Heartbreak and Recovery - Caring for kangaroos with burn injuries
Following the bushfires in regional Victoria last month, Wildlife Victoria received a call about two female adult eastern grey kangaroos with burn injuries and an at-foot joey. The animals managed to make their way out of the active fire zone and onto private property.
Once the fire was under control and it was deemed safe, one of our highly experienced rescuers attended and realised that the kangaroos needed to be sedated in order to assess their injuries.
After successfully tranquillising all three of the kangaroos, our volunteer transported the kangaroos to a wildlife shelter run by Wildlife Victoria volunteers, Helen and Manfred. In a lucky coincidence for the three kangaroos, our Travelling Vet Service were already in attendance at the shelter treating other animals.
Dr Emily and Nurse Bayli examined all three animals and, thankfully, found no burns or injuries on the little joey. One of the adult females sustained mild burns and was treated, bandaged, and placed in the hospital pen to recover.
Her outlook for rehabilitation looks bright, and the vets also found a healthy pinkie (furless) joey in her pouch! The roos will be reunited once the injuries are healed.
The recovering female was placed in a room with another burn patient, a male kangaroo, who seemed to be extremely interested in the new arrival, who was still unconscious.
He clucked and sniffed her for about an hour, and when he snuggled up and laid next to her in the pen, it was realised then that they were likely friends, or maybe even mates!
Sadly, the other female kangaroo’s burns were too severe to be rehabilitated and she was relieved of her suffering. She also had a tiny pinkie joey in her pouch that unfortunately would not have survived without its mother. These kinds of cases are hardest for our team.
A significant injury to a mother can have a fatal effect on her pouch young, resulting in two losses of life.
The rehabilitation process for wildlife fire victims is an arduous one, with daily wound management and extensive care required. Helen and Manfred, and all our incredible volunteer wildlife carers go above and beyond for wildlife, ensuring every animal has the best chance of recovery and eventual release back into the wild.
Our Traveling Vet Service will be monitoring these kangaroos throughout their recovery process, providing ongoing patient care and consultation with Helen and Manfred. We can’t wait until they are hopping freely around the bush again.
