Council worker gives rescued joey the gift of life

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A rescued joey has a chance at life thanks to Bundaberg Regional Council parks and gardens labourer Mark Richards.

Mark works in the Woodgate area and recently came across a dead kangaroo that was hit by a vehicle.

Rescued joey
Joey Bella (left) was rescued by Mark Richards from the pouch as a pinky and now has some fur. She's cuddling Beau, who was rescued recently.

“The female kangaroo was still warm to touch and my immediate reaction was to check the pouch,” Mark said.

“Her pouch appeared empty but then I saw something wriggle and found it was a pinky, an immature baby kangaroo.

I removed the mother from the roadway, put her on a trailer and took her and the baby to Woodgate’s wildlife carer, Tammy Florager, so she could safely remove the pinky.”

The pinky only weighed 180 grams and Tammy thought it may not survive.

“Under a certain weight we need to pass them over to be checked by a vet and I transported it to the Childers veterinary clinic,” Tammy said.

This was the second pinky found by Mark in the last few weeks. He came across another which was a little older and Tammy rescued her.

“Bella was only 480 grams when I saw her and she was stone cold,” Tammy said.

“She is now starting to fur and weighs over 1kg and will be ready to return to my care.”

Mark has had a soft spot for animals since he was a child. He was brought up in the country and is familiar with the perils faced by wildlife.

“I’ve noticed there are a lot more dead kangaroos on the roads after rain. For some reason they seem to head towards the bitumen when it’s raining,” he said.

“Unfortunately I’ve also seen some cruel situations where people have deliberately impacted with kangaroos off-road for a bit of fun.

“Other times I’ve rescued animals caught in fences or I’ve had to arrange for them to be humanely euthanised when their injuries are severe.”

Mark Richards
Bundaberg Regional Council parks and gardens labourer Mark Richards has rescued many orphaned joeys.

Mark said Council rangers do a great job in looking out for injured wildlife and checking kangaroo pouches. He sees himself as another set of eyes while out on his jobs and will help whenever he can.

Tammy is a member of the Queensland Wildlife Carers and Volunteers Association and is grateful for Mark’s assistance.

“Mark is a great community member and willing to help,” said Tammy.

“I am currently setting up animal enclosures on my new property which backs on to the Kinkuna National Park.

“Mark is spreading the word for me within the community for any unwanted fencing materials people may have.

“He is tremendous and when he found the latest pinky, he actually helped its survival by leaving it in the mother’s pouch until he got to me.

“It was also great having him there when we safely removed the pinky from the pouch.

“I think it’s great that Council workers go over and above their normal job to lend a hand.”

Mark is mindful that Tammy often pays expenses out of her own money and is asking the community to contact her if they have any fencing materials or even things like baby jumpsuits or old fur coats to keep the rescued joeys warm and snug.

1 COMMENT

  1. Keep up the great work Mark, we all need to be more respectful of the native wildlife who are continually losing their traditional habitat. Motorists need to SLOW DOWN in the Woodgate, Walker’s Pt and Kinkuna areas, and deliberately do their utmost to avoid colliding into these poor animals, especially echidnas, kangaroos, hare, wallabies, snakes, skinks, goannas and tortoises and many species of birds, with their vehicles. Well done Mark & Tammy !!!

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