Some of the things I am interested in and do along with learnng about birds

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Wollemi
Wollemi's picture
Some of the things I am interested in and do along with learnng about birds

Hi Everyone,

I love birds, and enjoy photographing them very much but I do many other things too and thought I would share pictures of some of my other interests.

I do some wildlife rescue and rehab, I really enjoy flying fox care, and I love to keep an eye on the wildlife that visit our property. I am a relative newby at native animal care but love all that I am learning. Last year I raised my first flying fox pup, Phoebe, and she was a delight to care for and I rescued rehabbed and released several adults as well.

I also cared for my first brushtail, she was burned quite badly in the first lot of fires that went through Winmalee in NSW last year. Peggy responded really well and inspired my husband to build a large possumarium for pre-release rehab to strengthen her up before release. it measures 2m x 2m x 2.6 and has ledges and logs to encourage leaping and climbing and her food was placed in cracks and crevices all around the possumarium so she had to look for it.

My daughter, who has disabilities takes up a lot of my time and I enjoy it very much when her and I can get away on a holiday and love seeing her responses to the many things we encounter on our travels. So I have included a photo of her enjoying the bird songs and the breeze at Mt Gambier SA.

Among the native animals that visit our yard are our fair share of reptiles. Our dogs have a small yard within the property and the native animals have the rest but sometimes the two meet when a snake or lizard wanders into the dog yard. The dogs have a 'reptile bark' and when we hear that we take a lead out for the dog, let the dog show us where to find the reptile then tie the dog up while we collect and relocate the reptile. So I have incldued a photo of a blue tongue we relocated. And every now and then we find a snake and mostly just leave them alone, but we found a red bellied black snake just after the mower went through so we had to check on its welfare and my attempt to make it move made it quite cross which the photos show quite clearly.

Woko
Woko's picture

I'm interested to know of your daughter's interest in natural things, Wollemi. Several other posters have mentioned the advantages for their children with disabilities to experience nature. Rather like the advantages for people without disabilites, it would seem.

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

Hi Woko,

My daughter has a brain injury acquired when we were struck by a speeding driver when she was six months old, she is now 26 years old. One of the most powerful forms of therapy that there is for people with brain injury can be described as sensory stimulation. Where the neurotransmitters in the brain may be damaged by injury or disease it was once thought that that was that, nothing could be done, but over time and with many very observant therapist it was noted that while those neurotransmitters were damaged and no longer available it was possible for the brain to rewire itself so the general idea is to use stimulation of the senses, taste, smell, hearing, touch as well as kinetic senses such as those associated with balance, water, and gravity and forces like the wind and by exposing the person to much sensory stimulation the brain would find a new path for the information to travel along. This was all a fledgling form of therapy at the time of my daughters injury bt I took it on good faith and continued with the ideas expanding on them and adding to the as my understanding grew and as I saw results.

With all of that in mind I have built a sensory garden just outside her bedroom with a water pond and fountain, native grasses around it, and various other native plants that draw the birds and other native animals to her. She has a coccoon swing on a deck in her garden and can sit there and enjoy it all, because her vision is low it is unlikely she can see much more than a blur so a bright blur such as the colours of rainbow lorikeets is more likely to be seen, we have correa planted along a fence that borders her garden to invite the smaller birds as close as possible along with a tangle of hardenbergia, callistemon, and although not native we have large bouganvillea in the garden because of the birghtness of its colours and its ability to harbour smaller birds and animals. We are also encouraging the ti tree from the back paddock to grow closer to the house to provide cover for the little birds including the many whistlers and wrens and finches that live there to expand their territory and move closer to the house.

We have over the years had many animals either in care or as pets but she really does not take a lot of notice of them, with one exception, we found a baby rainbow loikeet in the yard and raised it as a pet, prior to me doing wildlife care seriously. We named the lorikeet Stumpy because he had no tail or wing feathers just fluff when we found him, Stumpy would fly free in our house throughout the day and return to his cage for food and sleep. (He was inadvertantly released by a visitor to our house) Stumpy is the only animal my daughter ever developed a relationship with even though she has a dog she has had for ten years she never interacts with the dog, but with Stumpy she had little choice, he would fly down to the table as she was eating breakfast, jump onto her arm and walk down to her plate and help himself, she would giggle and laugh and although at first I was concerned she would toss him away and harm him in the process she never did, she not only tolerated him but she interacted with him and looked for him at breakfast time each day. I don't know why Stumpy was accepted while any other animal was not but I am glad that he was. I was away on holidays when he was let out and I cried for three days over his release because I felt his relationship with my daughter was so important.

