I started caring for joeys and stuff when I was about six years old. My wombat was the first one that I cared for. He lived out a very fulfilling life. He reached around 35 years of age and then passed away. He had a very good life and that’s what it’s all about; caring for animals is about giving them the right to survive as we have a right too.

G'day, delightful viewers, and welcome to Animal World: Our Co-Inhabitants! Blessed with diverse natural habitats, the Fraser Coast region in the state of Queensland is home to many of Australia’s beloved species, ranging from majestic humpback whales in the sparkling blue ocean to intriguing wallabies in the grasslands.

Today we’ll visit the Fraser Coast Training Employment Support Service (TESS) Wildlife Park, a love-filled sanctuary with the mission to preserve and protect our animal friends in the Fraser Coast region and beyond. Many of the animal residents come from sanctuaries, zoos and refuges that have closed down.

Coming to work every day is a meaning to life as far as I'm concerned. I'm here seven days a week, sometimes up to 16 hours a day, sometimes longer. Sometimes I'm here overnight. Just depends on what we've had in that's injured that needs that intense care. It's a love of doing what you do. And my love is looking after Australian native animals, preserving it.

Compassionate former Fraser Island ranger Ray Revill has been manager at the TESS Wildlife Park for over five years.

This sanctuary’s been open now for about seven to eight years, but it’s only been open to the public about two years. Australian native animals is our main emphasis on what we have and what we do about the place.

One of our other things that we do on a very, very regular basis is wildlife rescue, looking after injured and native animals in the region, and not just our region, from right up and down the coast.

At a young age Ray became passionate about animals and befriended and looked after animals in need of all kinds.

I can remember when I was four I started bringing animals home. My bedroom was my nursery, that’s where I housed all my animals that I rescued. You could open my wardrobe up and you would find lizards and what have you in there, bird nests… where clothes should be hanging, bird nests were hanging, little baby chicks in them that I was raising. I think it’s always been my passion with wildlife, I’ve strived to always care for wildlife.

On its 13 acres of land, the Fraser Coast TESS Wildlife Park provides both temporary and permanent shelter for many animals based on their individual needs and conditions.

Individually, we have about 240 animals in here; about 17 different species.

And our biggest goal this year will be to expand the sanctuary to 30 acres. We are a unique sanctuary and we intend on staying very unique, we specialize in Australian, native animals, and we intend on staying that way, wholly, solely.

We’ve had echidnas, a lot of the kangaroo species, wallabies, a lot of bird species, ducks, and baby doves. It’s pretty much all your native animals. Your reptiles: snakes, lizards, turtles, it goes on, including frogs, of all things. And it also includes rescue of reptile nests that are about to be encroached on through development. We get called on to go in and remove the nests, we incubate them here, and then we re-release them back into their native areas.

Now let’s meet some of the beloved residents of this animal Eden!

Everyone here is a star in their own right. We do have a few characters in here. We have Wally, Skippy, Ned, they’re kangaroos and wallaroos. We got a cockatoo. We got a camel. He’s adorable. We’ve had him since he was three months old.

We got an emu. We call him “E-moo.” He actually thinks he’s a dog. He sits and rolls over and crawls. Yes, he amuses the public as well.

We treat our animals with the same utmost respect that we expect to be treated ourselves. These guys get the love and care that they deserve.

What is it like to raise an orphaned baby kangaroo or joey? Ray now tells us what’s involved.

Looking after baby kangaroos or baby anything, is, it’s a big ask.

You basically got to think of how their parents would look after them and then you’ve got to imitate the way that they’re going to look after them. So, it becomes a full on job, it’s a lot of sleepless nights trust me, a lot of sleepless nights.

When joeys are born they have no fur and are very fragile. They weigh less than a gram and are only two centimeters long! The joey climbs into the mother’s pouch right after birth and will not leave this protected place for about seven months.

