Help Animals with Wildlife Rescue App

Media release – International Fund for Animal Welfare, 4 April 2023

Watch out wildlife about: Help rescue animals these school holidays

People travelling over the Easter break have been urged to do their bit to protect Australia’s wildlife with help now available at the touch of a button.

Seeing an injured animal on the road or accidentally hitting an animal can be stressful. Many people don’t know what to do. Well-meaning calls are often made to the police, the fire service or the wrong organisation – wasting time and endangering lives. The IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare) Wildlife Rescue App aims to reduce stress and confusion by giving users all the information they need at their fingertips – empowering them to save lives.

This free app puts people directly in touch with the nearest wildlife rescue group, including IFAW’s partner at Bonorong Wildlife Hospital, to report an injured animal. The user will then be guided on the best way to help support the injured animal, saving lives.

“We know millions of animals are killed or injured on roads every year, but we simply can’t afford for our native wildlife to be impacted any further,” IFAW Animal Rescue Officer Robert Leach said.

“The app puts you in touch with the largest rescue service — our partners at Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary — which covers all of Tasmania, where IFAW vets at the hospital assess and treat animals, giving them a greater chance of being released back into the wild.

“Anything we can do to help is vital. The IFAW app empowers everyday people to be a part of the solution by helping get injured animals the immediate treatment they need for the best chances of survival.”

Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary and Hospital Director Greg Irons said he was excited to see how the app could help animals faster and make a difference to wildlife.

“When people find injured and orphaned wildlife, time to get advice and help is critical. Finding out who is available to help by searching the internet, at a stressful time with an animal needing help straight away, can be challenging for both people and animal! IFAW’s Wildlife Rescue App will be a fantastic one-stop shop to get urgent help for both locals and tourists alike and will take that challenge away,” Mr Irons said.

Before you head out on the roads, make sure you download the free IFAW Wildlife Rescue App. The app also allows the user to report deceased animals, allowing wildlife rehabilitators to accurately monitor the cause of local deaths and identify danger zones and road-kill hotspots.

Notes:

• The Wildlife Rescue App is available in the Northern Territory, Queensland, NSW and Tasmania. It can be downloaded from the Apple Store or the Google Play. Please download it today and help protect our native wildlife.

• The Wildlife Rescue App is a partnership between IFAW and the New South Wales Wildlife Council (NWC).