My daughter has always been more relaxed in natural settings and often finds the blurred noises of suburbia stressful so life on acreage seemed to me to be a good way to give hera place to retreat to and in recent years I have been working on making it a retreat for the native animals too. Like they say when you know better, you do better!

When we travel we usually mix up the accommodation with some camping and some motels along the way and we have covered a lot of miles, and she enjoys the camping, loves the campfires, the night sounds, and enjoys being closer to nature. She has visited Townsville, across to Katherine in the NT and lots of towns big and small throughout Qld and NSW, Tasmania twice, and has been to WA this year with a trip that took us down to Wodonga then to the coast road along to Adelaide and across to Perth, and down through Margaret River and Pemberton and along the coast and back again. She loves travelling and I sense she relaxes when we are in places where there is a lot of natural energies, like rivers, the ocean, deep ravines, mountain tops etc.

I don't know that having a disability makes a person more likely to enjoy nature, but I do know for my daughter nature provides a lot of sensory stimulation that she enjoys. Perhaps it is that there is less distraction away from nature, she is afterall a lady of leisure who has more time than most to sit and enjoy the things that others are too busy to notice.

I don't know that I have answered your question but I have found it encouraging to think on these things, so thank you for asking.

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

And a pic of Stumpy

Woko
Woko's picture

Wollemi, your response has confirmed for me what I've suspected for a long while: that sensory, particularly natural, stimulation is beneficial for people with disabilities such as your daughter has. Many years ago I wrote to several nursing homes & even the nursing home association, or whatever it's called, about planting around their establishments native plants instead of the ubiquitous, sterile introduced gardens. My hypothesis was that the wildlife attracted to native gardens would provide stimulation for people who often do little other than sit. The idea went down like the proverbial lead balloon even tho' native gardens would cost a lot less to maintain. Perhaps I didn't express the idea clearly enough. But I must say that what you've written is totally inspiring.

I wonder if your daughter's attachment to Stumpy was due to Stumpy's very bright colours which became up close & personal.

And how ironic that your daughter has leisure time to sit, listen, feel, smell & observe in complete contrast to the speeding motorist who, I venture to suggest, didn't even know what a rose smelled like.

dwatsonbb
dwatsonbb's picture

Wollemi, thank you for sharing yours and your daughter's story, it makes us (well me anyway) realise how lucky we are. I also thank you for taking time to care for our little natives, and I am sure your daughter may have better cognitive skills than many who don't know her think. I have a friend with who's son (now 18) has multiple severe physical and mental (that's not politically correct anymore, but you know what I mean) disability, and although he sits there most of the time seeming very innocent and oblivious to most things, he knows what he likes, you can tell by his emotional state and subsequent displays of affection. Any stimulation that seems to help should be encouraged.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

Hi Woko,

the motorist concerned was a 19 yo bank employee on his way home from work. He is now a high flyer in the finance world. And yes Terri has a good life with plenty of time to observe and smell, and taste (honey-mrtle tea straight from the garden among other culinary delights to spark the taste buds) and listen, and enjoy all that nature has to offer.

The accident was such  long, long time ago.

Sensory gardens are certainly a landscaping specialty that some service providers like to have so people with disabilities can enjoy them however I am not sure of any that are exclusively native, though it would be delightful to have them all native.

To build a sensory garden as accessible as possible it needs to:

have footpaths wide enough for two adults to walk side by side comfortably, many multiply disabled people have someone walk with them to guide them.

Garden beds up high enough for people in wheelchairs to be able to experience the plants.

Lots of contrast in colour, texture and smell without being overloading, some people experience problems when their senses are overloaded with too much at once.

