A rescued joey found in her mother’s pouch after being hit by a car.
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A local wildlife shelter is pleading with drivers to report kangaroos they hit, after several kangaroos — some carrying joeys — were left suffering on local roads in recent days.
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Dutch Thunder Wildlife shelter owner Kylee Donkers said five kangaroos had been hit in the same location at Mulwala over the past few days and not one driver called the incidents in.
“This is heartbreaking and preventable,” she said.
“All it takes is one phone call.
“Even if the animal is deceased, please check the pouch if safe to do so, or call someone who can.
“Joeys can survive for hours after mum has passed.”
Mrs Donkers said one joey was found in a mother’s pouch and survived its ordeal, while another was not so lucky.
A joey, now named Letty, was found in the pouch of a kangaroo lying dead on the side of a road at Mulwala.
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“The message we want to get across to people is accidents happen, no-one is ever going to be blamed for hitting an animal,” she said.
“What they are blamed for is the next two minutes after they hit the animal and what they do, or what they don’t do.
“Nothing deserves to lay on the road and suffer.”
Mrs Donkers said two of the five kangaroos hit were called in by members of the public, while the other three were discovered by volunteers.
“One was called in by a mum with her child out for their morning walk,” she said.
“That’s a really sad thing ... seeing an animal thrashing around, not able to stand up, they don’t deserve to have to then be thinking about that all day.”
Drivers are being urged to report any kangaroo collisions to the local wildlife shelter so that the animal can receive immediate care and volunteers can check for a joey.
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Another was discovered by a woman walking her dog.
“It had a joey in its pouch and it was alive when the lady found it, but by the time the rescuer got there the joey had passed away,” Mrs Donkers said.
Mrs Donkers said if the driver that hit the kangaroo had called it in, there was a chance that joey could have survived.
“We are a 24-hour service, we will come out day or night, doesn't matter,” she said.
“The sooner people call us, the better chance the animals have of surviving.”
Mrs Donkers stressed the importance of adhering to speed limits, especially in areas popular with kangaroos.
She believes some of the injuries she found on the kangaroos were inconsistent with a speed limit of 50km/h as stated in the area.
“One of them had both her legs and forearms broken, a head injury and an injury to her stomach ... you are not doing 50km to do that much damage to a kangaroo,” she said.
Letty is doing well after her mum was hit by a car. The joey is being cared for at the Dutch Thunder Wildlife shelter.
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Mrs Donkers said the rescued joey was “doing really well” and had been named Letty, after Vin Diesel’s girlfriend in the Fast and Furious franchise, following the previous rescue of another joey named Vin.
“Take care on the roads, and if you do have an accident, call it in, you’re not going to get in trouble,” Mrs Donkers said.
If you hit a kangaroo or find an injured animal, call the 24/7 wildlife service Dutch Thunder on 0417 560 910.
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