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03/29/2024 07:36:30 am

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Lucky Koala Clings to Bottom of Car on Highway and Survives

Timberwolf is one lucky koala.

The 4-year old male koala mistakenly clung to the grille at the bottom of a vehicle near Maryborough, Queensland as the car drove away. The family onboard had no idea they had a frightened marsupial in the bottom of their car.

Timberwolf survived an 88-kilometer ride down the hectic Bruce Highway last Friday. Maximum speed at the said freeway is 110 kilometers per hour.

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When the family stopped at Gympie for gas, they noticed the animal and called Australia Zoo's wildlife hospital for help.

Located north of Brisbane, the Australia Zoo was established by Steve Irwin, the "Crocodile Hunter".

The koala was given the name "Timberwolf" by the leaf cutters of Australia Zoo who were harvesting eucalyptus in Gympie at the time of the discovery. Timberwolf is the name of the leaf cutters' football team at a recent charity match they had participated in.

Claude Lacasse, a vet at the Australia Zoo, shared that "it is absolutely amazing that he has such minor injuries and he survived," stating that the koala was in fairly good health and had only suffered a torn nail.

Vets are giving Timberwolf pain medication for his injury.

After miraculously surviving the potentially fatal situation, Timberwolf is said to be doing great, but will be staying at the zoo for a month to take a series of antibiotics after vets discovered that he has chlamydia.

While Timberwolf recovers at the Australia Zoo, vets are trying to trace back where he had started clinging so he can be returned to his home.

The Australia Zoo tends to around 70 koalas a month, a significant percentage of which are victims of car accidents and attacks by pets.

Koalas in the wild could be as few as 43,000, with Australia now listing them as a "vulnerable" species.

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