Heat Stressed Wildlife

When we experience extremely high temperatures for several days it may be weather that our wildlife is not used to. This means they may not be able to cope with the conditions. As a result it is possible that animals will be seen suffering dehydration and exhaustion.

Please also remember that on extremely hot days our rescue line and our volunteers are often dealing with many hundreds of calls for help and our resources will be stretched.

Transporting animals to local vets is a huge help and allows animals to get emergency treatment as soon as possible giving them their best chance of survival.

Identifying a heat stressed animal

• Birds may pant by opening their beaks,hold their wings out and away from their body
• Heat stressed animals may appear confused and lethargic
  
• Flying-foxes, possums, gliders, koalas may come to the ground or low to the ground during daylight hours
• Kangaroos and wallabies may be lying down and not move away quickly if startled. They may also be seen salivating.
• Reptiles may seek refuge from the heat in cool, dark places to cool down
• Severely impacted animals may suffer convulsions or lose consciousness
• Some animals may also suffer burns on their paws from hot roof and road surfaces

How you can help

If you have found a heat stressed animal please read the following more detailed advice

If an animal (that is not a bat or flying-fox) is injured or appears to be a juvenile, or it is suffering convulsions or has lost consciousness, and it is safe to do so, it will need urgent vet attention and should be immediately transported in a well ventilated container to your local vet clinic.

If you are unable to safely transport the animal (or it is a bat or flying-fox) please use our online form to report the rescue or call 1300 094 737 for assistance.

If you can see that an animal has burns on their paws from hot road or roof surfaces it will require urgent vet assistance.

Flying-foxes and bats

Flying-foxes are especially susceptible to a run of days with high temperatures and humidity. If you find a bat entangled in your fruit tree netting please call us 1300 094 737 without delay. If a bat is entangled on a day of extreme heat it will die quickly. You can help keep it cool by providing shade until our rescuer arrives.

It is important NEVER TO TOUCH OR HANDLE a flying-fox under any circumstance as a very small number may present a risk of contracting Australian Bat Lyssavirus, a disease transmitted through bites and scratches.

• If you are waiting for a WIRES rescuer to arrive and you are able to safely provide some form of shade over the flying-fox (without touching it) to keep it out of the direct sun, please do.
  
• If the flying-fox is on the ground and it’s a hot day, you can place a cool towel or umbrella above it until the rescuer arrives to protect it from the the worst of the heat.
  
• Spraying the animal intermittently with a light mist or setting up a sprinkler to gently wet the animal can also help.

If you’ve found a bird or ringtail possum suffering from heat stress and it is safe to do so you can:

• Gently cover the animal using a towel and place it in a box lined with a towel. Take it inside to a dark, quiet place away from pets and people.
  
• You can place the animal on a towel and mist the animal with room temperature water. The animal should never be made dripping wet.
  
• Do not wrap animals in damp towels.
• Provide a shallow dish of water for the animal to drink from.
  
• If the animal appears unable to drink, you can drip water onto its lips or beak using an eyedropper. It is important not tip or squirt water into an animal’s mouth as this can cause choking.
• All interactions with people are stressful for wild animals and handling should always be kept to a minimum.
• If a bird you have rescued starts to look more alert after taking the above steps you may return it to where it was found once temperatures have eased.
• Possums or any other nocturnal animals must not be released until after dark. Once it is dark they can be released at the base of the closest tree where they were found.

If any animal shows no sign of improvement within one to two hours, please take it to your local vet clinic in a car that has been cooled down and have the radio off as this will minimise stress. If you are unable to transport the animal please call 1300 094 737 for assistance.

• Share

Recent Posts

• Swooping Magpies
• Helping wildlife after severe storm event or floods
• Snake Advice
• Heat Stressed Wildlife
• Storms
• High Winds
• Helping wildlife during heatwaves and bushfires
• Snakes are shy and reclusive
• Winter and extreme weather advice to help wildlife
• Migrating Seabirds