In the small community of Bolwarra, near Portland in south-west Victoria, koalas are a familiar sight around Mr. Lamplough’s property. But what he witnessed recently was anything but ordinary—a baby koala perched comfortably on the back of his dog, Denni.
“The koala was pretty content to stay there,” he said. “It sat on Denni for a few minutes, at least while I was watching, before I managed to get it off. They were both as happy as Larry.”
It was the first time Lamplough had ever handled a koala. A huge manna gum on his land often attracts the marsupials, but he had never seen one become quite so friendly.
“At first I thought, how on earth am I going to get it off? But I gently lifted the joey from Denni’s back and made sure it didn’t scratch her,” he said. “I checked the koala over, then put it up a tree. I also checked Denni—no scratches at all.”
To his delight, the young koala was reunited with its mother about 15 minutes later.
While his dogs are usually curious about koalas, Lamplough said this was the first time he had seen one climb onto them. He suspects Denni’s gentle nature had something to do with it.
“She’s a very placid, loving dog. When she had her own pups, she was a fantastic mother,” he explained. “Maybe that’s why she accepted the baby koala so easily.”
When she’s not giving unexpected rides to wildlife, Denni enjoys chicken wings and playing fetch with her favorite ball.