Captive Wombat Behaviour

by Brigitte Stevens

The story of how I became obsessed with wombats!

I have specialised in Native Mammals in various zoo's in QLD for nearly all of my adult life. My duties as Keeper, Wildlife Supervisor and Curator allowed me to care for animals I had only dreamed of and paved the way for my life as it is now - rescuing, raising, researching and educating others about wombats!

I accidentally stumbled on the controversial subject of wombats in captivity by undertaking the task of raising a 350gm male Southern Hairy Nosed wombat that was rejected by his mother in a fauna park. Wombats born in a zoo can never be released so I always had the thought in the back of my mind of what his life would hold or would he follow in the footsteps of his parents and live a life of misery.

Within a short period of time my passion for animals turned into a burning obsession for wombat welfare. How was I supposed to raised this extremely affectionate, dependant on my company wombat just to send him off to a zoo?

Fortunately and unfortunately fate stepped in and the joey named Barney was diagnosed with a suppressed immune system. It was unfortunate for him as his life could be filled with health battles but fortunate that it gave me a chance to control his fate as no business could financially justify a lifetime of vet bills or time needed to care for a sick little wombat.

So Barney became my responsibility. We developed an incredibly strong bond and I encouraged him in every way to enjoy life. This I believe was the key to his survival.

Barney has had a multitude of health issues but his love for life was intoxicating. I have to admit that I have learnt so much about wombats after spending years researching ailments that are rarely actually found in wombats!

Our endeavours eventually took us down to see a wombat specialist in South Australia. Barney was diagnosed with a multitude of conditions which unfortunately led to arthritis. He was destined to a short lifetime on anti-inflammatories and natural treatments. The best advise we had from this specialist was to get him walking. This is where he improved and my insight to the needs of wombats in captivity were awoken.

We had to make a decision vital for his long term survival. it was essential to take him to the right environment with the correct soils. If there was any chance to improve his life, then we were going to take it! This one little wombat has captured us so much that we left our jobs, friends, family, sold our house and moved 2500 kms to provide him with the ideal environment.

Although Barney will always be on natural arthritis supplements within eight weeks of moving to the Murraylands this little boy no longer needed his anti -inflammatories which posed the biggest threat to his long term health, it also indicates to us that he is in no pain. We finally have had results beyond our dreams and has made all our efforts worth while!