HOW TO

Tips on checking out our injured wildlife

1. Stop in a safe place.
Take care not to endanger yourself or others by stopping your vehicle suddenly in a dangerous location.

2. Approach with caution.
Approach any wild animal with care. Kangaroos particularly are capable of lashing out with their powerful hind legs, even if severely injured. Most animals are able to inflict nasty bites and scratches especially when frightened or in pain.

3. If the animal is deceased.
Check the underbelly for a pouch. Animals such as kangaroos, possums and wombats carry their young in a pouch. A bulge or movement inside a pouch may indicate live young. Gently remove the joey, taking care not to further injure the animal. An animal that has been deceased for several hours, even overnight, may still have live young in its pouch.

4. Keep the animal warm.
A cold animal that is sick, injured or orphaned will stay cold unless it is heated by some external heat source. Wrapping the animal in a towel or jumper alone will not make it warm. Small animals can be placed under the front of someone’s jumper. This is a safe and reliable heat source. Alternative emergency heat sources are hot water bottle or other plastic container filled with warm water, or an electric blanket on a low or mid setting wrapped in a towel. The animal must not be placed into the heat source. Take care not to heat the animal too quickly and avoid extreme fluctuations in temperature. Ain for a constant temperature of 30°-32°c.

5. Keep the animal quiet.
Native animals are easily stressed and this along may be enough to kill the animal. Keep it as quiet as possible, away from loud noises, and do not allow children to play with it. A joey requires the same care as a premature human baby.

6. Seek immediate assistance.
An animal will suffer in much the same way as a human. Seek immediate veterinary assistance if the animal is injured and call your local wildlife organisation.