'Sam,' Koala That Survived Australian Fires Dies
August 07, 2009
This photo made Sam the koala famous and came to symbolize both the hope and the pain associated with the Australian bushfires of 2009. (Reuters Photo) Related articles
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Adelaide, Australia. Sam the koala, who gained worldwide fame and
sympathy when she was rescued during devastating wildfires in Australia
this year, was euthanized on Thursday after a veterinarian found that
the cysts that threatened her life were inoperable.
The
4-year-old koala had developed the cysts associated with urogenital
chlamydiosis, which affects more than 50 percent of Australia’s koala
population.
During surgery, the disease was found to be so
advanced that Sam was euthanized, said Peita Elkhorne of TressCox law
firm, which represents the shelter where the koala had lived since the
February fires.
“It was so severe that there was no possible
way to be able to manage her pain,” Elkhorne said in a statement. “All
of those who have been involved with Sam are devastated with this
loss.”
John Butler, the veterinarian who was conducting the operation, said Sam was too scarred inside to carry out the surgery.
“She was going to be left in pain in the state she was in,” Butler said. “We had no hope of helping her any further.”
As
wildfires were raging out of control in February, Sam was spotted by a
firefighter as she made her way on scorched paws past their patrol
north of Melbourne . The firefighter was photographed holding a bottle
of water to her lips, an image that resonated around the world.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said that photo made Sam a symbol of hope for Australians.
“I
think that gave people of the world a great sense that this country,
Australia, could come through those fires, as we have,” Rudd said. “And
Sam the koala was part of the symbolism of that. It’s tragic that Sam
the koala is no longer with us.”
Sam suffered second and
third-degree burns to her paws and had been recuperating at the
Southern Ash Wildlife Shelter. Officials there had said she would be
returned to the wild within months after she was completely healed.
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