North Victorian wildlife carer Kylee Donkers has been involved in some "very strange rescues" over the years, but an animal recovery on a lake this week was a first.
On Monday morning, he owner and operator of Dutch Thunder Wildlife Shelter at Koonoomoo, about 75 kilometres north of Shepparton, received a call from concerned locals who found a wombat stranded in the middle of a lake on the Victoria-NSW border.
Young fishers Jack and Archie Hewat were on a jetski on Lake Mulwala, on the Murray River, with their grandmother Barbara Hewat when they saw what they thought was a koala on a stump.
Ms Hewat said it was only when they got closer that they realised it was a wombat.
Ms Hewat then called Dutch Thunder Wildlife Shelter and Ms Donkers headed to the lake to rescue the the waterlogged marsupial, who she said was not a natural swimmer.
"Echidnas are actually very good swimmers, [it's] not uncommon to see them moving through waterways," Ms Donkers said.
"Same with kangaroos and wallabies; even a koala is a reasonable swimmer."
However, she said wombats did not fall into the same category.
"If you have a look at their body shape, they're not made for a big swim," she said.
"I don't think the wombat made the choice to go into the water," she said, adding that how it got there was a mystery.
"I asked her on the trip home how she ended up there but unfortunately she couldn't answer me," Ms Donkers said.
Ms Donkers said it was possible the wombat ended up in the water during recent storms or after being chased off land by a dog.
A risky rescue
The water rescue posed some challengers, and Ms Donkers said she "wasn't overly keen on tackling [the wombat] from a jetski".
Instead, she opted to phone in a friend from a favour.
Jack Hocking from Lake Mulwala Sport Fishing got the call-up and took his boat out to help with the rescue.
"It was a lot different to a normal day's fishing on the lake, a lot more excitement," Mr Hocking said.
"We do get some strange things turn up on the lake, but [the wombat] was pretty strange," he said.
"We have a lot of hollow trees, sometimes you'll get snakes, even echidnas will swim out and sit in the stumps sometimes"
Ms Donkers said despite their placid appearance, wombats could be "pretty vicious and unpredictable".
"I've done hundreds of rescues and even I was a little bit nervous at this one," she said.
"We had a plan in place for if the wombat did turn around and try and attack."
Ms Donkers said it was important for members of the public who found stranded wildlife to call "someone who has the experience and the proper equipment to actually deal with these rescues".
A few days' rest and relaxation
Ms Donkers said the wombat was set for "a few days of rest and relaxation" at Dutch Thunder Wildlife Shelter.
Ms Donkers said the animal was so emaciated when it was found, she believed it must have been stranded on the log for several days.
She said the wombat was also being treated for hypothermia and minor wounds to its feet.
"If all goes well she'll be released back into the wild."
