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• Australia Zoo Rescue Unit

Australia Zoo Rescue Unit

Australian Wildlife Hospital 24-hour emergency hotline
Phone: 1300 369 652

Steve and Terri Irwin were born into families of wildlife rescuers! In the beginning, Australia Zoo was made up of animals which had been rescued by the Irwin's, and unable to be released back into the wild. Today, Australia Zoo has its very own Wildlife Rescue Unit; a team dedicated to rescuing wildlife 365 days a year!

From koalas to Green Sea turtles, the Australia Zoo Rescue Unit is dedicated to rescuing all wildlife in need. From Brisbane to Kilcoy and beyond the team travels far and wide with a proven catch and release program in place- their aim is to successfully rescue, rehabilitate and release team works closely with Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors - Australia Wildlife Hospital to ensure each animal received the best possible care.

The Australia Zoo Rescue Unit provides a free service to the community to rescue sick and injured wildlife and get them to the best possible veterinary treatment, the Australian Wildlife Hospital. The team are highly skilled and trained to rescue everything from road accident victims to marine animal strandings (including everything in between) and they do it all seven days a week!

A variety of specialised gear is required in any given animal emergency and theirs includes two Australia Zoo Rescue vehicles; a 4WD and a Van decked out with a range of rescue equipment, Croc One Australia Zoo's Research and Rescue Vessel, and a tinnie and zodiac for local marine rescues.

The team receive an average of ten call-outs each day and cover many kilometres from the Sunshine Coast to north Brisbane, west to Kilcoy and beyond if required. The best part of the job is getting the call from the vet that the animal has recovered in their care and ready to be released back to the wild - that's why we love what we do!

Any donations to rescue team provide essential rescue equipment to ensure that we can provide the best service possible to the animals.

A donation of $50 will provide the AZRU with

• 2 Vials of Anaesthetic drugs to anesthetise Kangaroos and Wallabies to enable their safe and pain free transportation to the AWH.
• 2 Koala poles to enable safe and stress free capture of Koalas in trees that may be suffering from illnesses or injury.
• Large snake and Goanna bags for safe capture and transport of reptiles
• 2 small carry cages for transport of flying foxes, birds and small mammals that are sick or injured.
• An emergency rescue pack - Torches, Binoculars, Bandages, and Pliers (to remove animals from Barbed wire)
• Animal Rescue First Aid Kit - Containing all the essential first aid equipment to stabilise our patients before transport to AWH!

A donation of $100 will provide AZRU with

• Amphibian and Reptile Aquariums - to transport frogs and small snakes safely to the AWH
• A Pelican and Large Bird carrier to Transport injured Sea Birds and large birds of Prey such as a Wedge tail Eagles or Sea Eagles.
• Will go towards safety equipment for marine rescues such as wetsuits and booties - to enable the rescue team to be in the water for extended periods of time, such as during a whale stranding.
• Will purchase a salt water spray regulator - used to hydrate marine mammals during rescue and transportation
• Koala bags for capture and transportation of Koalas both in the trees and on the ground.
• A new Rescue 911 knife, used to remove netting from marine animals in water
• Would purchase us a new snake hook and bag - to contain venomous snakes that are sick and injured.
• A possum trap to catch and contain Possums with Dermatitis (severe skin bacteria) or other injuries.

A donation of $1000 will provide AZRU with

• A small whale and dolphin transportation sling - used to move large marine mammals safely and comfortably from the beach to rescue vehicles and beyond.
• A Sea Turtle Harness - Used to transport Sea Turtles from rescue, through rehab and release - can hold a turtle up to 250Kg!
• Marine Mammal entanglement rope removal equipment - Essential when removing line or netting from whales, dolphins, dugong and even Seals!
• Handheld Global Positioning System (GPS) for recording important data such as Sea Turtle Nest locations, and releasing animals exactly where they came from!
• Sea Kayak - to get rescue team to the animal quickly where there is no boat access.

A Donation of $1500 or more will provide AZRU with

• Climbing Rescue Equipment - The AZRU Team are all accredited tree climbers, this skill allows us to climb 40metre plus high trees and rescue sick Koalas, Birds and Flying Foxes - The Climbing equipment provides us with Harnesses, ropes, carabiners, weights and line, which enables us to contain sick and injured animals mid air and bring them safely to the ground.
• Sedation equipment to be used to dart and sedate Kangaroos and Wallabies that have been hit by cars, or are sick and injured.
• Can go towards professional netting device, used to catch birds that have injured legs or entanglements but can still fly.