been rolling around in a barbed wire fence for a week!
Then we have our two “Bob-a-Jobs”, as I call them. Bob Whiting cuts out and constructs our possum and glider boxes, while Bob Ohlback paints them, with a paint that will extend their life up in the trees. Again, these gentlemen don't even get a ‘bob' for all their work! These boxes are given to carers when their possum or gliders get to an appropriate age. This box then goes through the rehabilitation program with the possum/glider and when the animals are taken out to their release site in the mobile aviary, it has the comfort of a familiar home. The possums/gliders are then placed up in a tree, in this same box and it is left there. With the amount of tree clearing going on there can never be enough ‘homes' put up for our displaced animals.
We have just had another four people attend Jill's entertaining and informative training session for new phone roster volunteers. I was speaking to one lady who told me it was a morning well-spent, and she can't wait to do some time on the phone roster. These volunteers do a wonderful job. Our 24 hour hotline is the crux of the whole WILVOS organization. Without this phone contact there would be no WILVOS.
The first Sunday in February sees our next induction for new members who wish to actively care for native animals. Those who wish to become a member, but not actively care for animals still call the hotline number and the volunteer on roster will give out the phone number of the membership secretary, who will send out the relevant information on becoming a member and the benefits of same. The Government Legislation, relating to wildlife care, is explained and is followed by information on 24 hour care for rescued animals. This gives the new member some general information to help them out till they can get the animal to an experienced carer for assessment. The new carer, who of course is attending all the other interesting workshops throughout the year, can then care for the orphaned or injured bird/animal, while working along with an experienced carer.
People don't realize the places where we are really stretched for wildlife carers is along the coastal areas. All along the coast there are many birds, mammals and reptiles being injured or orphaned and it means a long drive for carers off the coast to go and pick these animals up. The more carers, the less overloaded WILVOS members become.
This past month has seen incredible support from the local community with donations for a cataract operation for the beautiful  eastern grey kangaroo “Shamika”. Sylvia and I are taking her down to a Specialist Veterinary Hospital in Brisbane just before New Year. This would not be possible without all you wonderful people out there. We are extremely nervous and just hope it all goes well. As with all surgery there are risks attached but we are being optimistic as we bite our nails to the quick!
I'd like to thank Peter Wellington, our local Member of Parliament, and his staff Vicki and Wendy, who are always so happy to help us with photocopying when needed. They are always so supportive of WILVOS and though so busy, they still find time to help us out.
To all those who bought tickets in the WILVOS raffle, good luck and thanks again to those who sent in extra donations with their tickets. It is most appreciated at this time of year when the purse strings are stretched more than usual. My family are receiving meagre presents this year as my kangaroos have gobbled up all my savings! They're worth it! My main present to family and friends is for them to come and sit on my verandah on Christmas afternoon and enjoy some good old ham, chook and salad. It is not a day when I exercise my culinary skills, I just like to relax and enjoy myself!
I received a lovely Christmas present before Christmas. “Buster” my little grey kangaroo, whose mother was killed by a bus, had his splints and bandages taken off. His green-stick fractures have healed perfectly with him being so young, and he is now finding his balance as he happily stands on the grass, looking amazed that he is actually allowed move around!
“Tammie” the swamp wallaby resembles a wind-up toy. At the last bottle feeding on the verandah, she just couldn't wait, so jumped onto a chair, then to the table and then to my lap! I have had a swamp wallaby land in my bar-b-que plate once, just as I was enjoying my lovely meal! They are adorable little terrors!
“Kelowna” still returns each day for a little dry rolled oats and “Tom Tom” joins her, as I try to be tough and wean him down to one bottle a day, but he sees me feeding the others through the fence and feels rejected so I weaken! “Ella” and “Bubba” are just blooming with “Bubba” now 8 kg and “Ella” 7 kg. “Bubba” is no longer a ‘bubba' – he is a well-mannered adolescent kangaroo! After Christmas they'll be getting together with their old friends “Kerchak” and “Shamika” before going to their release site, with a delightful lady who enjoys her kangaroos as much as I do.
WILVOS would like to wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous 2007.
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WILVOS Visit to North Arm State School.
Last week WILVOS were invited to the North Arm State School to receive a cheque from their latest fundraising venture. The school has done some major fundraising and chose WILVOS as one of the three organizations to benefit from these funds. WILVOS are very appreciative of all the work put in by the students, parents and teachers of the North Arm State School. It is a delightful school, and it is always entertaining to attend morning parade. We love to visit schools, as the students are the future for our Australian wildlife.
I am constantly amazed at the generosity of people. Following my article on the beautiful little eastern grey kangaroo with the cataracts, donations have been received and people have been buying the lovely little plush cows that were so generously donated by Ray Grace to help raise funds for the operation, which is a special project. WILVOS, as an organization, cannot be expected to pay for these types of operations so it has become a special cause of mine! It is so kind of the Woombye Veterinary Surgery to sell these quaint toys, and to receive donations for “Shamika”. Dr Charlotte and Kelly – you are legends! “Shamika's” carer has a lot less expense to meet and is just overwhelmed by everyone's generosity.
The cataract operation will be done in a couple of weeks. If people could see this gorgeous animal hopping around in her paddock, they would know it is a worthwhile cause. While I looked after “Shamika” for a week, she was unfamiliar at first with her surroundings so just did small circles around me and I had to watch she didn't run into anything. At her own home she is quite confident within the area she has grown up, and is otherwise just so healthy and fit. It is still sad to see her without her old freedom to race around anywhere and everywhere, but that will return after the operation and we'll all be grabbing for our tissues!
I was given the most wonderful card this week, made by the Yandina State School Year 3/4 class. WILVOS visited them recently as they were doing a segment on Australian native wildlife. The  knowledge of those children astounded me – they had learned so much on this very important subject. My card was signed by each child, but to each name was added a fact about an Australian native animal. Each child had to do their research and come up with this fact and write it down beside their name. How lucky they are to have Miss Sandra as their teacher. This well-mannered, interested and knowledgeable class was a credit to her.
I must be a total masochist – I elected to present the macropod workshop last Sunday for the WILVOS. With my love for wallabies and kangaroos this was not difficult, but much sleep was lost in preparing the manual! As always, many of our new WILVO members attended and everyone really enjoyed the workshop – or so they told me! This was followed by a possum workshop. Next workshop to be held is the baby bird workshop and then we are into the Christmas break.
