Rehabilitation
Recovery Care
The road to recovery
Once a koala has been admitted to our hospital and treated in our clinic, it may be transferred to our ICU, into home care (Joey), or our rehabilitation yards.
If we rescue an orphaned Joey, they'll need round-the-clock feeds! One of our trained home carers will look after them until they are mature enough to be transferred to pre-release rehabilitation yards at the Hospital.
Depending on the illness or injury, koalas can spend between 1 day and 6-8 months in rehabilitation.
A typical day in...
Koala Rehabilitation
- Morning: checking on the koalas, checking and recording their daily food intake and fecal output, feeding them with eucalyptus leaves, and cleaning the enclosures. If needed, medication and supplemental feeds will be administered.
- Afternoon: Another check on the koalas, spraying the 'browse' (leaf they eat) to increase their water intake and keep the browse fresh. If needed, medication and supplemental feeding.
- Food: Koalas need to be offered at least three different species of eucalyptus every day (and may also require supplemental feeds with a special formula).
How much do koalas eat?
A surprising amount! Koalas eat up to a kilo of eucalypt leaf daily, and harvesting and preparing their food requires an army of volunteers. To meet this considerable demand, KCA manages two koala food tree plantations.
Wild & free is the goal
Once our wildlife vets give a koala a clean bill of health, we start the 'release process' back into the wild.
Release Criteria
To be released, our rehabilitated koalas will need to:
- Display normal 'koala-like' behavior. This includes avoiding humans.
- Have the ability to move and climb freely
- Be free of disease symptoms
- Be free of pain
- Have the ability to feed and find food independently
- Have a healthy body weight.
- Be fit enough! Rehab koalas generally spend at least a month in our pre-release yards, where they can regain their fitness.
Rehabilitation eligibility
As a licenced Wildlife Rehabilitation facility, we need to adhere to strict guidelines on which animals are good candidates for rehabilitation. Only koalas with recoverable injuries/illnesses, or orphaned joeys that need hand-rearing qualify. Koalas who are not able to recover from their illness or injury are euthanised to avoid their suffering.
