Stories
Little Quoll
by Kelly Stumbles
 First day in care - 165g  First day in care - sleeping  Snuggled in bed  Cosy in his log  Pretending to be a bit quoll! | At the present time one of the many animals I am caring for is a special little animal called a Spotted-tailed Quoll. I have cared for many quolls over the past 25 years, but this little guy is the first baby quoll I have ever had come into care. His mother was hit and killed near Dundee which is north of Glen Innes (NSW), and he was found staggering around near her on the side of the road. He was most likely riding on her back as she went about her night looking for food before being hit. During the impact that killed his mother, he was also injured. He copped a whack to the head which caused bleeding from his nose and concussion. He weighed just 165g and appeared to be underweight – his head looked a bit big for his body. From my measurements he was around 100g underweight. He was very thirsty and hungry and needed a good sleep, which he did a lot of for the first week. He was soon gaining weight and a week later he weighed 285g. He currently weighs 585g. He has enjoyed eating mice, sparrows, rabbit plus chicken hearts and has been have milk as well, which he will be weaned off at around 750g. He was housed inside for around 18 days and was then place in an escape proof enclosure outside. I place his bed inside a timber box, but he has since dragged bits of dry grass into a hollow log and made himself a cosy bed in there instead. So good to see his natural instincts kicking in. From the quiet, dazed, and lethargic little guy he was just over a month ago, he is now so much stronger, lively, and very much a wild little quoll. He is going ahead in leaps and bounds and will be released in the near future once he’s a more predator proof size as I don’t want him to be a snack for a fox or feral cat. |