WILDLIFE MOUNTAIN
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Phoenix Joey's are often found alone, reasons for this we can only take a guess at, in this case foxes had been seen and heard for some time. When a wallaby is chased she may drop the joey in her haste to get away, often the joey is unharmed, unfortunately it will not survive for long needing the security of mums pouch for warmth and food.
On arrival he was given intensive care, and after some time he slowly regained strength and interest in life, we named him Phoenix. He is approximately five and a half months old. At this stage of development he would still be in mum’s pouch, peering out as she forages for food.
As he is now fully recovered from dehydration, shock and malnourishment he spends his days in the macropod enclosure still in his pouch, not yet old enough to venture out, but it will not be long before he will as interact with the other wallabies in care and learn vital survival skills only other Macropod's can teach him. Raising wildlife is not like raising a kitten or a puppy that will be looked after for the rest of its life. When wildlife is released back to the wild, they have to have all the skills necessary for survival such as knowing what to eat, where to find it, and recognising predators, which includes domestic dogs and cats. They must also be able to cope with changing weather conditions, including knowing how to find shelter and water. This little orphan has a long road ahead before his release back to wild in nine months. He will spend this time in a large enclosure interacting with other macropod's in various stages of development. Here they learn macropod behavior from each other and skills vital for their long term survival.. UPDATE February 2010
Phoenix is thriving in care, seen here 9 weeks after arrival. He is still mainly in his pouch but comes out after each feed for a speed run through the pen, and some browsing on branches and grass |
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©Wildlife Mountain 2000 - 2010
We would also like to acknowledge the amazing support and help we have had from the Lismore Vet Clinic who have been an invaluable support to both us and the native wildlife of this region.
Webmaster Susanne Ulyatt
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This tiny Swamp wallaby was found by Pam at Richmond Hill in December 2009. There was no sign of the joey’s mother. He was extremely dehydrated but also undernourished which is unusual, we do see undernourished joey's come in to care quite often, but usually they are older having been alone for days. This little fellow would not have survived out of the pouch for days, so we can only assume that mum was either injured or suffering from 
