farmdoc's blog post number 90

Almost everything in life has a beginning, middle and end. So too my love affair with Kai Kai. Of the eight wombats I’ve had here, she’s had the sweetest personality and calmest temperament. I fell in love with her immediately when she arrived almost three months ago, whilst mindful that soon enough she’d let me know she’d had long enough in the pen and she wanted to be in the bush. That time came last week, so I emailed Patsy at the Injured and Orphaned Wildlife Program in the Government’s Wildlife Management Branch seeking permission to release Kai Kai. Patsy agreed, so last Tuesday I unlatched the pen’s swing-gate. On Wednesday Kai Kai was still there, so I fed her and then tied the swing-gate open. That did the trick. I haven’t seen her since. Gone. I feel bereft. Lovelorn. I should feel happy, and I suppose I do. I hope she thrives in our bush and has several healthy babies. Patsy is now bottle-feeding three girl wombats under 1kg. Next year I’ll take one of them; but Kai Kai’s a hard act to follow. Patsy wrote: ‘She is one of the special animals that come along every so often. They are all special, but some more so. She is a very gentle, beautiful girl’. Indeed. Take care out there, Kai Kai – my friend.