Alan, of the Nambour Weekly, asked me when I was taking time off over Christmas, so as to work out what days I would be able to submit my WILVOS articles for the Weeklies. Alan - don't you know – volunteers don't get time off! Only the paid workforce gets this privilege! I even volunteered to do a couple of hours on Christmas Day for our WILVOS 54 416200 hotline number. We just can't get our native animals to understand we need Christmas Day off! They should hide away from all cat, dogs and cars for the holiday period and then we'd have very few calls!
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Nesting Fairy Martins.
Today I seem to have more time to catch up on chores – must be because I'm not standing in the kitchen mixing milk formula and feeding kangaroos and wallabies all day! My ‘babysitting' week is over and I miss my little friends who have all gone home. It was fun having Kerchak back here for the week. There is a special joy in watching a number of macropods together. Their interaction is always entertaining. Nevertheless, Kelowna comes back to visit me, Tom the Terror is spending some time in my paddock and some time out, and Ella and Bubba are just great pals. Tarzie has settled in with his new friends. Soon my greys will have to move on to their release place.
Last week one of our members picked up a beautiful little female swamp wallaby, just furring up, healthy but somewhat dehydrated. This is Jan's first macropod, though she has done two WILVOS macropod workshops, and it was ‘love at first sight'. ‘Tammy' is doing very well and it is great to have another macropod carer around.
Our 5441 6200 24 hour hotline seems to be operating well, thanks to all the work Jennifer and Peter put into keeping the volunteers up to date with changes etc. Sometimes there are ‘hiccups' with the diversion but mostly all goes well. This hotline has been running for so many years as a 24 hour service, run by our volunteers, but there are many people who still don't know about it. Though it is preferable to contact our 5441 6200 as soon as possible for the animal's sake, if people don't know the WILVOS phone number most now know that they can take injured or orphaned native animals, free of charge, to their local vet who has a list of WILVOS wildlife carers in their area. Because a vet surgery is a very foreign environment for a native animal, it is better if they can go direct to a carer through our hotline. We send an updated contact list out to interested vets each two to three months. We are so fortunate in that so many of our local veterinarians are willing to have their names on this list, along with the list of wildlife carers.
My mission for this week is to find an affordable couple of acres, with rundown dwelling on it, somewhere between Caboolture and Cooroy for a wildlife friend. This lady has reared four lovely children in a little rented house which is now for sale. With rentals becoming scarce it is more practical to buy a little place, though these are also hard to come by at a realistic price. So if anyone hears of any bargains out there, this lady has excellent references. You can contact me through 54 416200. I couldn't even find my hairbrush this past week, so I'd better hone my searching skills!
For some reason or other there have been a huge number of birds, nestling fairy martins, coming in from the Caloundra area. People are often well-meaning but remove these birds when it is not necessary. We do like to think that people remove these birds and nests with good intentions. Their mud nests may not look as if they are in the perfect spot, often under culverts, but they do know what they are doing! If birds fall out of their nests it is better to put them up in an artificial nest (an ice-cream container with drainage holes in the bottom and a little natural nesting material) strung up high enough to be away from cats – THAT HAVE ESCAPED FROM THEIR AVAIRIES! Swallows/fairy martins will come in and not only feed their own young, but others as well, so unless absolutely out of the question, please, please, please leave them in their area.
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WILVOS Chairperson Presents Research on Koala Oral Health.
I really don't like going near shops at this time of year. The rush is on, one can feel the pressure mounting from the moment the car hits the town environs.
Why do people get into this Christmas panic while we should all be sitting back and thinking what it is all about, where it all began, and remembering our traditions. All we need for Christmas is that our family and friends are all safe and happy, and we are all able to get together for a little socializing. Gifts, yes, but limit them to $5 or $10. My favourite presents are always the ones handmade by friends or family. I treasure them forever – to the horror of my two now- grown-up children who still have to look at some of their primary school masterpieces!
Christmas holidays always take a toll on our wildlife, with the extra traffic on the roads and the extra plastic bags floating around in our waterways, just to mention a couple of culprits! What can we do to compensate for this? We do feel better if we give back something to our wild animals.
So what do we buy or make for friends and family for Christmas? Top of the list of course is the cat aviary, followed by accessories for same! Nestboxes for possums, gliders and birds mean years of entertainment watching these houses being occupied by the different native animals. It is a pleasure to watch young being raised in these boxes. We feel like we have done something to compensate for mans impact on our native wildlife.
Native plants, whether they be grasses, shrubs or trees, are always welcomed by people and animals. When buying native plants, always try to buy plants indigenous to our area, and don't forget to buy native fruiting plants as well as the nectar shrubs. Just last week a group of us at Fairhill Native Plant Nursery were watching an incredible variety of birds feasting on the fruit from a native fig tree. When we tried these same fruits on our possums and gliders they too thought they were delicious fruits, so it would be busy around that tree at night as well.
Our illustrious Chairperson of WILVOS has flown over to New Zealand for the Australasian Wildlife Management  Conference and is presenting her research and studies on “The Oral Health of Koalas in Queensland”. We are all very proud of Lyndall, who is quite a brilliant scientist. Lyndall would like to have presented a paper on possums but felt that it would not have been very well-received in New Zealand! She would probably be deported!
Val and David, who so kindly loan us their cottage in Nambour for our monthly committee meetings, hosted a dinner for committee members recently. Just one thing – next time I will not sit near Lyndall Pettett! Her expertise in the field of oral health in koalas may be phenomenal, but it does not make for good dinner conversation!
Nevertheless, organizations always seem to have so much administration work involved in the day-to-day running and it was nice to have these volunteering hours acknowledged by Val and David at their very enjoyable get-together.
This weekend will be another busy couple of days. Vet, Sheree Atkinson, is opening her new Veterinary Surgery in Yandina, and WILVOS will be there from 10 am to 2 pm.
WILVOS members are also looking forward to their Christmas party this weekend. It is a chance to chat to new and old members. So often at workshops, we just don't have the time to talk to everyone so this weekend will be a pleasant change.
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School Vists, Bird Walks and Workshops.
We WILVOS can't say our lives are boring – we are all quite multi-skilled! Part of our responsibility as volunteer wildlife carers is to educate our young Australians, in their schools, on the wonders of our native wildlife. We also like to visit other community venues, such as retirement villages, as our animals bring joy to so many people.
We don't always have animals suitable for interaction with people, but when we do we like to take them out for brief visits. We recently spent a lovely morning at Sundale Garden Village in Nambour. We hear some fascinating stories and acquire knowledge as well.
