Let’s be real, seeing small animals getting injured is pretty heartbreaking, but it warms the heart to witness them receiving care and love from compassionate humans! Such was the case for a little koala joey who took a tumble from a tree and received a cute little cast. The pictures of the tiny baby went viral in no time, as people just couldn’t get enough of the cuteness.
Recently, the Werribee Open Range Zoo posted some absolutely precious photos of a baby koala sporting a cast.
The baby koala hurt her arm after falling from a tree in a Blue-gum plantation where logging was taking place. Unfortunately, the mother of this 150-day-old joey, who weighed only about 500 grams at the time, did not make it.
The mother koala had severe injuries, forcing the vet to make a difficult decision to put her down. Luckily, her baby was going to have a better outcome.
When the veterinarians at Werribee Zoo rescued the small joey, they were unsure if she would survive.
“It was touch and go when she was brought to us,” recounted Jess Rice, a vet nurse at Werribee. “At that stage, she would have been just starting to peek out of her mother’s pouch. Joeys of that size often struggle to survive in our care.”
However, the caregivers were determined not to abandon the small creature. A scan revealed that the infant had a broken arm, prompting veterinarians to carefully apply a tiny cast to her limb before giving her constant attention and treatment.
Shortly after, the baby koala regained her strength, gained some weight, and was returned to a specialized wildlife caregiver. “It will take over a year before she is mature enough to be released into the wild, so she requires a caregiver with the means to look after her for that duration,” Ms. Rice explained.
Unfortunately, the koala’s natural habitat is facing a critical threat of extinction. The population of these lovable animals is rapidly decreasing, leading to their inclusion in the IUCN’s “Red List,” indicating a vulnerable status. The koala habitat is suffering from the impacts of climate change, deforestation, and diseases.
