Koalas fighting for life after bushfire


Koalas fighting for life after bushfire

14 November 2012

published by http://au.news.yahoo.com


Australia– This two-year-old koala has suffered burns to her paws, had her ears singed and has a nasty sore on her nose – but she is a fighter.

Narla is the second koala to be flown from South Australia’s fire ravaged Eyre Peninsula to Adelaide for burns treatment.

She joins another koala, Marley, at an animal rehabilitation centre on Torrens Island run by the Australian Marine Wildlife Research and Rescue Organisation (AMWRRO).

Marley lost her baby and was found curled up under a burnt out tree on Monday morning after an out-of-control blaze blackened 2000 hectares near Tulka.

Narla flew into Adelaide overnight and rescuer Aaron Machado said she is being given fluids to keep her hydrated.

“She is in extreme pain at the moment, doing very well considering, but this is all completely alien to her and the pain she is in would be immense, so she is doped up on some pretty good pain relief,” he said.

“We are still at very early stages with her … unfortunately the burns which are affecting her pads and paws will still be radiating that heat through her muscle for the next few days.”

Both Marley and Narla will undergo daily paw washes to prevent deadly infections.

“About a week will give us a good indication whether the animals are going to pull through,” Mr Machado said.

Rescuers say these two koalas have been lucky to survive, with up to 100 koalas estimated to have been injured or killed in the blaze.

The centre is expecting to receive more casualties and is setting up a specialized portable clinic to cope with the influx.

“The whole exercise will work out to be extremely costly, but well worth it if we can pull these animals through,” Mr Machado said.
 


 

 

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