News

 

“Oh Ghost Who Walks”.........

This absolutely adorable, mature 10-12 year old male koala came to us just over three weeks ago through a concerned police officer, who was informed about a very sick, blind white koala.

When Mick arrived at the Koala Hospital, staff found that he was suffering from the ocular form of chlamydial infection, a bacterium that can infect both the eyes and the urogenital tract of koalas.

We were also amazed at how beautiful he was, and that he was indeed simply a white koala with a black nose, brown tips on his ears, and brownish/grey tips on all his toes and soft brownish black pads on his feet. His coat felt very different from normal koalas as it actually had a waxy soft texture, and it was very thick. He certainly smelt the same as any other male koala having a strong pungent glistening scent gland and that lovely eucalypt aroma.

Both of Micks eyes were so bad that there was an overgrowth of proliferative tissue that had actually covered both his eyes. Surprisingly, he was in very good body condition, so he had managed to still locate food, and must have remained high in the trees as much as possible. Many koalas blinded by chlamydial infection end up either starving to death or are predated on by wild dogs or dingos.

Staff placed Mick in a high security enclosure to protect him, and his admission to the hospital was kept very quiet. He was treated twice a day with antibiotic eye ointments, and all who dealt with him remarked what a quiet temperament he had and what a gentleman he was. This was surprising behaviour for a koala who had come from such a remote area well away from people.

Mick underwent eye surgery under the capable hands of our vet Chris Livingston at the Port Macquarie Vet Surgery who removed all the proliferative tissue from both eyes. The transformation was immediate and we discovered that Mick actually had pale yellow eyes, quite different from the dark brown ones that normal koalas have, and very different to the red eyes of an albino.

Mick recovered very quickly and responded well to post surgery treatment, and within a couple of days, his eyes looked brand new again.

Interestingly, Mick developed a great appetite and liking for the local Port Macquarie eucalypt leaf – it must have been like dining in a foreign restaurant every night, as the eucalypts from where Mick comes from are completely different to ours.

Once Mick’s eyes had healed completely and he was feeling much better, we felt it was time for him to be returned to his home range.

After a very long and very tiring 13 hour trip Mick found himself back in the bush and apparently we were told he looked around himself in amazement cause he could actually see the trees!!!!

As much as we enjoyed having him here, it is not fair to keep a wild koala, even one as unusual and rare as Mick, in captivity, when their health is restored and they just want to go back to the bush.

About the Koala Hospital www.koalahospital.org.au

Adopt a wild koala www.koalahospital.org.au/adopt/

More photos and high res images:

Hydro Photographics

10 Jindalee Rd,

Port Macquarie, NSW, 2444. AUSTRALIA

www.hydrophotographics.com.au

Phone: 02 65 814700 (Int) +612 65 814700

Fax: 02 65 813755 (Int) +612 65 813755

STRATEGIC PLAN 2007 - 2011

The Koala Preservation Society (KPS) has developed a strategic plan to guide the work of the hospital over the next five years. The plan provides historical information about the KPS, current activities and future direction. Of particular note, the reasons for admitting koalas to the hospital since the beginning of the work in 1973 have been included.

The plan can be accessed by clicking on the following link (KPS Strategy Plan).

News from the Koala Infectious Disease Research Group

The research has been progressing very well this season. We have had a good number of koalas enrolled in the trial already. We have been actively recruiting both diseased animals with good prospects for release, and subclinical animals. Subclinical animals are cases which carry the Chlamydial organism, but are not showing external signs of disease. We are very pleased to report some early indications of treatment success. This has meant we have released a number of animals once their trial has finished. Two of these animals have been spotted alive and well in the days and weeks following their release. We expect that the others are doing just as well.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank KPS for its tremendous partnership in this research particularly with regard to infrastructure. Eight new yards in yard ten and four research 'aviaries' in yard seven have meant that good numbers of koalas can be enrolled in the trial due to the increased carrying capacity of the hospital. It is vital that the research achieve certain numbers of koalas in each treatment group for the results to be statistically valid. The outdoor yards in particular are very welcome. The trial koalas will enjoy spending all but the first two weeks of their treatment in these yards. The animals which have used them so far appear to be much more settled in this environment than inside or in aviaries. They have been using the slightly raised cross perches to good advantage. The public can get a very good view of the animals from here so there is added educational benefit to having animals in these yards. Moreover, we believe that these additional yards will be very useful in the future for KPS, in order to move injured and sick koalas more rapidly into the daylight and into a less stressful environment.

We have welcomed three new members to our team. One is Andrea Reiss, a wildlife vet with many years of experience in zoo and wildlife medicine. Andrea’s special interest is wombats, a close cousin of the koala. She has spent many years working closely with the Northern Hairy Nosed Wombat, one of Australia’s most endangered animals. Another new member of our group is Tiziana Beninati. Tiziana will be working with koala ticks and the diseases that they may spread. Our newest member to the group is a new PhD student Quintin Lau. Quintin will be working in Sydney on the immune system of the koala.

We look forward to continuing the fruitful relationship with KPS. We are learning new things every day about koalas and their diseases. Without the continuing efforts of all parties involved the research would move much more slowly. Many thanks to all who have helped out.

University of Sydney   

Faculty of Veterinary Science

OUR CLOUD 

On the 27^th January 2007, Cloud shut her eyes and went to sleep for the final time.  This sweet, gentle, timid koala came to us courtesy of the 1994 Christmas Bells Plains bushfire, where she suffered horrific burns to her paws, ears, face and limbs.  Cloud was only a young koala at the time, and after a long period of treatment, she responded with most of her injuries healing well, but unfortunately the scarring and post burns damage was such that she could not be returned to the wild. Cloud became an international ambassador for the plight of Australias wild koalas, featuring on many documentaries, news items, and articles in both magazines, journals and even childrens’ books. 

Cloud was a “teacher” for wildlife veterinarians, wildlife vet nurses, wildlife carers and researchers who came from all over the world to see what can and does happen to all animals who actually survive being burnt in bushfires. “Cloudie” (as she was affectionately known) never attempted to bite anyone or show any aggression, and accepted whatever we did with grace.  Cloudie became the surrogate mother to other koalas’ joeys, who were often seen playfully jumping on her back – Cloud had the patience of a saint!!! As time went on, and age began to creep up on her, all the staff could see that she was starting to become quite frail.  In the weeks prior to her death,

Clouds health began to deteriorate rather quickly and unfortunately she did not respond to treatment. Thankfully everyone accepted and understood her time had come, and the decision was made to ease her suffering and let her go.  Cloud was much loved and her passing broke many many hearts. 

So when you hear the breeze gently blowing and rustling through the eucalypt trees, stop and listen for this is the sound of the spirit of the koala calling to you.  And now Cloud has joined them.