Jesse came into care on the same day as Hewy and at 2.3kg was not much bigger. She was found on the ground looking pale and behaving much quieter than a koala should at that age.

A trip to the Australian Wildlife Hospital indicated she was suffering from pneumonia and was extremely anemic. So much so, she should have really been dead. We measure if a koala is anemic by testing the PCV level of their blood. For a normal healthy koala the reading should be in the 30's. Jesse had a PCV of 9. Any koala with a PCV below 10 is in dire straits. Further testing was done to try to find a cause for the anemia. An internal bleed and leukemia were ruled out leaving the hopeful thought a tick overload was the problem.

Jesse was treated with appropriate medications perscribed by the vet and all ticks were removed.

Great news is that a checkup this week at the vet has show her PCV is now 24. Still anemic but very much improved. She certainly loves her leaf and is a very different koala to when she first arrived.

Several months on and Jesse has been successfully released. She is living close by to her pre release enclosure which is great as it allows us to keep a close eye out for her well being.

If you would like to Support Jesse, find out more about her story and help other orphans like her return to the wild, Click here to download a form to print out and post in.

To Support Jesse online, Click here, follow the prompts and put Jesses name in as koala of your choice.