We are already in 2021 but the nightmares of 2020 are still hunting us. Remember when the year started with the catastrophic bushfires in Australia? And if you know the country very well, then you should know the massive number of wild animals that it has.

These poor animals got affected the most and there’s nobody else they could rely on aside from us, humans. Thankfully, there are still some people and organizations who are ready to lend the animals help.

Countless animals died or are now in danger, and tons of natural habitat has been burnt to ashes.

When you talk about Australia, you can’t skip talking about koalas. Sadly, their population got badly affected by the bushfires. Scientists have estimated that the relentless fires have taken more than 8,000 koala lives. Adding to it was the complete devastation of their living space, to be specific, 30% of their natural habitat are now gone.

Per the scientists’ estimation, the Australian wildfires have taken more than a billion animal lives.

Luckily, a lot of efforts were made to save as many animals as possible, and people and volunteers have come up with plans and ideas to support koalas in particular.

Koalas were sent to animal hospitals and other safe havens such as sanctuaries. Sometimes even regular people volunteered to take care of a distressed koala who was able to escape the burning forests, often within an inch of their lives.

Dogs were actually a major help in rescues, as they were excellent at finding people or animals who needed urgent help in the midst of the carnage.

A dog named Keli miraculously managed to find and rescue a helpless koala amid the disaster.

Keli the dog was able to find the lone survivor near a badly damaged area where the koala had previously lived. The little furball, however, was completely malnourished, dehydrated, and in a pretty bad shape. It actually weighed less than a pound when it was found.

Right away, rescuers decided to rush the poor koala to a specialized medical facility, the Koala Hospital Port Macquarie. Doctors believed that he was currently dealing with a fungal infection, and a pretty severe and life-threatening one, at that.

As for his family, rescuers had no idea what happened to them. It’s unsure if they succumbed to the fire and got separated or if they abandoned their baby because of his medical condition.

One thing was for sure though; this tiny koala was completely alone and had to rely on the rescuers to make it out of the woods.

The baby koala just weighed 9.7 ounces and was in a terrible health state.

Luckily, the animal rescuers, as well as the hospital staff, were extremely patient and caring for the little furball. In fact, after his fungal infection was treated successfully, you could tell he was finally regaining his energy.

The koala’s fur started growing again and his weight climbed back to acceptable levels.

“Just a brighter moment in all the tragedy in Australia at the moment we wanted to share something good. Meet Koala Street Keli who was found abandoned on the ground on 8th September 2019, in very poor shape with a fungal infection and only weighing 275 grams. Look at Keli today a whopping 1 kg in weight, the fungal infection has gone and all his fur is regrowing,” the animal hospital posted on their Facebook page.

The hospital also kept everyone updated as to how the koala was doing, and we’re all glad to see the progress.

Luckily, there is still some safe habitat left for the koala to go to, meaning he can return back to the wild whenever he’s fully recovered and ready to be released.

“It’s still early days yet, we will get very excited when he makes 2.5 kg and its time for him to come into the “dehumanising trees ” in preparation for release back to the wild. Release will not happen until the cooler months, and thankfully there is still some good habitat left in selected locations,” the hospital staff concluded.

Of course, the koala also needed to have a name.

They have decided to name the koala “Keli”, the same name as his dog rescuer.

This story proves that you don’t need a cape and fancy costume to be a hero. Ultimately, you don’t even need to be a human to save others. Thankfully, a four-legged superhero came to save this then helpless baby koala who is now enjoying his second chance in life.

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https://www.facebook.com/koalahospital/posts/10157994066284662

Source: Koala Hospital Port Macquarie, Vox