A trip to the vet

This is Lucky.



As you can see his eyes aren't as clear as they should be and he has a few red spots around his ears that shouldn't be there. He's eating and drinking okay and everything is coming out the other end as it should, but the gummy eyes have been bothering us, so Donna took him to the vet's this morning.

There's nothing serious, the symptoms are probably caused by stress, but the vet gave us some drops for his eyes and a bottle of Vetadine to wash him with. Actually gave is probably the wrong word, sold is more accurate, but we don't begrudge paying for medicines for the animals, especially considering most vets, including this one, don't charge for a consultation when you take native wildlife into them.

Anyway, Lucky's got to have the drops in his eyes twice a day and a wash once a day. Washing him is going to be interesting although I don't think it'll be like washing the dog. More like a sponge bath.

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Our copy of the rehabilitation permit from BARN arrived yesterday. For those readers that aren't carers, being members of a wildlife rehabilitation organisation means we're covered by their permit. You don't have to be a member of an organisation to be a carer as far as I know, but you do have to have a permit.

I've noticed in going through the visitor stats for this blog, that a common thread is people googling for information on caring for possums. If you're looking after a possum, or any native wildlife for that matter, and you aren't registered, please do so. Becoming a member of an organisation like BARN, or WIRES, or whatever your local organisation might be, means you will get proper training from experienced carers. You will also get ongoing support from them whenever you need help.

The fines for keeping wildlife without a permit are quite hefty.

Keep in mind too, in New Zealand possums are a pest. If you care for an orphaned possum there, it will most likely be illegal to release it back into the wild. It's the same here in Queensland and probably the rest of Australia with certain birds like common mynas and feral pigeons.