At the schools, the children always have wonderful stories to tell – usually how their cat ate a bird or their dog chased a possum or a kangaroo!!! Nevertheless, that is why it is important for WILVOS to educate our young students. They will grow up knowing the importance of keeping their cat in its aviary (is everyone sick of me ‘harping' on cat aviaries???) and of keeping their dog restrained. Maybe they will grow up to be wildlife carers or wish to further their education on environmental issues.
The first Sunday in December WILVOS are holding a bird workshop, which is convened by Denise French, a very experienced bird carer and a very knowledgeable instructor in wildlife care. Because the majority of animals that come into care are birds, we need to keep teaching our members how to look after them. Even experienced wildlife carers enjoy all these workshops.
There is always something new out there to learn. I remember at Fairhill Nursery some months ago, at their monthly Bird Club walk, a lady was telling us how she now had so much more success with rehabilitating birds that had flown into windows. The normal practice is to put them into a shoebox, or larger carton if necessary, and cover them over and give them time to recover from their shock. This lady improved the survival rates by making sure the bird was propped up with a towel (or similar) wrapped around it so its head was straight up and not flopping on the side.
Once again our phone roster for the 24 hour WILVOS hotline is coming out and it's difficult to fill those shifts, especially at this time of year when so many people are going away. The phone is diverted to our home phones and we do a shift from 5 pm to 9 am, 9 am to 5 pm, or a six hour shift over the weekends. It's really quite a simple job and we do provide training. Jill, our wonderful secretary, put her hand up to give people a session of phone roster training. This will be held in the next couple of weeks on a Monday morning so if anyone is interested, please call the WILVOS hotline on 54 416200. Ask them to pass your details on to our secretary Jill. Knowing Jill, this would be educational and entertaining. She always gets a chuckle out of us at our monthly meetings! One doesn't have to be a WILVO member to help out on the phone roster, though most people think it is worth paying $15 a year to be a WILVO, even if not an active carer. Our Friends of Wilvos are happy to just receive our tri-monthly newsletter, attend our workshops at discounted prices, or maybe help out in some specific way.
The Christmas Season has begun. Val and David Harris very generously loan us a cottage behind their house for our monthly committee meetings, and they'd like a pre-Christmas get together with the committee, as we never ever have enough time to catch up at other times. I am looking forward to this as my social life has been minimal lately, with so many macropods demanding my time!....
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A Very Special Lady.
This week I met a very special lady. Just through a phone call I spoke to some one with whom I had an instant rapport.
It was Sunday and the normal rat-race at my place, but this lady needed help with an annoying Australian marsupial – the irascible antichinus. I took two different traps in which I hope would catch these little ‘terrors', so could catch them and then relocate them in the nearby bushland, but also close off the door entrances.
These little Australian marsupials are normally just identified as mice and caught in traps and disposed of as vermin. This lady knew better. I just have great admiration for the fact that she knew so much about these little Australian native animals. I did not know of them until ten or so years ago!
I am continually amazed at how individuals can go to so much bother to protect our native animals. Such a contrast to some of the calls we get where it is a case of “get rid of them or we'll kill them!”
It would have been quite easy for this lady to just use the old style mouse trap/rat trap and kill these ‘little horrors' but no….. this lady wanted to do the right thing. I'd like to mention the fact that this lady was going into hospital for a major operation within the next week, and was worried about losing sleep because of these little animals. They were keeping her awake every night and how she retained her patience for so long I do not know.
Sunday afternoon is no different to any other afternoon for our volunteers. We are complete masochists. But really I just had this call from a lady that no one else would help. So I took around two different traps and crossed my fingers they would work. I painted the base of the door with pine disinfectant, hoping it would deter the little horrors. The following day I went around to check….no captures but no droppings either so maybe the little devils are outside.
We will wait and see…….I really want to make sure these animals are outside as this gorgeous lady is having an operation on Friday and does not want to come home to antichinus having a chick every night.
We meet some lovely people as we go out on our rescues.
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Our Busiest Time With The Approach of Spring.
The WILVOS hotline (5441 6200) has been running hot lately, with the approach of spring.
I have been busy organizing the building of my kangaroo paddock for Tarzan and his friends. My husband and his friends have done a great job. Still a few thousand fencing clips to go in, gates to go up, shelters to be constructed and mesh to be pegged down with hundreds of tent pegs , but it is looking good!
Thank you to those wonderful people who rang me about corrugated iron for the shelters. All donations were extremely welcome.
Because the fence has a ‘skirt' laid out on the ground for 50cm at the base, this all has to be pegged down so I had this great idea that I would get out the pliers and cut up 8 gauge wire and bend into hooks to make the pegs. I have done this before but not needed such vast quantities. After nursing blistered hands, someone suggested buying tent pegs from the discount stores. What a great idea, good value for twenty cents each, compared with blistered fingers, except that I could only find 130 of same in Nambour! After buying out Nambour's tent pegs I went to the second-hand store in Yandina where I bought their whole box of assorted tent pegs! I just finished hammering in the last of these this afternoon so off to the ‘yellow pages' again tomorrow.
Two weeks ago, I had a call for another young joey on the Yandina - Bli Bli Road. The female grey kangaroo had been killed by a car and fortunately a young lad in a car following soon after saw the young in-pouch joey. Kerchak is going well and is now over 2 kilograms. Tarzan thinks he is a good friend, though not too active yet. He stands beside the pouch and grooms his new young friend.
 Also, to arrive this week is “Ella”, a female grey who is a little smaller than Tarzan but it is great to be getting a couple together. It is so important to raise a mob of grey kangaroos together, so they get to socialize with their own kind instead of humans. The three are all still on five bottles a day, but Tarzan and Ella will come down to four once they adjust to the changes in their lives.
Amongst all the chaos, we did our yearly pilgrimage to the Gympie Muster and I did enjoy my sleep-in both mornings, along with my ‘nana-nap' each afternoon. Friends are always surprised I can sleep through all the noise –as when I am home and there is one little call from a joey, I am instantly awake!
This week I'll certainly be sleeping with one eye open – now we have a new ‘boarder' in the house. We always have to deal out plenty of TLC to grey kangaroos when they change carers!
Donna Anthony
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Reptile Workshop
The WILVOS 5441 6200 phone number has been receiving quite a few snake calls with the warmer weather on the way. Because of public liability and the required permits, WILVOS members cannot remove snakes. In most cases, snakes will just be moving through our gardens, (hopefully to a far away neighbours yard!). We have a list of ‘snake catchers', specially permitted by Parks and Wildlife, who deal with snakes that may be creating a problem for people.
