YOGI THE MOUNTAIN BRUSHTAIL POSSUM

4th April 2004

This juvenile Mountain Brushtail possum has had a rather rough start in life.

She was brought to me by Marina, the owner of the dog that found her.

Normally I would have said attacked, but in this case I am not sure that is exactly what happened. The normally quiet dog ran in to a bush low to the ground, and brought Yogi (as Marina asked this little female to be named) out.

Why I am not sure that the dog actually attacked her is that had the dog actually wanted to hurt her she would have been in a much worse state than she was, her problems were not only the dog bite, but her general condition was very poor.

The first thing I noticed when examining her, was the state of her body, she was so thin, malnourished and extremely dehydrated. Her eyes were strange closed little slits, pupils not really reacting, she also has 2 bites one on her side, the other on her abdomen from where the dog had picked her up.

The possum should not have been that low to the ground, also she should not have been alone, at her age she would normally be on her mothers back, fast asleep in a safe place. The area she was found is forested, so loss of habitat would not account for her predicament. How, when and why she lost her mother we will never know one thing we do know is that she would not have survived much longer on her own.

I started re hydrating her, a slow process in this case, as the extent of dehydration was extreme, and she was then taken to Lismore Veterinary clinic for further treatment, which included internal stitches.

At first I kept her confined in a small space, as movement was painfull, also she needed rest, as she slowly recovered her strength

She is now outside in a large aviary, her stitches will be removed in a few days, and we can only hope that she will have a full recovery. I will keep you updated as to her future. There is never any certainties in Wildlife caring, we do not know the whole story as to what happened to the animals before they arrived in care, we can only hope, and help them along the way to hopefully a full recovery.

11th April 2004

Yogi has now had her stitches removed, and she is moving much better round the aviary at night. Her weight is improving as she is eating well.

Yogi will spend the next few months recovering in this pen, before being moved to a large aviary in the forest where she will meet the resident possums from the safety of the aviary, this is very important as the resident population will accept a juvenile, already knowing her smell. Were we to release her without them first being acquainted with her, she may have big problems being accepted.

19th June 2004

Yogi is now getting to an age and size that she can move to the pre release pen in the forest she is sleeping her days away in her possum box, and exploring at night in her pen.Should you ever find yourself in a similar situation to Marina, please do as she did, contact your nearest wildlife organisation or National Parks office for help immediately. Had Marina waited, this possum would not have survived.

22 July 2004

Yogi has been released, she is still coming back to her hollow log every few days, and will probably do so for some time yet, untill she finds a hollow out in the forest to call home.