Bid to make 250 pouches to nurse burnt, orphaned animals

Animal lover Georgia Greening was done feeling helpless over Australia’s bushfires.

Desperately searching for a way to provide support, she came across the idea to make flannelette pouches to nurse burnt or orphaned animals.

• Cantabrians called on to knit, sew and stitch for wildlife in bushfires

“I saw that Australia has none of these supplies," she said. 

"The medical supplies that they can use are so costly and that’s not what they need - they need quality, not quantity.”

Now Miss Greening has set herself the task of creating 250 of them before January 20, so they can be taken over with people travelling to Sydney.

It is estimated more than a billion animals have now died in the fires, with some species at risk of becoming locally extinct.

“Animals don’t have a voice and don’t know what’s going on, they are just trying to fight and survive for their species.”

So far, the Sumner resident has sewn about 50 wraps of two different kinds, using old sheets donated by people in her community.

One type of pouch is designed specifically for bats and has a padded cushion at the end.

“A lot of the bats affected by the fires are very [small], so the cushion acts as mother support. These get wrapped around them which keeps it dark and it keeps their wings nice and secure.”

The other item is a more “universal” flat wrap, which can be used to make pouches for other animals including koalas, joeys and geckos.

You can help create goods for affected animals here.