Kangaroo Tails

If you've been to the comments section of any wombat rescue group, the #1 comment we get is "I want one!" closely followed by "How do I get one?". Wombats are adorable! I get it, I love them too. From the videos and images you see on social media, it is easy to imagine having one roaming around your backyard. They're just like a big Australian rabbit, right? Can you have a wombat as a pet? Wombats cannot be exported out of Australia, but even if you're lucky enough to be Australian, the answer is still legally no, wombats are a protected species. It is illegal to 'possess' a wombat without a relevant license or permit. These exhibition licenses/permits are only provided to zoos or parks with the relevant facilities, resources and staff to appropriately care for these animals. The exception to this rule is rehabilitation licensing which is a conditional permit that allows for rescue groups to temporarily care for injured or orphaned animals with t...

Some days its easier than others, some days are filled with cuddles in the sun, digging in the yard, watching your babies guzzle their bottles just one day closer to release.  The next, hundreds of animals are marked for culling.  I look at you, Handsome, my perfect baby and I cry.  I cry for you, for the loss of your mother. That is more suffering than any baby should have to go through.  I cry for your brothers, your sisters, your entire mob that are not safe. That will likely not be safe in my lifetime. I cry for the inhumanity they will endure.  I see numbers cleared for execution for no other crime then thriving.  You, Australian Government, license me to help with one hand and license them to hunt with the other.  We spend half our lives loving these animals, for others to shoot their families down. But in the face of hopelessness, we care.

I was recently called to a vacant property by a Real Estate agent because there was a Brushtail possum stuck in the chimney. He was a persistent fellow and after trying traps, putting my construction (or deconstruction?) skills to the test and four separate visits, I was finally able to get the little guy out. He had clearly lived a good life, judging by his very chunky belly extending down to his knees. The large bottlebrush not far from the chimney probably contributed to a few of his rolls.  He was healthy, happy and other than being inconvenienced by his temporary imprisonment, was in great condition. He was a perfect possum. So imagine my surprise when I was accosted by the neighbour over the fence who was beyond irate that I was releasing the 'bastard' back into the trees.  What were his crimes to earn him the title of bastard, I asked. Well, he runs around in the branches at night and makes their dogs bark and fights with their cats and eats the fruit on their trees. Wh...

 Living in town on a quiet quarter acre backing onto agricultural land has been idyllic for the last few years. I acknowledge that I am incredibly lucky to have a home large enough for the animals I care for now. My (literal) cow neighbours have satiated the part of me that grew up on a farm with all of the space I could ever need for a long time.  However since starting to care again, I found myself wanting just a little more room. It started as just enough to have some space for another pen, next it was just a little more again so I could have long term care of roos too. Now I find myself daydreaming (and looking on RealEstate.com.au) for properties in my area that I could soft release animals on. Somewhere safe without hunters and highways. Pens, possum boxes, wombat pits. The dream right? However, in all things that I am passionate about, I have a tendency to to want to do too much. So maybe it is a good thing that I am being kept in check by the size of my prope...

Often, when I talk to people about the difficulties I have experienced as a new wildlife carer, they ask me why I do it - why care? I completely understand where they are coming from. Caring is hard, and there are so many reasons not to do it. From the outside looking in, I can see why it seems hopeless in the face of massive conservation disasters, mass culling, and environmental catastrophes. From pulling the bodies of joeys off the highway that people have intentionally swerved to hit, to losing a little pinkie that I have given sleepless nights and heart-wrenching days. Rescue and care can be soul-crushing. I have sobbed over so many bodies in the last few months, so many little lives that were deserving of sunny days and fresh grass for years to come. Even the happy days are sad days when the baby you have nurtured and loved moves on to the next stage in their life, or the rescue you bring back from the brink goes to a more experienced, equipped keeper. Having to relinquish the lo...

My heart is still very much broken from losing my pinkie roos, so I am hoping the universe has sent me an angel I can keep for a while this time.  Welcome to the family little Gumnut. She has come in with some pretty nasty gravel rash but my amazing wombat coordinator has let me know she is fairly sure it is all superficial. I am crossing my fingers that she is going to prove to be healthy and well.  It has been a decade, or more, since I have had a wombat in care so it has been a rush learning all of the up to date information on best practice. Things change so fast in animal rehab as we learn more and more about how to care for our native animals. I have already sent panicked 'she coughed' texts as I obsess over her every move.  I am looking forward to getting to know her personality, so far she is very strong-willed and really enjoying a good chew.  She will not be with me forever, as we look to find her a home with a carer who has a buddy for her and who is bette...

I lost Faith today. This is my second pinkie and my second loss, I didn't realise how crushing the little ones would be. Unlike Rudie, I felt like I had this one under control, I felt confident and she looked amazing. Then she was gone.  My Mum was an amazing, experienced carer. She knew what to save and what to euthanise, so I guess I never saw the losses. Not the way I have now. I wish I could ask her, how did she always know? I guess she had years of experience to guide her.  I am trying to focus on the positives and taking away that I couldn't have done much more for her. She just wasn't meant to be. I was warned that pinkies from vehicular accidents often have underlying issues, but I didn't realise how sudden they can strike. I thought we had made it through, she was finally hydrated, her skin was finally great, she was eating, gaining weight again and the poo shakes had helped firm up her gut. 9:00pm perfect, 2:00am gone. I am so grateful to her, my time with her...