Bendigo Wildlife Rescue

23/10/2026

⚠️ COMMUNITY AWARENESS NOTICE | EAGLEHAWK – LAKE TOM THUMB

Bendigo Wildlife Rescue is asking community members in the Eaglehawk area to remain vigilant and keep an eye out for sick or deceased birds in and around Lake Tom Thumb.

A total of 18 deceased birds across multiple species have been identified in the area.

Agriculture Victoria and the City of Greater Bendigo have been notified.

Important: At this stage, there is no confirmed diagnosis or evidence linking these deaths to H5N1 avian influenza, botulism or any other specific disease. The cause of these deaths has not been confirmed.

🐦 What should you do?

• Avoid handling sick or deceased birds.
• Keep children and pets away from affected birds.
• Report sick or deceased wild birds to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.
• If you see a sick or injured animal requiring rescue assistance in the area, contact Bendigo Wildlife Rescue on 1300 970 609.

Community reports can assist relevant authorities in monitoring the situation and determining whether further investigation is required.

Please share this notice to help inform residents and visitors in the Eaglehawk community.

Bendigo Wildlife Rescue

16/10/2026

🎉🐍 **HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WAYNE!** 🐍🎉

A massive happy birthday to one of our awesome rescuer, Wayne! 🥳🎂

Although Wayne has only been part of the Bendigo Wildlife Rescue family for a short time, he has already proven himself to be one bloody good rescuer! 💪🐾

Wayne’s passion? **Snakes, snakes and MORE snakes!** 🐍😂

While Wayne is always happy to lend a hand with a range of wildlife species, reptiles are definitely his specialty! He has quickly become one of our go-to rescuers for injured snakes, and his passion, knowledge and dedication certainly don't go unnoticed.

We are incredibly lucky to have Wayne as part of our team, and we can't wait to see him continue doing what he loves!

Keep up the fantastic work, Wayne, but please do us all a favour and **keep those scary, slithery snakes to yourself!** 😂🐍

We hope you had an absolutely awesome birthday and got spoilt rotten!

Lots of love,
❤️ **Your Bendigo Wildlife Rescue Family** 🦘🐨🐍

02/10/2026

LAKE WEEROONA WILDLIFE RESPONSE - COMMUNITY UPDATE

Yesterday, Bendigo Wildlife Rescue volunteers and members of our emergency response team continued operations at Lake Weeroona, assisting with the assessment, recovery and management of sick and deceased wildlife.

During the operation, our team located approximately 60 deceased ibis, with four additional birds requiring humane euthanasia due to their deteriorating condition.

Our volunteers worked throughout the area to safely recover deceased wildlife, assess affected birds, coordinate veterinary care where required, and provide information to the relevant authorities.

We want to sincerely thank Lyam, Sarah and Avery for their work yesterday, along with everyone involved behind the scenes who assisted with coordination, transport, communications, equipment and ongoing monitoring.

This was not a situation our volunteers took lightly. Working around a significant number of deceased and visibly unwell birds requires appropriate precautions, PPE and careful handling, particularly while the cause remains under investigation.

A note regarding our previous post

Our previous community update received criticism, including accusations of “scaremongering” and claims that Bendigo Wildlife Rescue was somehow supporting a government effort to promote a “made-up disease”.

We completely reject those claims.

Our post reported what our volunteers were actually witnessing and dealing with on the ground. We did not state that H5N1 had been confirmed at Lake Weeroona.

In fact, from the very beginning, we were explicitly clear that our references to H5N1 were precautionary.

There is an important difference between saying:

“H5N1 has been confirmed” and saying “H5N1 has not been confirmed but given the circumstances, appropriate precautions are warranted while testing and investigation take place.”

We chose the latter because that is the responsible thing to do.

We will continue to provide the community with factual information based on what our volunteers observe, information provided by relevant authorities, and appropriate wildlife-health precautions.

We will continue monitoring the situation and providing updates as reliable information becomes available.

BWR Team

30/09/2026

URGENT COMMUNITY INFORMATION
⚠️ Distressing image to some viewers.

