By JESSE GRAHAM
SIX months on from being found injured by the side of the road, Noojee the koala is well-mended and living luxuriously at Healesville Sanctuary.
In November 2015, the koala joey was found orphaned by the side of the road near Noojee (his namesake) with a broken nose and a burst eardrum – injuries that may have come from being hit by a car.
He was taken to the sanctuary’s Australian Wildlife Health Centre for treatment, and when visited by the Mail on Wednesday 25 May, Noojee seemed to have made a full recovery.
The one sign of his injuries is a crooked nose and jaw, which keeper Kristy Eriksen said meant he couldn’t be released into the wild.
“With his injuries, he wouldn’t survive long in the wild,” Ms Eriksen said.
“He’s now about 15 months old, he just hit five kilograms, and as you can see his face is a bit crooked still – but otherwise, he’s doing really well.
“He needs regular care – we need to be monitoring him each day and the way he’s eating.”
She said that an average day for Noojee included plenty of sleeping and eating, as well as walks around the sanctuary grounds to get him used to the different sights and sounds.
Because the koala was hand-raised from a young age, Ms Eriksen said that Noojee was one of the few koalas who enjoyed cuddling by their keepers.
“Not all koalas do – it’s quite a rare commodity for a koala to enjoy a cuddle,” she said.
Noojee will be one of the koalas moved into the sanctuary’s new Koala Forest, which is being prepared ahead of its opening on the school holidays, on 25 June.
