A young koala was an unusual visitor, dropping by at Greg and Erica Peck’s Nar Nar Goon North home last week.By Paul Dunlop
A KOALA stunned a Nar Nar Goon North family when he turned up in their living room.
Greg and Erica Peck got the shock of their lives when they found the surprise visitor clinging to a door in their home.
Mr Peck discovered the koala, a young adult male, after waking to loud scratching noises about 5.30am last Tuesday.
“I thought it was our dog wanting to go outside,” Mr Peck said.
“We’ve got a German shepherd. He’s just a nice old dog, and we leave the door open for him at night.
“When I heard the scratching I got up to let him out and there was a koala trying to climb up the lounge room door.”
Mr Peck quickly summoned wife and daughter Jacqui who at first thought he was joking.
“They were stunned,” he said.
The Pecks tried to coax their visitor outside with a broom but the koala was quite aggressive.
Greg Peck said they then contacted Wildlife Victoria.
Wildlife rescuer Paul Davy, from Bimbimbie Wildlife Park in Mount Burnett, was called to remove the native animal.
“We get some unusual calls but this was definitely one of the more unusual,” Mr Davy said.
“The koala was clinging to the door and the Pecks were all still in their nightclothes, half asleep,” he said.
Mr Davy took the koala back to the wildlife park to check on its condition. He thought at first it might have eyesight problems, a common affliction with koalas, but the young male was perfectly well.
“He was fine, very healthy,” he said. “I thought he might have been a bit disoriented.
“It is most unlike a koala to go inside like that, especially if there is a dog barking, but we are finding more and more unusual things happening because of the drought,” Mr Davy said.
“Animals are straying further and further to find water and even though koalas get most of their fluid from leaves they will drink water from dams.
“It’s just really hard on all animals at the moment.”
Later that morning, Mr Davy took the koala back to the Pecks’ Bessie Creek Road property and released the young animal back into the wild.
Mr Peck said it was the first time he had seen a koala on the property.
The surprise guest was taken to the base of a suitable tree and he was straight up it.
“Everyone’s still excited about,” Mr Peck said.
“I checked his tree later and he was still there. Hopefully he’ll find himself at home.”
