WILVOS are kept busy in a range of roles. The obvious ones are manning the 5441 6200
Hotline, transporting, and rehabilitating injured and orphaned wildlife.
Without increasing public awareness our native animals have even less chance of survival.
Roslyn, WILVOS Community Awareness Officer, loves talking to people about ways to help
our wildlife. She talks to students from kindergarten to TAFE, offering good ideas for how
people, pets and wildlife can more safely share the same space – an unavoidable result of
increasing development. Roslyn shares rescue stories and educates community groups as
well as schools, about varying aspects of our unique wildlife. This is a free of charge service,
from WILVOS to the community.
Besides the usual rescues that come through the Hotline, there are also some more humorous
stories. Roslyn was recently called out to check on a cockatoo with suspected psittacine beak
and feather disease. That cockatoo was actually a Pekin Bantam chook! A home was still
found for it.
Hotliner Debbie received a call from an interstate motorist who had found a puggle (a baby
echidna) next to its dead mother beside the road. New South Wales is the base for an
Australia-wide 24 hour wildlife rescue Hotline. A carer was found to take the ‘puggle’ to a
wildlife vet. It was actually a wombat joey – not the one in the photo! Regardless of
misidentification, it shows people care enough to help an animal in distress. This joey went
to a carer and is thriving.
Besides having the WILVOS Hotline number in our mobile phones, it is also good to have the
Wildlife Rescue Australia 24 hour number. This 1300 596 457 is a National Wildlife Rescue
Hotline and is definitely needed when travelling around Australia.
Donna Brennan Wildlife Volunteers Assoc Inc (WILVOS) PO Box 4805 Sunshine Coast Mail
Centre Q 4560 PH 5441 6200 www.wilvos.org.au
Would you like a presentation at your school, or community group?
