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One
morning I got a call from a man who told me he had a possum
that his dogs had found entangled on a barbed wire fence.
Barbed fences are considered a curse by many a wildlife enthusiast
as many animals such as birds and marsupials can become injured
from being hooked up on the barbs - and many of these have
to be euthanased as the injuries sustained are too severe.
The gentleman said he was just renting the property and would
never have barbed wire fences.
The
man had already removed the possum from the fence which made
it a little easier for me, and he had even gently removed
some of the barbed wire out of her tail. He had the possum
in a cardboard box on a soft towel, nice and quiet until I
arrived.
When I got there I took a look into the box and there was
a Yellow Bellied Glider looking up at me.
I put the glider into my carry cage and into a larger pouch
as I wasn’t sure of her injuries. I had a hot water bottle
in the cage also as I wanted to get her all warmed up.
I left the callers property and stopped down the road to phone
the nearest vet (Casey’s Beach Vet Clinic at Batehaven) to
see if I could call in on my way past so they could check
her out.
When I arrived Melissa, my friendly vet, had a look and said
she would have to gas the glider to have a proper look and
to cut out the barbed wire still embedded into the patagium
(gliding membrane) and tail so I left the glider there and
went back home.
When Melissa phoned back a couple of hours later Melissa and
my other friendly vet Beth had removed all of the barbed wire
out, but had to cut into the patagium and there was approximately
17cms which was unattached to the gliders body.
Melissa and Beth took some photos of her while she was under
the gas. They are great photos and you can see from one photo
how much her patagium had to be cut.
Melissa said she wont be releasable.
I took her home to recover from the surgery. I placed her
in a heat box so she couldn’t move around too much and keep
her warm. A week later I took her back to the vet for a check
up.
Both Melissa and Beth were pleased with the gliders recovery.
Beth suggested she contact a vet at Taronga Zoo and email
some photos through to them, so we could get an idea of whether
the patagium would mend. I left Melissa and Beth to their
research and took the glider back home.
I also asked around to a few other possum carers to get their
thoughts on the gliders injuries. One possum lady Sonya Stanvic
suggested the patagium would knit back to her body as she
has had gliders in care with similar injuries to mine.
I had renewed hope for my glider!
Melissa phoned to tell me the vet at the zoo had said it may
not mend but that they would be willing to take her into their
breeding program. I was relieved to have a second option if
the glider was finally found to be unreleasable.
Another carer I know, Mel from Sydney, suggested I call Terri
Bellamy and take the Yellow Bellied Glider to her as Terri
is a qualified Wildlife Vet. I made an appointment the next
day to see Terri as I was heading up to Sydney.
When
Terri examined the glider, the patagium had almost knitted
back to the gliders body except for approximately 3cms. Terri
advised me to give her 3-4 weeks in the aviary and release
her as she if she was able to glide again.
I thanked Mel for her positive advice - I didn't like the
thought that this glider may have ended up in captivity for
the rest of her life.
After time the glider was moved into my largest aviary for
rehabilitation and exercise. I filled half the aviary with
fresh branches of an assortment of gums, Black Wattle, Casuarinas,
Banksias and some supplemented foods. Occasionally I found
some trees with sap on them, and this being a favourite morsel
for gliders, I'd scrap off the sap and put in the aviary.
A delectable treat for my glider!
She
was actually a real fussy eater! I have had Yellow Bellied
Gliders in short term care before and they would love the
slurry mix of supplementary food I made up as well as their
natural offerings. This Yellow Bellied Glider didn’t go much
on the slurry, she went for the natural foods only.
At
night I would go down to the aviary as I could hear her moving
about. As soon as I got to the aviary door she would climb
back into her box! So I started sneaking down and standing
outside the aviary for a while hoping she wouldn’t hear me,
but that didn’t work either. This glider didn't like performing!
I could hear her at night gliding around the aviary though,
so I knew she was exercising adequately. One reason I filled
only half the aviary up with fresh branches with only a small
amount up the other end, was so she would have enough room
to glide and get up the other end of the aviary. Being
in care for around 8 weeks she needed to get her muscle tone
working again before release.
Happily to say she was released back to the same area she
was originally found. Not directly on the caller’s property
as he was worried about his dogs and the barbed wire fencing.
It was such a delight to know she was able to be released.
It amazes me that the patagium knitted back to her body so
perfectly. Like Sonya had said to me a few weeks earlier -
it was just fascinating!
I'd
like to send out a big thank you to all those who helped me
with this glider, particularly to Melissa and Beth for operating
so quickly, which ultimately put her onto the road of recovery.
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