An Interview with Gail Gipp, Manager of the Australian Wildlife Hospital

© 2007, Lee Barwood

Imagine, for a moment, living at your workplace and being on call 24/7. To most people that would be an utter nightmare—how many of us could go on in life doing that? But when you're in the right job, doing work that you love, such a schedule is a challenge, not a torment.

Gail Gipp, manager of the Australian Wildlife Hospital, does exactly that, and it's clear that she loves her work and her lifestyle. She is one busy woman, but from her bubbly conversation you can tell that she thrives on her demanding schedule. In the Hospital's "busy season," she sleeps very little, and is constantly on the go to care for the animals in her charge; her love for them shines through her words. We were fortunate to speak with her.

How long have you been involved in wildlife rescue?

I started when I was 17, and have been doing it for 31 years. It started with an elderly lad who lived next door with joeys hanging around. I was always bringing home things to feed; it used to drive my parents nuts.

What did you do before coming to the Hospital?

I was the senior environment officer at Stradbroke Island. I did the education on the environment, for people to walk through the bush, and was explaining the plants and animals and why it's so important that we retain the natural environment for our own health and the health of the island in particular.

What are your biggest challenges?

The biggest challenge is educating people. I don't think there's enough day-to-day education of the general public of the needs of wildlife and what's happening to them out there. Most people are unaware that they're suffering so badly.

What are your responsibilities as manager?

I look after the animals foremost, and see that all their needs are met. I'm living in the hospital; I work ten days and nine nights straight, and then have a couple of days off. My room is off the ICU [intensive care unit]. I have no privacy [she laughs], but it's good that I'm here. So many of the animals are nocturnal, and of course there are the trauma cases. And I look after the staff, and make sure that the Hospital has enough equipment and what we need.

What's a typical day like, and how long is it?

You can never have a plan because you never know what will work through the door.

Six months of year, from January to June, life is relatively quiet. I start at 5 AM, and go through until 6 or 7 PM, depending on what comes in during the day. It's the quietest time of year, because the animals aren't breeding. I get woken up four to ten times a night with animals people drop off. From July to December, I don't get to bed for three days—that's when the majority of animals come in. One night I got nine koalas within six hours, all trauma cases. It's a lot busier, and the animals in intensive care and on drips need pain medication. For six months I don't sleep very much at all, and the other six months I try to sleep when I can.

Yesterday we had so many different species! We started at 5:30 AM and didn't finish till nearly 8 PM. We saw everything from pelicans to snakes to koalas to kangaroos. We never know what's coming in; it can vary greatly.

I do trauma work with animals—I stabilize trauma victims, prepare animals for surgery, change drips, administer medications, work with the staff, do training and counseling. I give a lot of advice to wildlife carers, internationally and in Australia; I teach at the University of Queensland and also do wildlife workshops for wildlife rehabilitation groups, not just in Queensland but in New South Wales and Victoria. I'm asked to speak at conferences on different things. I do a lot of that.

What's the most frustrating thing about your work?

The most frustrating for me, on a personal level, is the cruelty that humans inflict on these animals. I don't understand the mentality of it, particularly when it comes to domestic animals. If someone sees a native animal, a hundred cars may drive past it, but if it were a dog or a cat, every car would pull up to stop. People are so ignorant of our native animals. I don't think they realize that they feel pain. But I think it's changing—particularly in the last three years. People are starting to care, and become more environmentally aware.

What's the most rewarding thing?

Getting something in that's really, really critical and not expected to live, and being able to release them back into the wild. Especially when you get to monitor them and see they're doing well out there—it's the most amazing feeling.

Is there one part of the job that matters most to you? If so, what and why?

I love every aspect of this job, the good and the bad, because I think that even with the bad there’s good that comes out of it in the end. I'm getting to live my dream.

What is the Hospital's biggest need?

A new hospital. This building was an old avocado packing shed and it's really tiny, and now we have a lot of people and animals and equipment. It's important for the new hospital for people to keep donating to help more animals, not just in Australia but worldwide. We want to help everywhere we can.

Do you have a favorite animal?

I like them all. No favorites. If I had one it would be orangutans—they fascinate me. But I love all animals. Reptiles, the works, everything.

When did you know you wanted to do this work?

I always knew this was what I wanted to do. I never remember not loving animals—in grade school I remember wanting to be a vet, but I got to high school and figured I didn't like school. [Laughs] I always really loved being around animals more than people. I write a lot of caring books—how to look after koalas, platypus, all kinds of animals. I like to keep up to date with what's happening, and teach others—and refresh my knowledge. The caring and rehabilitating community gets closed; sometimes they don't want to share information [on caretaking], and I don't want people repeating the mistakes of the past. To have as many people as possible know how to care for them, and have them survive after release, is really important. That's one of my aims before I go.

We want [the Hospital] to be seen the same as Steve saw it—not necessarily the biggest, but the best for any animal we come in contact with. And we want to educate people and veterinarians, and always have an open door to enable people to get help when they need it for whatever animals they come in contact with.

Do you have one thing to say to people about animals?

Really think about where you choose to live, and what you choose to do in your environment, and remember that we're not the only species. So many animals live where we want to live. Try to live in harmony with them, instead of ignoring their needs and their homes. We forget about all the small species. A tree might not be important to us, but could be the home to a hundred little things.

Thank you for taking the time to talk to us. You have provided a wealth of information about what life is like in animal hospital—both for practitioners as well as their patients.