One of these brave (totally mad…some would say!) snake catchers is John Rudder, who was a guest speaker at a recent workshop held by WILVOS. Forty-four wildlife volunteers turned up, not necessarily to improve their snake catching abilities, but just to further their knowledge of these fascinating creatures. I guess we'll never eradicate the old saying “The only good snake is a dead snake”, but at least education will improve our understanding, and maybe allay some fears, of these reptiles.  John displayed his catching techniques and spoke on many aspects from snake handling to first aid.
The morning session of the reptile workshop dealt with our Sunshine Coast skinks, (including the eastern blue-tongued lizard and the pink-tongued skink), monitors (goannas), and dragons. To see an eastern bearded dragon alongside an eastern water dragon certainly made the differences quite distinct for those who had been previously confused by the similarities between the two. Megan showed the different tank set-ups and informed us of all the important aspects of caring for injured reptiles, such as monitoring the temperature of the tank, and the habitat requirements of reptiles in care. It was good to know that we have no venomous lizards in Australia, though I think some of them could still pack a nasty bite!
Megan enlightened us with her knowledge and it was interesting to find out that our home state of Queensland has the most species of frogs and reptiles in Australia, many of these being rare species, not to mention the fact that we have some of the most dangerous snakes in the world, along with the largest pythons. It is amazing that we have this continuing migration into our lovely state!
It is a well-established fact that most people are bitten by snakes while trying to kill them, so of course the wisest thing is to leave them be. Nature is amazing and all our animals have a purpose in the ‘order of things', even if we may not be able to clearly see it.
I'm seriously considering becoming a snake carer, instead of a kangaroo/wallaby carer - no, not really!!!! It's just that the feeding requirements are so minimal, every two weeks when active and not at all during winter. That makes snake caring seem very attractive!
At the moment, while friend Sylvia, is up north, I am also looking after her kangaroos and wallabies for a week. Twenty- six bottles a day all up! By the time midnight comes, sleep comes easily. At least there are no 2 am feeds so I only have to start the day at 6 am. They are all getting along famously although little Tom, the red-necked wallaby, can be quite bossy. Ella is still the serene matriarch! It is a delight to hear them racing from one end of the paddock to the other at night.
Yes, I'll definitely stay with the cute and furries!
Donna Anthony
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I'm Famous - Response to "Reptile Workshop"
I am astonished to say the least! I have never received a negative comment to any of my articles in the Nambour Weekly, though this one may have come from the Caloundra end of the coast. In fact, I am continually amazed at the people who track me down, via phone or friends, just to tell me how much they look forward to my wildlife segment each week. Nevertheless, I am not in it for accolades - I just love writing! These stories are just written on my experiences, and I try to throw a little humour in the articles, as most of the news we read is, let's face it, just totally depressing.
Well…….I really wasted my time having sense of humour last week!
I have an email, sent to our website through wildlife@wilvos.org.au from a Louis Jones, taking offence at my article. He seems to have misconstrued my whole article in his mind. I have read and re-read this article and I can find nothing offensive.
I just have the utmost admiration for John Rudder (though I did jokingly refer to him as ‘totally mad'!) who was a presenter at our WILVOS workshop, and have great respect for David Jolly, another snake catcher extraordinaire, whom I have never met, (but someone loves you too David, going by said email!) for going out there and relocating venomous snakes. There is a need for this because the human impact element is felt across the whole animal world. David did an incredible service to the community by relocating an eastern taipan from a beach. These gentlemen are permitted by the E.P.A. to do just this, because of their expertise in this field. I may be a bit vague but, Louis, I really do not see how you could interpret that I was criticizing this action. I love it, because I sure as hell would not and could not do it! That David did not charge for his services is just so commendable, because I know the insurance costs for snake catchers is pretty phenomenal. I would never criticize someone for charging a price for going to someone's house and relocating a venomous snake. It is that resident's choice.
I am sorry but as ‘just' wildlife volunteers we do not have the expertise or the credentials or, in my case, even the inclination to do this job. If I should seem a bit light-hearted in my article, please forgive me – I am not being blasé, I am just being realistic – most people do not like snakes in their yard and often believe that the only good snake is a dead one. I want to change that opinion, but at the same time no-one should handle snakes unless they know what they are doing! I don't! If I tried to identify a snake over the phone or tried to relocate one, it could mean the death of a person, probably me!
Do you have any idea of what fine I could receive if I were, as an unpermitted person, to go and relocate a snake. The E.P.A. could fine me around $20,000….sorry, my dear fellow, but that would feed many kangaroos for a long time! I would not risk that by saving you from a venomous snake.
With the article I sent in to the Nambour Weekly, I sent a photo I had taken of John Rudder with a beautiful diamond python. The photo of David Jolly placed in with my article was not taken by me. That was the choice of the Weekly editors and I have no complaints there – though I did like my photo!
Louis, whoever you are, please do me a favour, just let me write my light-hearted articles for those who appreciate them. If someone paid me for this writing, maybe then I would allow you to make your mindless comments without a comeback! I am an extremely busy person and it takes time and effort, as a non-paid volunteer, to produce some light-hearted reading each week! Read another paper or page if you don't like my articles. Believe me, I am being polite to what I would like to say to you!
Donna Anthony…..written as an independent writer this week so my words are not representative of any wildlife organization, though I know they'd support me anyway!
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Brushtails Brush-up on the "three R's".
Recently, after a call to our WILVOS 5441 6200 phone number, Sylvia and I went into a Nambour High School where Dave, an on-site workman, had found a family of bobucks (short-eared brushtail possums) in a room they were planning to renovate.
We took in a tea chest full of native leaves and flowers, hoping we could just slot it in front of them on the shelf and they would walk in. Then we could cover them with a towel and take them outside. Yes, it quite often is this easy! (Of course, they can't just be released during the day or all the birds could attack them.)
Anyway, by the time we reached the school, the possums had all separated. Dad on one shelf, joey on another, and Mum hiding behind a box on the floor.
We thought we'd be brave and capture the largest first. Two workmen stood in the small room, looking bemused! We did mention they mightn't like it if a possum ran up their leg and sat on their head! Dad Possum, very agreeably, walked into the tea chest, with a helping nudge from Sylvia, and began feasting on the foliage. Next the young one ran over and hopped on Mum's back and after some digressions she finally went into a corner where we could place the box and Sylvia could once again use a little persuasion to help her in there. This did take a while and we were beginning to wonder whether we may have to lunge and tackle! Not really an apt description but sounds good! By this time, the two workmen had sidled out the door, muttering about work they had to get done!