Time: 5:14 PM
Date: 30/09/2026

RE: Sick/Deceased Birds ⚠️

Lake Weeroona, Bendigo VIC

Please note: This post does not confirm the presence of H5N1 at Lake Weeroona. This information is precautionary while further assessment and testing occurs.

Today, Bendigo Wildlife Rescue responded to reports of an ibis that appeared unwell and lethargic at Lake Weeroona.

While attending the incident, our rescue team located a further 15 deceased birds at the location.

At this stage:

🔴 15 deceased birds located

🟠 3 sick/unwell birds have been rescued

The three rescued birds are pending testing for H5N1

We are asking members of the public to avoid handling sick, injured or deceased birds.

📞 If you see a sick or deceased bird

Please report the sighting to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline:

1800 675 888

If the bird requires rescue or assistance, please also contact Bendigo Wildlife Rescue:

1300 970 609

Our team will coordinate an appropriate response.

⚠️ Do not handle or transport sick or deceased birds yourself.

Bendigo Wildlife Rescue will provide further information if testing confirms an infectious disease or if additional public health or wildlife advice becomes available.

Thank you for helping us protect our local wildlife and community.

29/09/2026

PUBLIC INFORMATION - ECHIDNAS
(Please take a moment to read & share)

As breeding season gets underway, you may notice increased echidna activity across the Bendigo region. These beautiful native animals may wander through your garden, backyard, or even across your front lawn.

While it can be tempting to help an echidna by moving it into the bush, please don’t.

🚫 WE DO NOT RELOCATE HEALTHY ECHIDNAS

Bendigo Wildlife Rescue cannot simply relocate healthy echidnas. Moving an echidna away from where it was found can have serious consequences and, in some circumstances, may be fatal.

There may be a puggle nearby.

A female echidna may have a young puggle hidden nearby. Removing mum from the area could separate her from her baby, leaving the puggle without the care it needs to survive.

Echidnas also know where to find food.

They have established foraging areas and moving them can cause significant stress, disorientation and disruption to their normal behaviour.

The best thing you can do is leave a healthy echidna exactly where you found it and give it space.

When should you call Bendigo Wildlife Rescue?

Please contact us if you believe an echidna is sick, injured or in immediate danger.

☎️ 1300 970 609

Our volunteers can attend and assess the animal to determine whether intervention is actually required.

Signs to look out for:

• 🩸 Beak damage — bleeding, asymmetry, fractures, or gurgling/whistling sounds from the snout. Beak injuries can be serious because echidnas rely on their beak to feed.

• 🩸 Physical wounds — blood on the spines, wet patches, missing or broken spines, or visible cuts, particularly following a vehicle strike or dog attack.

• 🫁 Abnormal breathing — unusual or irregular breathing patterns.

• 🕷️ Skin and parasite problems — heavy tick loads, crusty skin or hair loss between the spines, which may indicate a mite infestation.

• 💧 Dehydration or poor condition — sunken or unusually flat pads on the front feet rather than their normal spongy appearance.

• ⚠️ Unusual behaviour — being active during extreme heat, or appearing completely lethargic and cold when they would not normally be in torpor.

Remember, echidnas are incredibly stoic animals. They may continue moving and behaving relatively normally even when they have serious injuries, including broken bones.

If you’re unsure, don’t handle or relocate the echidna.

📞 Call Bendigo Wildlife Rescue on 1300 970 609 and let our team assess the situation.

