Dunbogan Dave came down to check out the fresh leaf. I'm not sure he likes it. :) See for yourself on this video:
Crestwood Matilda also wanted to have a look at the leaf. But Dave decided that he was the only one allowed on the gunyah and tried to chase Matilda away...
In the end Matilda succeeded and found a nice spot to eat her breakfast.
Did you know that these two adorable koalas are up for adoption? Your adoption helps with the rescue and treatment of sick and injured koalas and release back to home range when possible; also the preservation and expansion of habitat, collection of information for research relating to habitat, disease, nutrition and habits of wild koalas and to provide educational material, to increase public awareness of all aspects of the koala.
Have you ever seen a koala eat bark? Well, I didn't! That was, until last week. I finished feeding Edward Elly and she climbed up the tree. At first I thought she was biting her arm because of a tick or something, but I soon saw that she was really eating bark!
Eating bark is part of their diet, so it isn't really strange that Elly was doing it. But because you don't see them doing it often, I thought is was pretty special! :)
On this video you can see how she is attacking the tree. ;) In the beginning it is a bit shaky and it was hard filming because of the light, but halfway the video you can see it a bit better.
Last week and today we had a few things happening at the Koala Hospital. We had three releases, I had a night rescue and as of this week Barrys alter ego has his own Facebook Page!
OXLEY HIGHWAY MATT
The first release was last week on Wednesday. We released Oxley Highway Matt, who we treated for chlamydia. He has been with us before in 2009 with a fractured pelvis.
Matt is a gentle male koala around the age of 7. Everybody here loves him, because of his looks and character. When he was in the Hospital in 2009 we had a basket for him in his yard, where he could sit in. He loved his basket so much that he slept in it and was waiting every morning for his fresh leaf to arrive. He would sit in his basket like a king and enjoy his leaf without having to get up.
On this photo you can see Matt enjoying the sun. It was a cold morning and we only had about five minutes of sunshine before it started to rain for the rest of the day. And Matt enjoyed every moment of it!
Releasing Oxley Highway Matt
We released him at the rifle range. That sounds dangerous, but really isn't. The members of the rifle range are very protective of the koalas and kangaroos who live there. They are very safe living at the rifle range!
I like how the koala always looks at you before they climb up the tree. As if they are saying goodbye to you. The real reason is that they are looking where they are and if there is any danger, but I think saying goodbye sounds better. :)
LAKE CATHIE KAI
On Friday we released Lake Cathie Kai, a male around the age of 4/5 years old. He has been with us twice, both times after he was attacked by a dog. The first time was in 2010 and he was with us for 6 months. We released him when he was better and about 3 weeks later we got a call. Kai was attacked by a dog again. It was not as bad as the first time, but he still needed to rehabilitate for a while with us in the Hospital.
He looked really happy to be released again. Just look at this handsome koala on this photo!
Releasing Lake Cathie Kai
MARSDEN JAMIE
We released another koala today: Marsden Jamie. The first time he got admitted to the Hospital was in 2009, when he was just a Joey. He had a wet bottom (caused by a chlamydia bacteria) and after treatment we released him again. This time he was found a couple of kilometres outside of his home range near a shopping centre. We brought him in for a check and he is a healthy koala. So today we released him again in the spot where he lives.
Video of the release of Marsden Jamie.
KOALA HOSPITAL BARRY
Westhaven Barry who lives at the Koala Hospital has an alter ego "Koala Hospital Barry". This alter ego is a puppet you can buy in the kiosk at the Hospital. You can take this Barry with you on your travels and take photos of him on amazing, funny and original places. We thought it was about time that Koala Hospital Barry got his own Facebook Page!
We always like to know where our adventurous Barry is and what he is up to. He likes to travel to a lot of places. There is a reward for the best picture, but you will need to email it to barry@koalahospital.org.au. From now on you can also put your photos and stories of Barry on the Facebook Page. We look forward to all the photos and stories!
Samantha "Sam" Carroll is one of 120 volunteers helping to care for sick and injured koalas at the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie, NSW Australia. She's not a vet, scientist, or animal specialist — just someone who can’t imagine Australia without koalas in it...
