Greased Lightening

Greased Lightening

When Danny was rescued his fur was covered in dirty motor oil which he had tipped all over himself.  The vets tried in vain to wash the oil out but after several baths it was clear it was not going to shift.

In order to save him from the toxic oil clogging his pores, the unusual step to shave him was taken and Danny lost most of his fur.  As this was a first we had no idea how long it would take for his fur to grow back or if it would grow back at all.

Into care he went with one of 1300KOALAZ experienced carers.  As it was only the beginning of spring Danny needed to be kept warm so his carer, with  a little help from Danny’s facebook fans produced a wardrobe fit for a king.  He had shirts of all colours and warm fleecy dressing gowns specially modified for him.

As his fur began to sprout Danny got a skin condition which meant being bathed 3 times a week with special medication, but at least it was growing.  It came in a little patchy which was concerning but eventually he had a fine covering of fur all over.

Wild koalas in long term captivity can get depressed and keeping Danny’s spirits up was a a challenge.  All that changed when Charlie arrived.  Charlie was a 2+kg joey who had lost his mum and the pair were introduced.  After initially treating Charlie with a bit of disdain it was not soon before the loveable little joey had won over Uncle Danny and the two were firm friends.

Several months down the track Danny was fully furred and Charlie big enough to look after himself and the pair were released back into the wild.  The lovely thing is that a couple of weeks later the pair were spotted still hanging out together.

Author
Dee Hearne-Hellon
Wildlife Group
Adelaide and Hills Koala Rescue - 1300KOALAZ Inc