Wildlife Treatment

Here at Lynbrook Vet we are passionate about the care and treatment of our native wildlife.

Did you know wildlife is always welcome here at Lynbrook Vet and at no cost to you?

If you find wildlife that needs help, please don’t hesitate to contact our team and ask for advice. We support a number of local wildlife carers who raise and rehabilitate sick, injured and orphaned native animals but the first point of call for any injured wildlife should be the veterinary clinic.

At a vet clinic, wildlife is triaged and treatment begins. If an animal is able to be rehabilitated, it is then passed along to an experienced and registered wildlife carer where they continue their care until the animal is able to be released back into the wild where they belong.

The care and treatment of wildlife is very different to that of dogs and cats. Wildlife require specific foods, housing, milk formulas and medicine as well as quiet places to rest and recover.

What can you do to help our native wildlife?

  •  Do not feed wildlife human food and do not force them to drink water.
Just like our pets, wildlife can become very sick when fed certain human foods. It is not their natural diet and can have detrimental effects on their care and treatment. Offering water to a sick, scared or injured animal is great but should be done using a shallow dish. Never force water into an animal’s mouth using a syringe as you could cause them to aspirate. Want to help feed and care for native wildlife at home? Why not plant native trees in your gardens! Native trees and flowers are often major food sources for possums and nectar eating birds.
  •  Keep your cat indoors!
Pet cats kill 83 million native reptiles and 80 million native birds in Australia each year.  Those numbers are heartbreaking! Help protect our wildlife from your cat’s claws and jaws by keeping them inside. By keeping your cat indoors you are also keeping your cat safe too! For tips on keeping your indoor cat happy, check out our blog you can also join the Zoo’s Victoria Cat Safe community.
  • Found an animal needing help?
If you find a baby animal, keep it warm and secure in a box somewhere dark and quiet and contact us for further advice. Did you know it can be very normal to find a baby bird on the ground? Check out this poster we created to help you determine whether or not a baby bird needs your help. If you find any kind of animal, be sure to take note of the rescue location so the animal can be returned to its home once it is better. If you see a dead animal such as a kangaroo or possum on the road,  please pull over and when safe, check the pouch for any babies. Joeys can survive for up to 5 days in their dead mother’s pouch before dying of starvation and dehydration. Your actions could save their life!
  • Make a wildlife kit for your car!
Include gloves, a pillowcase, water, a box & scissors. If you need help with a First Aid Kit, you can purchase one from the clinic! Fill in your details here and one of our team will be in touch to finalise your order.
  • Donate!
Wildlife carers are special people who volunteer their time and pay for things with their own pockets! By donating money, food, newspaper, bedding or even your time to your local wildlife carers you are making a HUGE impact on the lives of our native animals! We were recently mentioned in a Wildlife Victoria post about volunteering as a thank you for the care our team give our native wildlife. If you have thought about volunteering with wildlife care, transport or supplying food, check out the below list of local wildlife groups that we work with and support by clicking on their logo. Feel free to get in touch with these amazing shelters for more ways you can help.

Wildlife Stories

July 2021 – Toto the Wallaby

Little Toto the Swamp Wallaby orphan had a rough start to life.
 
His mum was fatally hit by a car and Toto injured in the pouch. Thankfully Toto was found by a loving member of the public, but the accident had caused his poor little, unfurred head to become wounded.  This tough little guy found his way to Wild Days Wildlife Shelter where his head healed was cleaned and managed by foster carer, Kay. Toto’s wound healed up nicely and he has began growing fur!  Poor Toto had another hiccup recently and needed a bit more help which is where we stepped in. Luckily, after a few bumps in the road, littleToto is back on track to a full recovery!
 
Toto is growing well and heading towards a healthy wild life.

March 2021 – Botulism and our native, aquatic birds

Here in Lynbrook, we get a number of wild birds present paralysed. Most of these birds are aquatic species such as the Australian White Ibis and native Ducks.

Due to the stagnant, man-made waterways and changing weather, bacteria begins to bloom in the lakes and our scavenger birds then feed from this dirty water. Sadly, these birds become sick from a toxin produced by the bacteria and they fall victim to a condition called Botulism.

Botulism can be life threatening if not treated straight away. The toxin circulates through the bird’s body, rendering them unable to fly leaving them as sitting ducks (sorry about the pun!) on the ground for predators such as cats to attack. If they’re lucky enough to not be eaten by a predator, they soon face an even worse fate as they suffer from weather and starvation. It is a slow, painful and lonely death.

But there is a solution!

In March we were alerted of an Australian White Ibis that was not flying away from people in our local park. A lovely member of the public brought the Ibis in to our clinic to be examined by our team. The bird was barely able to stand and was struggling to keep its head up.

The Ibis was diagnosed with botulism and we began treatment straight away. Treatment includes pumping the bird’s stomach with fluid and diluting the toxins. It can be a messy and smelly process!

After the first few treatments, the bird began to show some signs of improvement but it was not out of the woods yet! We contacted the amazing Kay at Wild Days Wildlife Shelter for assistance and she took the Ibis into care.

After a week in care, the Ibis was back to it’s happy, healthy self once again and was able to be released back home!  Watch the video:

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