You can't keep a good koala down: Josie

Salamander Bay Josie
From broken_puzzle's gallery.

We've had a couple of koalas with us recently with quite debilitating foot injuries.

Salamander Bay Josie, a female, was attacked by a dog who managed to pull the skin and muscle away from the bone of her foot (called "degloving"). Josie was in a poor way when she came to us. She was placed in ICU, on the low beam of a gunyah there so that she could easily access her leaf without having to climb.

During the early part of her convalescence, American National Geographic paid us a visit to film a documentary. Josie was one of the koalas who caught their eye. Here she is playing a starring role:


American National Geographic's Susan with Salamander Bay Josie
From koalawrangler's gallery.
Due to the attack, Josie's heel bone was protruding through the skin so she underwent an operation to have the bone removed. You would think this would be something to slow any self-respecting koala down, but Josie never seemed to want to rest on her laurels. If koalas have on overriding instinct, it is to get as high up a tree as possible. So even with a bound up foot, Josie would climb up to the higher part of her gunyah with amazing agility.


Salamander Bay Josie
From koalawrangler's gallery.
The next part of her treatment was to give her real climbing practice in an outside yard. Yard 4 is a one of the 'training' yards: it has its own tree which Josie took immediate advantage of...so much so that we hardly ever saw her down from it.

Salamander Bay Josie
From broken_puzzle's gallery.

In the early stages of her climbing rehabilitation the left foot still arched back towards her in an awkward fashion (which you can see in the photo on the left). But she has been continuing her 'tree-climbing' physiotherarpy and this has worked exceptionally well. She has since been observed placing her foot flat on the ground, and...she has managed to escape from her yard, not once, but TWICE!

Early on we thought that Josie might have limited chances in the wild, and might be better off being transferred to a wildlife sanctuary rather than being released to the wild. But considering she has proven to be an expert climber, the hospital and her overseers at the Native Animal Trust Fund in Port Stephens have decided she is doing well enough to return to the bush!

Click here and here to view more of photos of Salamander Bay Josie.

News flash: "Koala bites dog"

If ever I'm in a tight situation, Bellevue Scrapper is definitely the koala I'd want in my corner.

Bellevue Scrapper
From koalawrangler's gallery.

If you've read my disclaimer above, you'll see that I'm not above admitting my lack of know-how in the medical department. I enjoy learning about the scientific side of koala care, primarily because it contributes to my understanding of each koala's "story", but I can be slow on the uptake sometimes. I'm an Arts graduate, okay?! I'll give you an example.

It's Thursday and I've just finished my work in the yards and have ventured into ICU to see what needs doing in there. There's action in the treatment room: Jarrod, Cheyne and Amanda are inspecting a small koala on the treatment table.

Bellevue Scrapper
From koalawrangler's gallery.

KW: "Who's this?".
Cheyne: "A new one: Bellevue Scrapper"

Scrapper got into a scrap with a dog so they are checking her for any wounds. I'm continually amazed at how placid koalas tend to be, showing little more than an ear-wiggle that they're distressed or annoyed. But this particular koala seems to be exceptionally docile as they gently move her about searching out scratches or bite-marks.

Cheyne's pretty used to my dopey questions by now, but I really excel with the following.

Bellevue Scrapper
From koalawrangler's gallery.

KW: "So is it normal for a koala to let you move her around like that?"
Cheyne: "Well, she is unconscious"
KW: "But her eyes are open!"
Cheyne: "Yes, the eyes do stay open when they're under"
KW: "Ohhhhhhhhh". (*thinks to herself* quick, say something brilliant so they don't think you're a complete dork) "So when I got my wisdom teeth out, my eyes were open the whole time???!!!"

Okay, I decided to stop while I was behind.

Bellevue Scrapper's foot
From koalawrangler's gallery.

Bellevue Scrapper's story is a something of a curious one. She was involved in a dog attack, which is a common and horribly depressing occurrence with our urban koalas, especially during mating season (um not because of any weird cross-species hanky-panky, but because mating koalas are on the ground more where, sadly, dogs are king). But, according to the people who brought her in, it was Scrapper who attacked the dog, not the other way round! And Scrapper doesn't have a scratch on her...a couple of ticks, but not a scratch. What makes this story all the more unique is that Scrapper is a tiny little thing, barely more than a juvenile. Cheyne hazarded that she is no more than 18 months old. I don't know how the dog came off following the altercation, but I wouldn't think it'd be woofing too loudly about this one with its canine pals right now. If ever I'm in a tight situation, Bellevue Scrapper is definitely the koala I'd want in my corner.

Perhaps koalas are evolving to take on dogs on their own turf? (Probably not, but it makes for an amusing theory). Scrapper's case is so sadly ironic because we usually have the opposite case on our hands, and the koalas come off far worse than the dogs.

Recently we have had a spate of dog attacks lately. Salamander Bay Josie came to us from our friends at the Native Animal Trust Fund after a dog attack degloved her foot. She is with us to undergo rehab and physio to the area. Dunbogan Mastiff wasn't so lucky and died after an attack by a Mastiff hound.

There's been some releases too. Pacific Highway Vina who tried to "self-release" last week by hightailing it into another yard and up a tree was officially released during the week. She's made an amazing recovery considering she was in such a bad way after being hit by a car only a few weeks ago.

Poor old Comboyne Ken who had a crushed wrist was euthanased and, I'm sad to say, little Cathie Ali.

Comboyne Ken From broken_puzzle's gallery.

Cathie Ali From koalawrangler's gallery.

On a happier note, Chisholm Dave (the one Pete and I rescued from a Camelia bush after taking a dip in a backyard pool [Dave, not me or Pete] was released, as was Pacific Simon who was scampering up Pacific Drive when he was brought in.

Click here to view more of today's koala hospital snaps.