We have specific little pouches that we have made for them. We have a bonding time with them, we keep them close to our chest, sometimes it becomes necessary to actually put them down your shirt and you walk around with them down your shirt, because once we take care and control of them, we actually become their parent. So we’ve got to imitate mom. They’ve got to adjust to our body temperature, they adjust, and they sense your heartbeat, so that’s soothing, calming, the same as in the human baby, the same thing is done in that process, and the same thing goes with animals.

Mimi came to us from the public, (she was) brought in injured… her mom was hit by a car. Mimi’s been with us for a few months now. She actually only just had fur on her, and she’s grown up to be part of our family, and she’s always going to remain part of our family.

We asked Ray to kindly share with us some of the intriguing qualities that he finds in animals and the key to developing trusting relationships with them.

Our animals here are certainly very affectionate animals and that’s because, once again, the time that’s put into communicating with the animals and integrating with the animals. It’s about being hands on and a lot of our animals will give you a cuddle; we’ve got a camel that loves to give out kisses and we got kangaroos that will come and lie with you or lie on you. I’ve got a couple here, Bobby and that, that actually lie on me. They can tell you what their needs are.

It’s the way they communicate with you and that’s part of the learning, is learning about what they’re actually asking you for. You know, some of them are fussy about what they eat too. So, some of them have little treats; we got a little Agile wallaby, Matilda, she loves Sayo biscuits and she will tell you when she wants that Sayo biscuit, trust me, and she knows where you keep them.

So they all have their own distinct personality?

Very much so, yes, there’s no two alike. Every animal is an individual and they do all these little things themselves, they show their individuality.

Unique friendships have developed among different species of animals in the harmonious atmosphere of the sanctuary.

We’ve got two emus that have bonded with the camel, and they spend most of their time with the camel, walking up and down with the camel. And they actually, strangely enough, talk to the camel. And the camel bellows back at them occasionally, and does some wonderful things there too. The kangaroos, they intermingle different species with each other. They have bonds with each other; they’re like humans in a way.

Besides doing animal-rescue work, Fraser Coast TESS Wildlife Park staff members give talks and demonstrations to raise public awareness about environmental protection and animal welfare.

Respect for their environment is a really, really, really big thing that has to be looked at, and respect for the wildlife. I mean without the wildlife your environment suffers. And overall your whole ecology ends up breaking down and if we lose all of that we’re looking at a desert because we will lose our native plants and everything.

And the only things that’ll still be surviving will be a lot of the introduced species. Our native stuff will be overrun by introduced species and we’ll lose the lot and that’s not in the direction that we should be heading.

Due to the absolute dedication and personalized attention, love and affection for each animal shown by Ray and the sanctuary’s volunteers, the Fraser Coast TESS Wildlife Park has become a true haven for animals and an exciting experience for its fortunate visitors.

I feel it’s a very spiritual place. There’s a lot to offer there, for the people as well as the animals and the vegetation and trees. And I feel that everything is connected, you know, we’re all connected to nature, the animals, trees, and everything.

It’s been said to us that there’s a positive aura about this place and people can walk in here and they can see that aura, and it’s because of the love everyone puts to the animals. Ray Revill and volunteers for Fraser Coast TESS Wildlife Park, our sincere thanks for your loving efforts and selfless dedication to caring for the lovely animal residents of the sanctuary. May your wonderful work be a big step in re-creating Eden on Earth!

Animals, they communicate better to you. They don’t get angry with you, they don’t growl at you, they love you. So you show the same love back to those animals and that’s how life should be evolved. And I mean if the humans could take a page out of the animals’ book then humanity would be in a much better place to live in because the animals get on together.

For more details on the Fraser Coast TESS Wildlife Park, please visit www.FCTWildlife.com

Intelligent viewers, we enjoyed your company today on Animal World: Our Co-Inhabitants. Coming up next is Enlightening Entertainment, after Noteworthy News. May our hearts and spirits forever grow in love and nobility.