BUSHFIRES have a devastating impact on wildlife’s habitat, particularly koalas, and a local vet hospital offers a sanctuary for these adorable, furry marsupials.

The Gawler Animal Hospital has cared for an increased number of koalas lately – sure to rise following the aftermath of this week’s Cherry Gardens bushfire.

Last week the vet clinic called for ‘koala tucker’ on social media to feed its newest resident.

“People are concerned about our wildlife, especially after the bushfires, so as soon as they see one they are reporting them quicker than ever, especially to our wildlife carers,” Gawler Animal Hospital’s Lauren Swan told The Bunyip.

“We see the koalas when the carers are unable to help them further.

“We are finding that they are quite ill, most with kidney failure and renal disease.”

Mrs Swan urged people to contact a carer or koala hotline when finding one in distress.

“They can be dangerous to pick up on the side of the road, so we don’t encourage that if you are unsure of what you are doing,” she said.

“We also see all sorts of wildlife here from usual pets to birds and possums, echidnas and kookaburras.”

The hospital’s Dr Michelle Lloyd said a number of factors were behind the koala increase.

“One is in the warmer weather – we have koalas that are unwell and become dehydrated more quickly, so they are the ones often people find on the side of the road and bring in,” she said.

“When we have habitat loss like during the bushfires there is also more competition in areas between males, who are quite territorial.

“When we get a koala in, we initially have to assess what is wrong, so we assess their hydration status, what sort of body condition they are in, and we look for any injuries.

“If it is a female we have to assess whether there is anything in their pouch like a joey and then if they are dehydrated we put them on intravenous fluids, and usually try to take a blood and urine sample.

“Koalas are really prone to kidney disease and go into renal failure. They are also prone to chlamydia and the care is supportive.”

Dr Lloyd said the tree-dwelling herbivores are often fussy patients.

“We need to make sure we have fresh branches for them and it has to be the right type of brow,” she said.

“They will only eat fresh gum leaves of the right varietals otherwise they will just sit there and look at it.

“One of our nurses, Minindi Pipinias, is now a registered carer, so it is good to go to her for advice.

“Everyone here really enjoys having the koalas because they are such an iconic Australian piece of wildlife, they are cute, a bit slower and chilled out for the most part, but they can get grumpy when we try to examine them.”

Mrs Swan encouraged people to keep an eye on Gawler Animal Hospital’s social media platforms for when it requires help from the public, like providing gum leaves for the koalas.

Staff named their current koala ‘Bunyip’ following his interview.