At one stage, we checked to see how the male was, as we were carrying him from corner to corner in the tea chest. We had a chuckle – he was just lying on his back munching on the flowers, totally relaxed. A good scenario as we always try not to upset the animals any more than necessary when performing these antics!
Once all the possums were contained in the tea chest, we took them out to nearby trees, where we positioned the box, with towel over, so they could come out at dark and return to their forest.
Just as we were about to leave we saw that there were window openings at the top of the room where the windows had been taken out. We had to explain to the workmen that the possums would return that night if they didn't close off the entrance (after all it would be a cosy refuge in which to retire at the end of a cold night!). Very obligingly these two gentlemen nailed up some ply to close off the room.
We really do appreciate the common sense shown in phoning the WILVOS 24 hour hotline phone number in these situations. If the workmen had chased these possums out the door, they would have panicked, become separated, and the young one especially would have been harassed by birds all day, or become the victim of a cat or dog.
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Caravaner's Pick up a Hitchhiker.
We recently had a call from a Caloundra couple who had just returned from two months caravanning over to Western Australia. On their way back, they stayed with friends out near Roma and while there, they found an orphaned kangaroo on the side of the road. Sadly, they said the road carnage out there is horrendous at the moment.
By the time Denise and Ray arrived back in Caloundra, they immediately rang the WILVOS hotline number, with the intention of passing this little grey kangaroo on to an experienced kangaroo carer. Already in love with this little treasure, Denise said it was a difficult call to make, but she wanted the best for “Ella”. Though not having experience with kangaroo orphans, they displayed the most important criteria for any animal carer – ‘common sense'! They were able to obtain suitable milk formula and bottle and teat, and fed little “Ella” at regular intervals. Denise even found that by tickling “Ella's” end quarters, she was able to get her to go to the toilet into pieces of tissue or ‘chux'! Being spotlessly clean in their mother's pouch, that's the way they like to stay!
On ringing the WILVOS 5441 6200 number, they were directed to an experienced kangaroo carer who asked them to bring the kangaroo out for assessment, and the possibility of doing a macropod (kangaroo) training course on the Sunday. This was Friday, so they immediately left their caravan unpacked at Caloundra and came up to Yandina to see Sylvia. Denise was overjoyed that she was able to continue to care for the little joey, and both Denise and Ray were very happy to continue to work with experienced carers and attend the training workshop in just a couple of days time.
This little orphaned joey was so lucky because this initial scenario does not always have a happy ending. Only too often we see the end result after people pick up, or are given, cute little kangaroos or wallabies, and they ‘look after' them for a week or so, before ringing a wildlife organization, usually by which time they are severely dehydrated or bone fractures have begun to heal incorrectly. By this time, the joeys often need intensive care and medication that would not have been necessary if they had come straight into experienced care. Regardless of the condition of the animal, WILVO carers are always appreciative of people calling them for help. Often, by the time members of the public pick up a joey, the animals are in need of urgent care and it is good to know that people take the time to stop and check a pouch or pick up a young joey and contact us immediately.
As a WILVO carer myself, I just love to introduce new carers into the wonders of raising orphaned Australian native wildlife, and am only too happy to work with those willing to learn. We really do not have enough carers for our injured and orphaned birds and mammals. We all started knowing nothing, and we must continue to learn and show others what to do.
At our latest Macropod and Mammal Workshops, we had good attendance and saw more keen new members ready to take on the challenges and joys that only these incredibly vulnerable animals can bring.
Though people wonder how they can part with their animals when it is time for them to move onto pre-release and the final release into the wild, once they have cared for them, they realize this is all for the best. We always shed a tear but know the animal is returning to where it should be!
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Bats Do So Much Good For The Environment.
I was really happy to read the Bat Rescue article in the Nambour Weekly. These mammals are so maligned, yet do so much good out there in the environment, as all our native animals do.
Bat Rescue Inc is a separate organization to our Wildlife Volunteers Association Inc because bat carers do have to be vaccinated against the bat lyssavirus before they are able to actively care for bats. Nevertheless, our WILVOS 5441 6200 hotline phone number takes phone calls for ALL Australian native wildlife. We then give out phone numbers to the appropriate organizations, such as bat carers, if we do not have members to handle same. Bat Rescue members are very prompt at attending to the problem. 
Why do some humans have to get this mental block about certain animals – complaining they are too noisy, too smelly, eat their fruit trees or just plain annoy them with their very existence? Such people should be locked up in a sterile cell for a while and when they come out they may appreciate all our fascinating Australian native animals out there in nature that titillate our senses!
* If we planted more native trees indigenous to our area (actual whole forest replanting would be the optimum), the animals would not have to eat from our orchards. We have taken their food trees and replaced them with our food trees.
* If we made nestboxes and put them in suitable trees in our yards, the animals wouldn't have to live under our roofs. We have taken away their homes and replaced them with our homes.
* If we left large areas of forest instead of these ridiculously inadequate ‘wildlife corridors”, the animals would not want to co-habit with us. They only live in close proximity to us because of necessity. The narrow wildlife corridors left in some areas just provide an easy meal for predators. Predators can just sit back and wait until our nocturnal animals wake up and go venturing out for food. The predators know their ‘mobile dinners' will be taking that same track through the narrow corridor of trees. Easy picking!
* If we didn't feed our foods (please never, never bread!) to our native animals/birds they wouldn't constantly demand food from everyone in the neighbourhood – and we wouldn't later complain that they are too noisy or were chewing up our timber verandah railings.
* If people kept their cats in aviaries and their dogs locked up at night, all we wildlife carers would be able to sit down, put our feet up, have a ‘cuppa' and bemoan the fact that we have no wildlife for which to care!
As wildlife carers we never know whether to be happy or sad when the number of phone calls occasionally decrease. Is it because we humans are being more considerate of our wildlife or is it because the wildlife out there is disappearing? I think it is a combination of both.
Just remember if anyone sees any bats hanging on fences, powerlines or in any unusual situation, please call WILVOS on 5441 6200 and we will give you the name of a bat carer to advise you. Even if Mum is dead, the little orphaned bats can be saved. We need our bats to pollinate our forests.
*If you net your fruit trees, please use white netting (so nocturnal animals can see it) over a frame that keeps the netting taut so animals will bounce off it, not get caught in it.
