Trained dogs doing things impossible for human alone, save 7 koalas from bushfires

Australia is in the grips of deadly wildfires that have engulfed the country since September last year. For the first time in five months, Australia has turned into offence from the defence as people in the country are launching search and rescue operations to save the wildlife. In the latest effort by a small canine team of just two dogs, seven koalas were found in a burnt-out forest at Maryvale on Queensland's South Downs. Using their keen sense of smell to sniff out koala excrement, two dogs are doing things that are impossible for humans alone. 

Read: This Dog Has Saved Dozens Of Koalas In Bushfire-hit Australia

Dogs saving koalas

On day one of their searches, the team found a mother and her infant in the area while they were carrying out a survey of koala numbers. According to international media reports, the infant was out of her mother's pouch and is now independent. Both the koalas were on the same tree moving around and their health seemed okay as well. The team found another adult male and adult female koala while moving forward and there were signs of koala life all around. According to reports, the team covered more than 10 km of the forest and said that some parts of the area were still burning even after two months since it was ravaged by fire.

Read: Forecasters Predict Storms In Victoria Amid Raging Bushfires

According to Steven Selwood of South Australia Veterinary Emergency Management, there are only 9,000 koalas that remain out of the 46,000 that were thought to be on Kangaroo Island before this season's bushfire. Some experts estimate that around 80 percent of Koala habitat has been wiped out since the deadly fire started down under. Koalas are already listed as vulnerable but conservationists and environmentalists believe that they should be now categorised as endangered.

Read: Australian Koalas Worst Hit By Raging Bushfires, Only 9k Remain Out Of 46k

Bushfires in Australia continue to rip through large areas of the country. So far, the inferno has killed at least 27 people across the state. The bushfire this season is seemingly unprecedented as it is being termed as the worst summer in the history of the nation. Australia has been under the crisis since September 2019 where an estimated billion animals and more than 2,000 homes have been affected by the tragedy. 

Read: Baby Koala Named 'Hope' To Honour Animals Died In Australia Bushfires