28/09/2026

🐣 It’s fledgling season! 🐣
We’re getting endless calls about young birds on the ground, so we’d love to share a little information to even possibly help educate anyone who is not sure, We understand it can look like they shouldn’t be there, but for many fledglings, spending time on the ground is a normal part of their development as they learn to fly.
Fledglings are usually mostly feathered, and their parents are often nearby, still feeding and watching over them. Please watch from a distance so the parents feel safe returning.
Nestling Baby birds (pin feathers) possibly wind may have blown them out if cannot be returned to nest try this method but will need to be closely monitored due to their age, if no luck call in immediately.
Please don’t remove a healthy fledgling from the area. Only move it if it’s in immediate danger from predators or everyday hazards such as traffic or pets . Keep it close to where you found it so its parents can find it.
If it can’t be left safely on the ground, you may be able to make a bucket nest instructions provided below . Use a small bucket or basket with drainage holes and dry leaves in the bottom. Add a sturdy stick that reaches above the rim so the bird can climb out when it’s ready. Secure the bucket firmly in a nearby tree, place the bird inside, then watch from a distance for its parents to return.
If the bird is injured, weak, has very few feathers, or has been caught by a cat or dog, please contact Bendigo Wildlife Rescue or a vet promptly. If you’re unsure what to do, contact us for advice. 💚

15/09/2026

A heartbreaking rescue in Bendigo today. 💔
Well done to our rescuers who attended this call out and Avery who reached out to Bendigo addy for awareness ,after three young magpies became entangled in plastic ribbon near their nest. Sadly, two of the birds had already passed away, while the surviving fledgling was rescued and taken for veterinary treatment.

A huge thank you to the Coliban Water staff who noticed the birds and called for help, and to the City of Greater Bendigo workers who used a cherry picker to help take our Rescuers up to reach the nest two storeys above Bridge Street.

This is an important reminder to dispose of string, fishing line, ribbon, hair and similar materials properly. Birds often collect these items for their nests, where they can become tightly wrapped around their legs and cause devastating injuries or death.

With Halloween approaching, please consider using wildlife-safe, biodegradable decorations.

If you’re unable to read the full article, screenshots have been posted in the comments.
🪶🪽🪹

Workers looked outside and saw a life was hanging by a thread.

09/09/2026

A ringtail possum rescue 🐾

This poor sweetheart was being attacked by ravens and had suffered trauma to her tail. She was spotted high in a large gum tree in the middle of the bush by a concerned member of the public, who quickly called for help.

Well done to our amazing rescuers, who safely brought this little one down so she could receive the treatment she needed. ❤️

20/08/2026

🦘💕 HOW AWESOME IS THIS— TWIN JOEYS! 💕🦘
Something you definitely don’t see every day! Just like humans, kangaroos can have twins, although it is quite rare.
A concerned member contacted us after spotting this mumma, wondering whether both joeys would fit as they grow and whether she could successfully care for two without assistance, the answer is
▪️Kangaroo pouches are incredibly stretchy and flexible, you’d be surprised what can fit in there!
▪️Female kangaroos have four teats inside their pouch.
▪️Mum can produce different milk for joeys at different stages of development.
▪️Kangaroos can even pause the development of an embryo until conditions are right which is called embryonic diapause.
▪️Twins are uncommon, making this a pretty special sight!
Mumma roos are incredibly clever and well adapted to raising their young. Nature really is amazing! 🥹🦘🦘❤️

Have you seen twin joeys before in the wild
Drop your photos below 😍?? 🦘

15/08/2026

🎉❤️ HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH! ❤️🎉
This is Sarah, and today is her birthday… yet here she is, still out rescuing wildlife! 🦘❤️ If that doesn’t show dedication, love and passion for our beautiful wildlife, we don’t know what does.
Sarah hasn’t been with Bendigo Wildlife Rescue for all that long, but wow, has she made an incredible impression on us already! From day one, she has been eager to help, always offering to tag along, learn something new and lend a hand wherever she can.
She may be a shy soul, but don’t let that fool you! 😂 When it comes to protecting and standing up for our wildlife, Sarah certainly isn’t afraid to speak her mind — and we absolutely love that about her. ❤️
Her kindness, willingness to learn and genuine love for animals shines through in everything she does, and we feel incredibly lucky to have her as part of our team.
Sarah, we hope you have the most amazing birthday. Thank you for everything you already do and for even spending your special day helping wildlife in need.
Happy Birthday from your wildlife family at Bendigo Wildlife Rescue! ❤️🦘🎂
We’re so lucky to have you! ❤️❤️