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A Sense Of Humour Helps When We Are Not Perfect
I think a slightly warped sense of humour should be a pre-requisite to being a wildlife carer!
I recently had a call out from the WILVOS 5441 6200 hotline for two baby bandicoots. The gentleman was sure they were bandicoots as there was holes in his lawn so he knew bandicoots inhabited his yard. Also his cat had brought in an adult dead bandicoot the night before. (Yes, I did suggest he keep his cat contained, especially at night, and explained all the benefits of building a cat aviary!) 
Anyway, I collected the two ‘bandicoots' – one quick look at them told me they were a little on the small side for that species at this stage of development and they looked suspiciously like a rat – though one of the ‘new endemic' species. These are actually a native rat, not like the introduced ‘rattus rattus', or black rat as it is commonly known.
Nevertheless, a rat is a rat to most people, and I must admit, native or not, I just don't have the same feeling for these little mammals as I do for a brushtail possum or a squirrel glider. It always makes me feel extremely guilty that I should differentiate!
After the quick peek at these little treasures, eyes still closed, I waited till I returned home to inspect them. I had a friend's daughter with me at the time. They were visiting for a few days. Kara had seen the expression on my face when I'd looked at the little orphans, as the gentleman transferred them to my little flannelette pouch. We were more horrified to arrive home, having another quick look before I hopped out of the car, to find only one little creature! Oh dear, what if the gentleman went home and put his beanie, that had been holding the ‘bandicoots', into the washing machine? Not a good scenario! I was not feeling like a very efficient wildlife carer! After systematically checking my shirt, jeans and car seat, I very carefully moved out of the car. As I moved out of the seat - ‘crash' - the poor little rat hit the ground! It had been on my lap somewhere. Mortified, I picked it up – thankful I didn't have to give it ‘mouth to mouth' – fortunately it didn't look too stunned!
All three were very happy to drink their milk, once settled, though they must have missed their home. I have a funny feeling that the gentleman who found them will not be quite so keen to have them released back into his yard when I tell him they are a species of native rat! Nevertheless, I do know his next door neighbour, who shares the same little forested creek area and she will be happy to let them make her place their home as they adjust to the wild again!
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Possum Heaven
Last Saturday was both a happy and a sad day for me. Happy because I was going to see my two short-eared brushtail possums (bobucks), go out to their release site, and sad because I wasn't going to get a sleep-in! OK…so I was also just a little sad that I was going to miss these two beautiful animals that had been with me for eight months! Once again, these animals were saved because caring people had rung our WILVOS 5441 6200 phone number for help when they saw the injured animals.
Both these possums had come into the WILVOS care due to their mothers being mauled by dogs. One mother had died and the other had to be euthanased at the vets. These possums do come down to the ground during their nocturnal adventures, which leaves them vulnerable to our pets. The bobucks grow to be an extremely large possum so the adults can usually handle any cats they come across (why aren't those cats locked up in their aviary at night???!!!). Although large, these possums are the most gentle, adorable creatures. Even if they come in as injured adults, it only takes a few days for them to become trusting and not want to bite our hands off as we bathe their wounds or give them physio!
Back to my Saturday morning. By the time Lyndall arrived I had fed cattle, horses, birds, glider and wallaby, all the time mumbling mild obscenities at our little dog who was determined to trip me up, as he knew I was going out and leaving him home alone! I was just taping the ply over the hole in the possum box, so they were ready to go, as Lyndall drove in. I lugged them down to the car (phew…they were ready for release….weighed a ton!), which Lyndall had packed with ladder, climbing equipment clothesline wire and garden hose - to go over the wire so it wouldn't cut into the tree.
There was one wee problem! Lyndall, who is usually the climber for these releases, was determined to do so again this time, even though she was still wearing a neck brace - a frequent fashion accessory since the tree fell on her at a development site last year. Though I get vertigo walking up stairs I could see that I'd have to insist on struggling up the ladder and hoisting up the boxes, all the while trying not to faint!
Just as we were going to set off – my nervous breakdown was postponed! Sylvia rang to say that her husband, Bob, was quite happy to come out with us to the release site. We heaved a sigh of relief as Bob is one of those men, (now listed as an endangered species), who can turn his hand to anything and it would take a lot to phase him - though I don't think he has a great rapport with possums – in fact I know he would rather climb the tree with a two-metre python in the box rather than a possum! (Thank you Bob, we appreciated your sacrifice!)
On the way to the release site near Lake Cootharaba, we picked up another pair of possums that were also ready to brave the wilds. Maureen, the carer, had them all secure in their possum box, with a bunch of their favourite native foliage. There were a few growls of dissent coming from within, but they soon settled.
The release site was an incredible two hundred plus acres that is owned by a lovely American couple that purchased land all over the world, expressly for the purpose of revegetating and bringing the land back to its ‘original' state. We expected that we would have to carry the possums, in their boxes, over to the spots that Lyndall had chosen on her prior visits. This was only a half a kilometre walk! Fortunately though, the landholders had slashed a path through for us, so we could drive almost to the release trailer.
This was a different release in that Maureen's two possums were going through our usual process, while the two I had reared were going straight out in their boxes, up the tree. Normally, the possums are put in the mobile release trailers (an aviary built onto a trailer) for approximately a week on the site chosen for release. This way they can be fed the foliage from the area, and can interact with resident possums to reduce conflict because of territorial disagreements. Because this was a site with enormous food reserves, it was suitable to monitor the different release processes.
There was a very dense canopy of leaves, not far from a creek, and it looked a wonderful spot for possums. Lyndall puts a huge amount of work into researching these release areas, and into the follow-up process that monitors how the animals adapt to the ‘wild'.
Bob climbed up the ladder to about twelve feet and pulled the boxes up with a rope pulley to set them against the branches. At one stage, I looked across at Lyndall, and she was chuckling away and telling me to bring my camera around her side. When I went around there, Allira was poking her head inquisitively out of the box. (Oh, no……….I thought…… Let's hope Bob doesn't notice as he secures the hose around the other side! If Allira decides to come out and climb on Bob's shoulders, I could see boxes and possums flying in all directions!)
Nevertheless, all went to plan and by now there are four very happy possums enjoying their freedom, though they are well-spaced apart to avoid any neighbourhood dispute.
