00:00Karen Clarkson has been working at the WA Wildlife Hospital for the past 7 years, caring
00:09for all creatures great and small.
00:15We try and release them as soon as we can, as soon as they're well enough, they can fly,
00:21they can eat on their own, they're putting on weight, we'll release them back out into
00:25the wild.
00:26But there's one key problem facing the centre.
00:28So it's huge increase in the numbers and the diversity of the animals coming in as well.
00:36There's been an average 17% year on year increase in wildlife patients over the past 15 years.
00:41We're starting to really figure out what is our capacity, at what point do we have to
00:44close our doors and go we just cannot handle any more animals coming through this hospital.
00:48Despite record demand, opening hours have been reduced by 90 minutes a day.
00:53We can't keep burning out the same dedicated people who are looking after these animals
00:57so that's why government support, community awareness, education is so important.
01:04More research is required to determine exactly why admissions are increasing, but some common
01:09presentations include diseases, fishing entanglement, introduced predator attacks and injuries as
01:14a result of urban sprawl.
01:17The centre hopes animals like Raffi, the red-tailed black cockatoo, will draw in tourists through
01:22educational tours they want to raise awareness about the increased risk to WA's wildlife.
01:27But the responsibility doesn't just lie with members of the public.
01:31It's one thing to ask people to drive more carefully and look on the roads, it's another
01:34thing to say well you have to do something about climate change and that has to come
01:37from the top down rather than the bottom up.
01:39We're looking to see how we can broaden the scope of this organisation to help finance
01:47it and to increase its relevance and to increase its reach to the community.
01:53The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attraction says while it appreciates the
01:57efforts of wildlife rescue organisations, they would not respond to the ABC's questions
02:03regarding additional funding.
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