Eight months ago George the Wombat was pulled from his mother's pouch in the Hunter Valley after she was hit and killed by a car.
Wildlife throughout the Hunter and across Australia too often are met with the fate of being hit by a car, but George was one of the lucky ones. He was found by a family who checked the mother's pouch who was sadly deceased. Fortunately the little wombat was big enough that he had some fur and was able to be hand reared at the Australian Reptile Park.
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| George. Image Australian Reptile Park Facebook page |
General Manager of the Reptile Park, and George's carer Tim Faulkner says the video while it may be cute and funny, has made millions of people aware of Australian animals and their plight.
"Australia has the worst mammal extinction rate on earth. So when there's little superstars like George out there reminding the Australian public, and the world for that matter, that they exist it's a good thing for wombats. Like I say they are cute and cuddly but we see too much of orangutans and rhinoceros and our own backyard isn't doing too well!"
Tim Faulkner says it's important Australia's native animals have a voice.
"We love the fact that ambassadors if you like, like George, they get such a large audience and sure they're cute and they're cuddly, but it makes people care about wombats, and whether its a bandicoot or a bettong or a Tasmanian devil, that's a good thing," said Tim Faulkner.
