There were dramatic scenes at the Australian Reptile Park Tuesday when staff noticed Adina, the pregnant dingo, looking extremely distressed and howling as if asking them for help. Keepers jumped into action immediately and rushed the 6-year-old dingo for an ultrasound where it was found an unborn puppy was blocking the birth canal.
Thankfully, staff at Somersby Animal Hospital wasted no time getting Adina to surgery, where she underwent an emergency c-section to rescue Adina and the litter, as Australian Reptile Park staff held their breath, not leaving Adina’s side. Tragically, it was discovered that one other puppy had passed away in the birth canal. This means Lucky was the lone survivor – a true miracle. It is not unusual for dingoes to have just two puppies. They are not like domestic dogs who are known to have much more.
Adina has since awoken safely from her surgery and is currently recovering well alongside her little girl Lucky at the Australian Reptile Park and has also been reunited with her partner Fred.
Park Director Tim Faulkner says, “It was quite a scary day that’s for sure, we just wanted to make sure Adina and her puppies were okay, that’s our top priority above anything else. Of course, we were expecting more puppies and we sadly lost three of them, and it’s heartbreaking for staff. However, it’s heartwarming to see that the surviving puppy is in perfect health and will spend all her time with Mum now getting all of the snuggles in the world.”
As an active supporter of wildlife conservation, the Australian Reptile Park breeds their dingoes to educate Australians about the importance of the species within the ecosystem, to protect them from extinction, and to dispel the myth that the dingo is a dangerous pest.
Mr Faulkner continued, “Adina is such an incredible Mum, and as sad as it is to lose three of her puppies, we’re so proud of her bringing Lucky into the world! Both Adina and her miracle pup will be receiving round the clock care as they recover.”
“As cute as the puppies are, they play a crucial role in raising species awareness. Dingo pups can provide a great way for people to connect with dingoes and help us advocate about the importance of the species. The dingo plays a very important role in the Australian ecosystem, but dingoes are being blasted, baited, tracked, shot and hunted in the wild because of their perceived damage to agriculture. However, killing dingoes makes way for feral foxes and cats to continuously increase the rate of mammal extinction.” Mr Faulkner went onto explain.
Over the coming weeks, Lucky the dingo puppy will be able to be seen by visitors bonding with mum and dad in the dingo enclosure at the Australian Reptile Park. For those who want to follow Lucky’s journey, the Australian Reptile Park will be posting regular updates on the Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok pages which have a combined 2.345 million followers.
