When a momma koala needed lifesaving surgery, her baby clung to her during the entire procedure.
Lizzy the koala was hit by a car in Australia and suffered facial trauma and a collapsed lung. Fortunately, her 6-month-old joey was unharmed, but she would need surgery to survive the accident.
The hospital staff decided that the baby, Phantom, was too young to remove from his mother so they decided to let him stay during her surgery. So, throughout the procedure, the adorable little guy clung to his mother’s neck.
“Phantom is with Lizzy during her procedures and check-ups to ensure neither mom nor bub gets stressed out,” hospital staff told the ABC.
Certainly, it was a comfort to Lizzy to know that her baby was safe. Even when she was unconscious, who knows if she was aware if he was there or not. But she did survive her injuries with her cute baby hugging her the entire time.
There were times during her recovery when Lizzy needed to be separated from Phantom briefly, to be weighed and such. In those moments, the hospital staff helped comfort Phantom by placing him in a little, soft pouch until she returned to him.
“Similarly, Phantom is in a ‘pouch’ during weighing to ensure he feels safe and protected while away from mum.”
The two of them are more than adorable and we’re so glad that Lizzy is doing well. All thanks to the help of her medical team and the person who removed her from the highway and brought her in for help.
Koalas need as much help as they can get. According to the Australian Koala Foundation, “koalas are in serious decline suffering from the effects of habitat destruction, domestic dog attacks, bushfires, and road accidents. They estimate that there are less than 57,920 Koalas left in the wild, possibly as few as 32,065.”
We hope you enjoyed this sweet recovery video. Please feel free to share with your friends.
