JOEY RESCUE: SPONSOR A ROO WITH SUZIE ROWE

Ever wanted to Sponsor A Roo? Here’s your chance www.sponsoroo.com

Suzie Rowe, an inspiring and committed activist has been rescuing, hand-feeding and rehabilitating baby joey kangaroos for years now. The Abolitionist caught up with her recently.

Abolitionist: Tell us about your work with joeys, Suzie

Suzie Rowe: My main work with kangaroos started on February 9th 1990 (how could I forget the day!)

We were living on a property near Hay, NSW, while my husband was managing 4 properties there between Hay and Balranald. A young man who was a mechanic working on several properties in the area was coming home from a day’s work north of Hay when he saw a female Red Kangaroo dead on the side of the road. She had been killed by a car and her baby was scratching at her pouch wanting to climb back in there, joey would have wanted a drink by then too. He picked up the joey and brought her back to Hay. He rang me because he knew I loved animals, and asked if I could look after her. I drove into Hay and met him.

I opened up the bag he had her in and saw her big brown eyes, full of fear and bewilderment, and her little thin arms. I held her close and fell in love.

From then on until she was older, wherever I went Buji went too. I had named her Buji after a friend in India – both had those big brown eyes and fragile looking arms!

Ever since then, there has been a steady stream of these little treasures coming into care. One day we came home from somewhere and there was one hanging on our back door in someone’s jumper.

As she was reaching mating age, Buji used to wander away from home but when we were to leave those properties she came home to move with us. We leased country for a while before we bought this property and again she came home to move with us before we came here. We moved with 8 kangaroos to our new home. Five of them were young and still on bottles.

My joeys have all been Reds, Eastern Greys or Western Greys because of the location of where we live in NSW. I have learnt so much about kangaroos through these babies who have grown up and had offspring of their own. I feel truly blessed to be able to work with these wonderful animals. Every day I have the chance to sit amongst kangaroos and watch them graze, laze about, play and communicate with each other. I see my babies joining others of their own kind. I see the intimate relationship mothers have with their joeys, I watch big males come in with the females when they are ready to be mated. I wonder how they know and from where they appear? I see the kangaroos interacting with their environment and each other and see they possess a sixth sense that we can only wonder about. We probably had that understanding and telepathy ages ago but have replaced it with technology and, on the whole, a disbelief that it could even exist.

Each joey I raise, each kangaroo with whom I interact teaches me so much about their own kind and their environment. I realise how blessed I am to have this opportunity. They are superb treasures and I so wish that others would treat them as such. We must love, respect and look after our precious wildlife and their habitat. We must learn as much as we can about their needs and ways. We must treat each being as an individual as we would within our own species.

Abolitionist: How are Joeys killed in the Outback?

Suzie Rowe: The main cause of death for joeys and all kangaroos is by humans.

Unless a mother is unwell, injured or weak, a joey is safe because she protects him. Sometimes other members of the mob will protect a joey as well if necessary. Occasionally a couple of foxes, a dog or an eagle will take a joey if they can get him away from a mob or if he wanders away. Sometimes a joey will go for a big hop to release a bit of energy but it is only intended as a quick 5 minute trip to see what’s over there – just curiosity like the young of any other species. Sometimes because of that unfortunate decision, they may be preyed upon. Sometimes too, if humans are about they will see the joey and catch him just because he looks cute and they “want one”. Sometimes humans kill a mother just so that they can have a joey, how sick is that! Usually the joey dies of grief and lack of proper care. Joeys require special care and understanding, they are not like a dog or a cat and many die in human care.

Of course most joeys die as a result of human cruelty – kangaroos are hunted for sport or are shot because they are not wanted by landholders and because now Australia has the kangaroo industry where they are killing thousands of kangaroos nightly to make a dollar. All too often a mother is killed and the joey hops away and is left to fend for himself. When he is small he can’t and he needs his mother for nourishment and security. As a result he faces a cruel, slow death. The other horrible thing that happens is that the joeys are killed by the hunters, dogs or shooters in the most savage and barbaric ways. It is awful to think of their suffering. You only have to liken it to the horrendous deaths some children face during war and other human criminal acts.

