October 2017

We hope you will love our Our first 2018 Rocklily Wombats calendar  as much as we love the animals we have cared for and are pictured in it!  Just $10 and this will be a much needed fundraiser in helping us look after all our wombats and kangaroos in care. Postage in Australia is $3 and international is $8. Lots of wombat information, stories of the wombats and just a great way to fill your year with wombats!

The last 6 months  have been pretty busy  here at Rocklily with just the 2 of us managing about 36 animals 17 odd still in care and the rest still doing their supported soft release it’s been pretty full on.

Warwick on UK ‘spooky mens Choral UK tour. Yes Waz was away for 6 weeks, s home alone for the worst of winter. With his Parkinsons slowly getting worse his voice is changing, and while he can and was selected for this all expences paid tour (food accomadation and flights) he has to go. Not so easy on me as we had so many injuries and the worst moment as a wildlife carer was Bennys illness.

Injuries and issues. Dealing with so many animals means were dealing with more injuries, these all increase our workload and we have had to bring some animals back into care to treat.

Benny red neck wallaby. Our lovely Benny whom went blind 2 months after he came into care was doing so well after his cateract operation he had full sight in his left eye and his right had improved to 50%. He was loving chasing the wild red neck females when they were around but sight still not quite up to full release with the wild dog problem. Wallabys chew on bones, probably for calcium etc, Benny ended up with a bit of what we think of as bone in his stomach and resulting pancraetitus. . The wonderful Dr Howard Ralph  had given us various med’s to help dissolve it so it would pass thru and of course pain relief. All our injured animals are on pain relief. . This was not to be, late one night where here alone he collapsed in severe pain, so mad that all the med’s I had could not bring it under control, he was in agony, something had gone seriously wrong. In consultation with a friend and wildlife carer vet Kirsty over the phone for a couple of hours I had no choice but to euthanaise him with my fire arm. Horrendous he was a week shy of being in care with us for 3 years and so close to release. Vail Benny.

Benny at around 2 years old still loved his bag

– Frankie got a badly infected foot, I had to laugh, of course warwick was in the UK. this wombat hates me for dragging him out of the house after he broke in, and rolled himself up in our best doona and went to sleep after quite a bit of poo! I tried feeding him a bowl of nuts, with needle of antibiotic in one hand crept close, even managed a gentle pat, the moment I bent to pinch up some skin to get the needle in, I was pushed against the house with a not very happy frankie, lucky I had a blanket for protection. Ok back to the vet, yes sure I’m happy for you to come out and give him a daily injection for 7 days.. Plan put it in some food, and thankfully this worked his infection cleared up and he stopped limping.

Kangaroo injuries. We have had to bring 2 releasing Kangaroo’s back into care. In June dee dee had a large part of her skin and fur ripped on a hind leg. Back in care with pain relief and treatment this took a good 2 months to properly heal. Then just as that was better another releasing kangaroo sliced his pad open somehow a shocking wound, according to vet not stitchable. This is taking some time with daily dressings, pain relief and antibiotics to deal with infection it well be well over 2 months before it’s better and Jo Jo can go back out and restart her release. Her buddy is back in the enclosure as well.  It’s healing nicely but as it is very slow.

Luna Wombat managed to get a gram negative gut infection, possibly from bird poo in the drinking water, how do you keep them away. She’s been 7 weeks now and finally we think getting better, extensive tests by Dr Howard Ralph showing up increased white blood cells she’s getting more injections to treat t a possible tumor some where. Dr Howard wants to avoid intrusive procedures , but that’s were we will have to go if the latest is not working. She’s in the hose, too ill to be out over the cold winter here. and outside in the day when we can.

Wild Dogs We have had lots of issues with Wild dogs, generally lost piggers dogs crossed with the wild dingo’s from the water catchment. It’s been non stop since Christmas, with howling and freaked out wildlife. we have had a number of kangaroo and wallaby deaths, nothing from any of our enclosures thankfully. We had 4 obviously hand raised very humanised kangaroo’s appear 2 years ago, released obviously nearby to us and they and they were not afraid of dogs, Sadly the last 2 have been killed and their joeys within sigh of the house. It’s so so important to raise wildlife to fear their predators. We are so over carers saying, ‘but my dog would not hurt anything’ . How is the kangaroo going to know not all dogs are the same. Very sad and very stupid actually. We wont put the gory pictures up. We have been having farmers lose so many lambs to dog attack not for food just for fun, were talking 123 lambs, 109 lambs with just 2 farmers. National Parks have employed a Dog trapper whom uses soft jawed trap’s cameras and he’s caught 18 wild dogs in the area in the last 4 months!! We love dogs and have had dog’s but this is a whole different story. Targeted trapping is so much better than 1080 baites a lingering revolting death of many other species as well, quolls, raptors etc etc. So few countries still use it.