Join the Wildlife Warrior each Friday with Jamie Dunn and the Zinc Morning Zoo.
Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors Worldwide was established in 2002, initially by Steve and Terri Irwin, as a way to include and involve other caring people to support the protection of injured, threatened or endangered wildlife – from the individual animal to an entire species.
It was launched publicly in 2006, with Terri remaining involved as Patron and significant supporter and adviser, however the charity now operates independently.
Wildlife Warriors - Animal of the Week
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The Rainforest is a special enclosure at the Australian Wildlife Hospital that is home for a short while to our orphaned koalas and others that are recovering from serious injuries. We currently have 10 koalas in residence - of these 8 were orphaned and 2 are rehabilitating after suffering severe injuries. Infant koalas (joeys) who are orphaned initially go to a carer who specialises in koala rehabilitation and will come back to the Hospital once they reach a weight of approximately 2.5 kilos. At this weight the joey is normally weaned off his or her bottle (which is a soy milk formula) and, in some instances, will receive a dietary supplement of Infasoy paste. Koalas’ normal diet consists of the eucalyptus leaf and, at this age, they are ready for this to be their primary source of nutrition. The Rainforest - which is also referred to as a pre-release kindergarten - provides a variety of eucalypt types that they can eat and several trees to climb. This environment enables the joeys to develop their fitness and the skills needed to interact with other koalas and fend for themselves when they are released into the wild. At approximately 4 kilos the joey is ready to be released back to the area that they originally came from and, although it is sad to say goodbye to these beautiful animals, we hope that they never have occasion to come back to our Hospital. It is currently the mating season for koalas, so please drive carefully in areas signposted as koala habitat. They may be crossing the road looking for a partner or searching for food. One orphan in our care is one too many.
