Episode 7

In this episode, it’s the middle of one of Australia’s worst bushfire seasons on record. Fire along the east coast has devastated the dry, drought-stricken landscape, destroying homes and claiming lives.

Rural Bendigo is surrounded by bushland and grassy paddocks and is now on Code Red, the highest bushfire alert level. Outside the animal hospital, the temperature is already approaching 40 degrees by mid morning and Dr Chris is expecting an influx of wildlife impacted by the fires.

It doesn’t take long for the first patient to arrive – a baby kangaroo that has been found abandoned on a golf course. At only a few months old, the joey is too young to be away from the safety of its mother’s pouch.

Meanwhile, wildlife carer Chris Page has rushed in a koala he suspects has been hit by a car. It was seen limping on the road, and Dr Chris is concerned it may have a fracture. He sedates the marsupial to take an x-ray, which confirms his suspicions – there is a nasty break in its hip. Treatment of this sort of injury is extremely challenging, so Dr Chris seeks an expert opinion while the koala rests.

Over at the equine hospital, the fires only add to the stress of foaling season, which is still in full swing. A call has come in about a newborn with colic – a dangerous condition that causes abdominal pain. A quick response can mean the difference between life and death, so the surgery is prepped in readiness for its arrival.