Friends of the Koala

Media Release

29 December 2008

Seven koalas received help from the Friends of the Koala from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day and advice was provided for several others. Sadly, of the seven koalas attended, all were diseased including several with leukaemia, a disease which appears to be more common in koalas on the Northern Rivers than other areas of Australia.

Local Veterinarian, Richard Creed of Lismore Veterinary Clinic had this to say, ‘It is relatively rare for us to see a koala needing help due to trauma or injury, by far the majority are diseased, many with incurable conditions such as leukaemia, cancers, chronic Chlamydial infections, cystic ovarian disease and retrovirus.”

Richard, along with the other vets at Lismore Veterinary Clinic, assesses and treats most of the koalas brought into care by Friends of the Koala. Due to the complexity of the diseases presented, the koalas all require anaesthesia and testing to give an accurate diagnosis of their condition. All female koalas require abdominal ultrasound scans. This work is performed free of charge by the Practice as a service to the Northern Rivers community and its wildlife.

The costs involved in treating and diagnosing diseases in koalas are high. Cases requiring specialist attention are referred to the Australian Wildlife Hospital in Beerwah, Queensland, an eight hour return trip which is undertaken by the Friends of the Koala’s dedicated volunteers. These journeys are critical in gaining an accurate understanding of koala diseases in the Northern Rivers region.

“We are extremely grateful for the assistance of both our local vets and the Australian Wildlife Hospital” says Care Coordinator Barbara Dobner. “Our biggest concern is the increasing number of koalas we are now seeing with incurable diseases. There is a desperate need for research funding to discover why this is so prevalent in our wild populations, possible causes and what impact it is having on koala numbers. If this is not done we risk losing the koalas in the Northern Rivers.”

You can help the Friends of the Koala by:

• Reporting any koala sightings to the Friends of the Koala 24 hour hotline on 6622 1233. Sick koalas not brought into care risk a prolonged and painful death.
• Visiting the Friends of the Koala website at www.friendsofthekoala.org to find out the signs of a diseased koala.
• Assisting financially. Friends of the Koala is entirely voluntary. Adopting a koala in care can be done online or via the hotline.
• Joining the Friends of the Koala and helping with hands-on care, rescue and rehabilitation of koalas.

A Basic Training Day will be held in early March; however Friends of the Koala welcomes volunteers who can commence immediately.

Looks can be deceiving: two case studies illustrating the dilemma of healthy-looking but diseased koalas follow:

Photographed below is Bert, a young male koala found on the ground with mild symptoms of conjunctivitis and cystitis. Bert’s body condition was good. He responded well to antibiotic treatment. Suddenly that changed – he went off his tucker. His mouth had become ulcerated. Following various tests he was diagnosed with retrovirus.

A koala with clinical symptoms of retrovirus has lost its immune system. Once koalas show extreme clinical symptoms of retrovirus it is not possible to treat them. They become depressed; they stop eating. The only humane alternative is euthanasia.

Bert was euthanased at the Australian Wildlife Hospital.

Spyder is a juvenile koala. He was found on the ground covered in blood. The person who picked him up thought he had been bit by a car but close inspection showed the blood was coming from the tick bites all over him. Tests showed his blood was so thin and anaemic it would not clot and he should have been dead.

Spyder’s prognosis during his first week in care was grave. However with a supportive diet and appropriate treatments he has recovered and is much improved. It is possible he has a blood parasite that has recently been discovered in koalas from the Northern Rivers by the Australian Wildlife Hospital vet team. Continuing checks will be carried out on his blood to monitor its status. Spyder’s release back to the wild is by no means certain.

Media contacts:

Care Co-ordinator: Barbara Dobner  –  6688 8165

President: Lorraine Vass – 6629 8388