Donna Anthony
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Kerchak Update
There are many kind and caring people out in our community who help our native animals, even if they aren't in a position to actively care for them. Thank you to Billie, a lovely lady, who sent a cheque to offset the cost of the posts for my kangaroo paddock. Another gentlemen, whose wife works with a friend of mine, bought a packet of good strong tent pegs and asked if they'd pass them on to me. These gifts are just so appreciated, as the cost of raising native animals and giving them the best, most natural conditions, can often become quite formidable! We do always make sure we only take what we can manage – otherwise the care of the animals is compromised, not to mention our sanity.
The WILVOS hotline is not always beset with just our Australian native animals. I did have a call about a little brown hare on Tuesday, and although an introduced mammal I did weaken and make arrangements for its care. The poor little thing had come in on Friday, and although the people did make the old mistake of hanging on to it till Tuesday when it was almost comatose, they did care enough to call, arrange for it to be re-hydrated and brought it out to me. Often at this stage, people are too embarrassed to ring anyone and the animal dies a slow death. Sad for any animal. So the leveret (now how many of you knew that that was what a baby hare was called???) is now happy.
Enough of the little ferals! The eastern grey kangaroo situation takes up at least half of my day! I had another male kangaroo brought out to me by another WILVO who had been given this pathetic little animal. It was not known how long his mother had been dead, but by his condition it was quite some days. I took the gorgeous little Kerchak over to Sylvia's sanctuary to pal up with her little female grey kangaroo, Shamika. Shamika was by herself and as they are around the same size of 3 kilograms, it is an ideal time for them to have other kangaroos around them.
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Where is "Lottie" now?
I can’t believe the amount of people who are calling me and asking, “How is Lottie”? I know I’m an obsessive macropod (kangaroo and wallaby) carer, but it makes me so happy to know there are other people out there who really care so much about one individual little animal that has brought me so much joy….. yet so many tears. It is also a reminder of the importance of having the WILVOS 24 hour phone line for distressed wildlife, though I know it can sometimes be difficult for those volunteers manning the 5441 6200 phone number. Their time and help is so appreciated.
I had my fingers crossed when I took Lottie back to Charlotte to have her stitches out for the last time. Though all looked well, I still worried that the sutures would be taken out and that lovely lip would just collapse! Quite paranoid of me as it did appear to have fused well! Nevertheless, all in the vet surgery were very relieved to see Lottie’s beautiful face looking almost perfect, minus those darn stitches. (That veterinarian, Charlotte at Woombye, needs to be presented with an M.B.E. in the next honours list!!!).
Since then all has gone so well. For an eastern grey kangaroo Lottie has been incredibly relaxed and energetic, even in unfamiliar surroundings. As I’ve said to people - I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that Lottie always had to be either hanging in my shoulder bag, or in a bag tied around my waist. (I was never able to let her out of my sight in case she scratched at her stitches with those elegant long toes!) My daughter, Kylie, has always been a great advocate of maximum cuddles with her two babies, Tom and Molly, stating that it will ensure that they grow up into very secure confident adults. I can relate to this and feel that it works with animals also, and that is why Lottie is such a well-adjusted joey! I can take her out of her familiar surroundings but as long as she knows I am staying in one spot, she will belt around like a maniac. This is just what they do with their mothers.
The stages of a joey’s development are just so fascinating. To rear a joey through to successful release, it is beneficial for a carer of these orphans to watch the relationship with their kangaroo mothers in the wild. Initially, one sees that little unfurred face looking out on the world with great apprehension. As the skin darkens and the fur is beginning to appear, these little joeys then put their heads out and ‘eat’ from the safety of mother’s pouch. As their first teeth are coming through they ‘mouthe’ the grass as their introduction to grazing. At this stage the dirt is needed to develop good bacteria in their stomach for their digestive system. The mothers now tip the young ones out onto the ground and encourage them to toilet there. The joeys begin to hop in ever-increasing circles around Mum as they adjust to the outside world. The mother can tighten up her pouch and prevent the joey from hopping back in the pouch until she, Mum, is ready. Discipline! They learn to hop in very quickly in case a predator comes on the scene. As time goes on the joey spends less time in the pouch, but follows closely behind mother. The male joeys are almost two years of age when they disperse and the female joeys tend to stay with their mother much longer, continually furthering their education!
The specially developed low-lactose milk formula is crucial for a kangaroo joey’s survival. Incorrect milk formula leads to diarrhoea, dehydration, cataracts, blindness and death. As always, those initial hours of care are so crucial. Please call WILVOS immediately on 5441 6200 if you find a joey or a dead mother with a young one in the pouch. The young must be removed from the pouch carefully as often their mouths are attached to the teat very securely, and damage will occur to the jaw if the joey is just pulled off the teat.
I feel that Lottie’s chances of successful rehabilitation were increased enormously due to the prompt action taken when her mother was found dead beside the road. There was no dehydration and the immediate correct care helped her adjust to her new smells, sounds and new ‘pouch’ before she became too stressed.
From a weight of less than 1 kilogram, Lottie is now close to 3 kg. She is still on six 50ml bottles a day of Biolac M150 marsupial milk and I’m trying to be tough and cut this down to five, though I do believe that smaller amounts of milk more often are better for the animal. (As smaller meals, more often, are better for us!) If it takes more time, well so be it! It is quality time as I know the time is now getting closer when Lottie will have to go to another carer with other kangaroos of similar size. Eastern grey kangaroos are very ‘sooky’ and bond very strongly to their carers so it is important to get them with others of their own kind as they become adventurous with their hopping and exploring. As they progress through to release, these familiar friends help to prevent stress while they all adjust to new experiences in their lives. Though parting is sad for the carer, we want the very best for our animals.
Lottie will be going to a carer out near Kilkevan in about a month’s time. Her new carer, Anne-Marie and husband Joe, have purchased a property of a couple of hundred acres, at the very end of a road. Anne-Marie feels it is worth the mortgage to have the best possible release site for her kangaroos. She has had a dog-proof 1 hectare pre-release paddock erected for her macropods so they can be in peak fitness when they go out into the big bad world. I know Lottie will be much loved and cared for, well-equipped for the best chance of survival in the wild.
Thank you to all the Nambour Weekly readers who have taken such an interest in our “Lottie”!….Donna Anthony (WILVOS)
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Little "Lottie" is on mend
This week I am recovering from more vet visits to Dr. Charlotte with stiches to the lip of my eastern grey kangaroo Lottie (but she's getting there!).
