Staff and inmates of the Cooma Correctional Centre have been praised for manufacturing a unique device that administers medication to wombats.
Vice President of Snowy Mountains Wildlife Rescue, Elena Guarracino presented the team with a certificate of appreciation for assembling 1,000 burrow trap-doors, which tilt and pour medication onto wombats as they enter and leave their underground homes.
Ms Guarracino said the staff and inmates’ efforts were a game changer in the fight against mange, a potentially deadly skin disease.
“Unfortunately, wombats will die from mange within two years of contracting it, but the positive is that the infection is reversible with correct treatment,” Ms Guarracino said.
“We don’t always have enough volunteers or the time to make these tricky devices so we are delighted to have this partnership with the prison,” she said.
Ms Guarracino said it often wasn’t possible to get close enough to a wombat to apply the medication so the burrow flaps provided a simple, yet highly effective, way to treat the disease.
Industries Manager at Corrective Services NSW, George Hancock said four minimum-security inmates had jumped at the opportunity to help the wildlife group.
“The men gain skills using hand tools such as band saws but more importantly learn to take pride in their work, knowing they are giving back,” Mr Hancock said.
“These inmates are usually employed in prison grounds-maintenance and work on the flaps during quieter periods,” he said.
Mr Hancock said Cooma Correctional Centre staff planned to continue the partnership and do their bit to ensure the wombats survival.
