An urgent call has gone out for donations of mittens for koalas whose paws have been burned in recent bushfires in Australia.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is asking for people to either donate or make themselves cotton mittens for the animals. Fires have burned over the past week in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales, and koalas, which move very slowly, have had difficulty escaping serious injury.
Now the koalas that have survived need help.
"Just like any burns victim, koalas’ dressings need changing daily, meaning a constant supply of mittens is needed by wildlife carers," IFAW native wildlife campaigner Josey Sharrad told The Guardian.
The organization stressed that the mittens need to be made from clean, 100% cotton. "These mittens are simple to make even if you’ve never sewn before," Sharrad said.
The IFAW has a special page with a koala mittens template pattern here, and information on where to send the mittens can be found here.