Plus there's the AGM, plus the impending National Wildlife Rehabilitation Conference down at Surfer's Paradise at the end of the month. In-between times, I have the usual phone calls, through our hotline 5441 6200 for school visits, as well as calls from community groups. Family, friends, car services and housework are all on the back-burner.
My darling "Lottie" has had her fifth, and I hope final, visit to Dr Charlotte at Woombye, as her lip is finally shaping together. I cannot thank Charlotte enough for her compassion and dedication in treating this little kangaroo.
It has been the most awkward place to suture, while "Lottie" still wants to tumble in her bag and scratch her nose. I know that domestic pets are more of a paying proposition, and appreciate any vet who spends so much time with these needy native animals.
We haven't even reached the Spring months yet, but there are so many small possums coming into care. Fortunately WILVOS have a wonderful co-ordinator Kay, who "pairs-up" possums and gliders as they come in through the phone roster volunteer or veterinarian surgeries. This is an important job as little ringtail possums and squirrel, sugar and feather tail gliders all have multiple joeys, so it is much less stressful if they are placed with another "babe". The WILVOS AGM was just great fun. Who said AGMs were boring? We had our new riverwatch members join us and they are a lovely bunch, and I look forward to interacting with them.
Our Wildlife Volunteer's Association Inc. looks forward to another year with Lyndall Pettett as the chair. This lady just never ceases to amaze us. Last week she had a tree fall on her, yet turn up at the AGM she did, neck brace and all, giving a talk which left us all speechless. This was followed up by a short video she did on wildlife caring for the WILVOS members present.
We then had a preview of the new WILVOS website - previously www.wilvos.com. The new site address is is www.wilvos.org.au and the site is incredible. There is information for everyone on this site.
There is a specially designed section for teachers to use in their curriculum - devised by a student teacher - thank-you Melissa - who understands the structure needed. This means teachers within the classroom can make understanding Australian Native Wildlife part of their program. We would love to be out there more often with the schools, but unfortunately we just don't have enough volunteers to go around.
I think the website will give out so much easily accessible information. I am a little worried about my capabilities in updating the site with the latest WILVOS newsletter and Nambour Weekly articles, but we are assured we will have a website manual to enable us to do these chores. I hope he is not over-estimating our technical computer skills!
Since last week's Nambour Weekly we have a few calls emanating from the wildlife articles. One lady was so happy that she now knows what number to ring in wildlife emergencies, and contacted the WILVOS on 5441 6200 when finding a small ringtail possum in her yard.
Another couple of Nambour Weekly readers called in on the hotline number for membership joining details. Marian and Megan provide manuals and training for those interested an we have phone roster workshops for all phone roster volunteers on October 16th in Nambour, Denise, one of our members at Woombye, has always been a great carer with injured and orphaned birds. In the last couple of weeks she has taken on the challenge of raising three little 3 gram feather tail gliders. They are doing so well, and another two of these tiny mammals have since come in to make up a colony of five. Feather tails are quite often mistaken for mice when furless or just furred.
To make it more confusing they nest in power boxes, raincoat pockets hanging in sheds where people may find two or three babies (when they are too big to squash in Mum's pouch) and mistake them for little feral rodents.
Just when I thought life was slowing down a little, I received a phone call from Cooroy. Lola and Wally (other WILVOS members) had found a dead eastern grey kangaroo, another road accident victim, on the road near their place. Being a good WILVOS, they pulled the dead female well off the road for safety reasons. They then checked her pouch and found a young joey well hidden inside. They removed the Joey, checking first that it wasn't still attached to the teat - in which case they knew they may have to ask an experienced kangaroo carer for help, especially if the Joey was very young and pink. (Irreparable damage can be done if a Joey is just pulled off the teat). Lola then placed the little one in a soft pillow-slip type bag and took her home and immediately gave me a call. Wally called the local council to arrange for removal of the dead mother.
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Saving "Lottie" the kangaroo
Do people who are fit and healthy really get bored? How could they? I would just about give anything to have one day of boredom - sounds like pure luxury! I always tell friends that if they come into my home, and the garden plus every room and cupboard in the house is immaculate - I must either be very bored or ready for the straight jacket!
 Just when I thought life was slowing down a little, I received a phone call from Cooroy. Lola and Wally (other WILVOS members) had found a dead eastern grey kangaroo, another road accident victim, on the road near their place. Being a good WILVOS, they pulled the dead female well off the road for safety reasons. They then checked her pouch and found a young joey well hidden inside. They removed the Joey, checking first that it wasn't still attached to the teat - in which case they knew they may have to ask an experienced kangaroo carer for help, especially if the Joey was very young and pink. (Irreparable damage can be done if a Joey is just pulled off the teat). Lola then placed the little one in a soft pillow-slip type bag and took her home and immediately gave me a call. Wally called the local council to arrange for removal of the dead mother.
By the time I arrived, the little Joey was calling out in those pathetic little Joey 'Where's my mummy?' sounds. I brought her home and gave her a good check-up. Incredibly, after seeing the injuries sustained by her mother, this tiny Joey had no bruises or abrasions. Instead, she had a cut right across her toe, which unfortunately was not too deep, though obviously in need of stitches.
The worst injury was to her mouth. The top right hand side of her 'lip' had torn back almost 15mm (approx. 1/2 inch), not an easy spot to work on. When I taped the Joey's foot and upper lip, (to the lip on the other side), it did seem to ease some of the irritation and pain. Her mouth must have felt quite sore, with the whole piece just hanging off. Surprisingly, once her mouth was taped firmly across the top, she drank 10msl of glucodin and boiled water mix, out of a 25ml bottle which had a specially designed Joey teat on it. I thought her mouth would be too sore to cope with drinking, as it is often difficult for them to adapt to a strange teat at the best of times. Three hours later I offered the Joey 10 mls of Biolac kangaroo milk. This was also quaffed down - definitely a good sign! Though still pink with pale fur beginning to come though, this was a strapping young female weighing almost 900 grams. There is something about these venerable little animals that just melts one's heart!
Next stop - the amazing Dr Charlotte, our local Woombye veterinarian! "Lottie" was carefully examined by Dr. Charlotte, as she determined the best way to suture her wounds. The foot was a straight-forward matter, but the mouth was more complex. Usually a face mask would be used to anaesthetize the Joey - an impossibility in this case. This meant the more painful local anesthetic had to be used. Inside the gum was stitched with catgut sutures which would dissolve themselves. Hopefully, there would be a happy outcome for this beautiful little kangaroo. Even though all seems well, the stress involved in long treatments can be a killer for eastern grey kangaroos.
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