Team Koala would like to acknowledge the effective work Friends of the Koala in Lismore carries out in caring for and rehabilitating sick and injured koalas. We stand in solidarity with Friends of the Koalas’ need for $500,000 to complete their upgraded hospital as reported recently in the media.
In June 2020 the NSW Veterinary Board granted Friends of the Koala a licence to operate the Northern Rivers Koala Hospital, the only specialist koala hospital in the region with the largest number of admissions of any koala hospital in NSW.
Stage 1 of that hospital’s planned expansion, which includes a purpose-built laboratory, a sterile surgical suite, three new intensive care unit (ICU) rooms, and a dedicated chlamydia polymerase chain reaction (PCR) laboratory has been completed to lock-up, thanks largely to World Wildlife Fund Australia’s Regenerate Australia Program. Fitting out the remaining hospital extension and completing the site master plan requires a further $500,000 of funding.
Team Koala supports Friends of the Koala in seeking additional funding for the completion of their hospital and Team Koala will be making a public announcement of our financial contribution, but more is needed.
In the meantime, we encourage all Byron Shire Echo readers with an interest in koalas and their care and survival to contact Friends of the Koala on 02 66 214664 (email [email protected]) and make a donation.
Jenny Hayes, Murwillumbah
Team Koala President
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