Often a joey dies with his mother as a result of a car accident. Sometimes it is immediate at the time of impact. Other times it may be a long and torturous process. Occasionally a mother becomes tangled in the wire of a fence, unable to free herself. This, as you can imagine, is a ghastly and painful way to slowly die. If she has a joey …. again it can be a slow, horrible and scary death.

Abolitionist: How do they arrive at your doorstep?

Suzie Rowe: People know that I care for joeys so they ring and ask if I can take another one. Sometimes the vets, members of other rescue organisations or National Parks will ring but usually it is people who have “found a joey”. I hear all sorts of stories about how a joey came to be in human company.

Abolitionist: What kind of personality does a baby Joey have?

Suzie Rowe: All joeys are individuals just like all humans are individuals, so they are all different. They display the same emotions as humans do and they behave very like children sometimes. People who spend a lot of time with dogs, cats and other species of animals can tell you how different each one is, even from the same breed. A lot of people think that only humans differ to each other don’t they! They forget that, afterall, humans are not much different to the other animal species on this planet.

Abolitionist: How do you rehabilitate them after Mum has been shot or killed?

Suzie Rowe: I find that joeys who come to me straight after their mother has been killed become very affectionate and cuddly. We form a strong relationship together with unconditional love. When the time is right for them to go to the wild, they do. Instinct kicks in and they love to be a kangaroo! A human carer needs to keep in mind that their joey is only with them for a relatively short period and that they are preparing the joey for life in the wild. Kangaroos belong in the wild and they should never be kept against their will, enclosed as a pet. They need freedom, space and other kangaroos of their own species.

It is important to think of how a mother kangaroo is with her baby, simulate the mother. She has him close to her all the time, she kisses him, she cleans him if he is dirty. She teaches him how to react, how to keep himself clean, what he should eat for healthy nutrition. She takes him to places where it will be good for him to live, she teaches him about his world, she gives him confidence to cope with his world. So I believe that a human carer should do the same as much as possible. This requires a fair bit of effort and commitment on the human’s behalf because ideally the human should be observing how the kangaroo mothers raise their young.

Joeys need security, reassurance and cuddles, they need guidance with behaviour, they need routine feeding and toileting, sounds just like children doesn’t it –surprise, surprise! They need a comfortable and clean pouch all the time. They need a special milk formula to drink because they are allergic to cows’ milk; they need a special teat to simulate their mother's. There are 3 formulas on the market and most carers have a preference. When joeys are ready to eat solids, they need a supply of good clean dirt for their vitamins and minerals. Ideally they should have access to the types of vegetation that their species would be eating in the wild. Joeys are sensitive to changes and can stress easily. Stress can manifest itself in various physical conditions and ailments, it is probably the greatest killer of joeys in human care.

I use homoeopathic remedies if any of our family, including the kangaroos, need medical attention. It works so quickly and effectively. It is unfortunate that, on the whole, vets show so little tolerance and acceptance of this form of medicine and healing.

Abolitionist: Steve Irwin was a big promoter of Joeys, safe and well. What words do you have to say to the Irwin family about this amazing activist and human being?

Suzie Rowe: Steve was one of the greatest voices for wildlife. His parents taught him to love and respect animals and Steve's life became dedicated to teaching others through his example. He was truly committed to telling the world, through his happy-go-lucky, charming and charismatic way, how important our native wildlife, and their habitats, are for the balance of our world.

Thankfully there are many people in the world who are passionate environmentalists. But Steve became known through his daring acts and his fun-loving, effervescent nature. Bless him for his tireless work and for creating the place to get the message out because people took notice of him. We will always remember Steve, but we must always remember his message too.

Thank you Steve, for your life, your work and for raising awareness in so many people around the world. Thank you Terri, Bindy and Bob, Steve’s father Bob and others who work with the Irwin family, for continuing this extremely important work.