BRISBANE TIMES (Australia) 12 April 08 Into the wild again for Smash, the lucky lizard (Andrew Wight)
When Smash, the 1.5 m long Lace Monitor, slithers his way back to the wild on Monday, it will largely be thanks to the vets at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary.
After being hit by a car, Smash was bleeding into his lungs until he was brought to be treated by a team of two vets and three nurses at the not-for-profit hospital .
"He's a testament to reptile toughness," Currumbin Senior Veterinarian Dr Michael Pyne said.
Smash recovered at the Currumbin Wildlife Hospital, which includes specialised treatment facilities for water birds, birds of prey and sea turtles.
Treating 30 to 40 animals every day in the busy summer months, the hospital has seen everything from frogs to albatrosses, lorikeets to bandicoots.
Unfortunately, most of the injured wildlife at the hospital are there because of human causes.
"80 to 90 per cent of the injuries we have here are human -related," he said.
"Could be a sinker from fishing tackle or people locking wildlife in their homes."
But this world class care doesn't come cheaply.
Between the drugs, facilities and paying for a team of two vets and three nurses every day, the centre costs Currumbin $350,000 a year.
In addition to the hospital, Dr Pyne said Currumbin spends hundreds of thousands of dollars a year on conservations work and scientific research to preserve wildlife long term.
But as for motivation, Dr Pyne says the team at Currumbin Wildlife Hospital do their jobs "for the love of it."
A brand new hospital facility, to handle many more cases like Smash's is due to start construction this July.
Into the wild again for Smash, the lucky lizard

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