Lotsof built in seating,

water features that provide the sound of running water,

It is nice if sensory gardens also have:

an accessible swing that wheelchairs can wheel onto

large accessible musical instruments ie, a wooden xylophone strung up, wind pipes, etc,

themed areas that lead into one another.

pacman
pacman's picture

Persons with dementia also benefit from sensory gardens and there are now many aged care centres that have these gardens. Alzheimer's Australia should have reading material.

Peter

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

Hi Dale,

Yes it is surprising just how much Terri fully understands. I had mixed feelings about a 'day centre' she was attending and trying to decide if withdrawing her was right for her, to me it just seemed like a cross between a babysitting service and school. Nothing particularly individual about it and lots of limits to her freedom. As I was really worrying abou this issue I talked to her about it and said I would be happy to go along with what she wanted but she would have to find a way to let me know. I arrived to collect her one afternoon and asked her how her day had been. She very clearly, and loudly said "F*** me, Mum, we go hommmmmmmeeee!" She only says a whole sentence now and then more these days than back then but this sentence was more than enough.

I would encourage your friend to look up The Anne McDonald Centre in Victoria for communication help for their son. 24 years of not having a particularly reliable communication system that worked for Terri, other than the very rare statements she made when she was wound up enough, and one trip to the Anne McDonald Centre found a communication system that did not rely on vision, did not rely on fine motor control and has given Terri a meaningful way to communicate what she wants. It is nice to know after all these years that, yes, she does like to wear dresses. I always wondered about that, not every woman does and sometimes she prefers pancakes for breakfast. It truly is the little things that matter the most.

Hi Pacman,

Yes sensory gardens are very beneficial to people with dementia, (hopefully Terri's garden will stave off my dementia for a while), and they are used in some aged care facilities. It would be fabulous to see every community having a large sensory garden for everyone's benefit. Make it all native plants and our wildlife benefits too.

Canonguy
Canonguy's picture

You've just answered my question in the message I've sent you. :)

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

Canonguy,

you are more than welcome to come and see what there is to see here! You know where we are!

Canonguy
Canonguy's picture

Thank you Wollemi! I'll bring you a recent edition of a magazine with my Powerful Owl article in it. 

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

That would be lovely Canonguy!

Chris 333
Chris 333's picture

Hi Wollemi,

Thank you so much for posting your lovely photos and for sharing the story of your daughter. She is lucky to have such thoughtful and caring parents.

I totally agree with your ideas about providing continued stimulation. Even though there may not be any obvious short term advances, it's definitely a case that slow, steady and consistent input may often pay dividends in the long term.  

We have a son, Matt, who is now 21 and who is in a somewhat similar position.  He had no speech at all until after he was six, toilet training took eleven years, and when he was tested for autism he pretty much had all the criteria. You need 6 out of 12 to qualify for a diagnosis and he scored 11. The 12th was present but could be re-directed.  So as a young boy his future did not look promising. Before he was born, I had rashly offered to be the "househusband" while my wife continued her career, but it was a little more challenging that I thought! I mean, how hard can it be? You give them a bottle of milk and change their nappies for a couple of years and then, before you know it, you can pack them off to school and get back to work! Can't you? Well, not exactly, for any child regardless of ability.... dumb man...  blush 

So we plugged away with teaching him what we could, and just making sure that there were always a variety things available for Matt, even though he had no idea yet how to use them appropriately. And, as you said, kept doing a lot of things "on faith". A safe and stimulating environment, in a similar way to your sensory garden approach. Matt still only has rudimentary speech, very little social or abstract understanding and cannot go out into the community unsupported. But he can now read simple illustrated kid's books, and write very basic sentences.  He has also learned to take pictures with an inexpensive pocket camera.  He takes great delight in snapping away and then selotaping a photo into his daily "diary", which is really a sort of scrapbook.

When we did our Friday bushwalk a couple of weeks ago he was clicking away cheerfully. When we uploaded the photos there was a snap of the empty track ahead of him - fifty one times!   

His photos are always erratic and we never know what he'll shoot. Feet, sky, apparently empty zoo pens... He was taken to Landsdale Farm School for an outing recently and the photo he took turned out to be the inside of the toilets - featuring two shiny looking urinals! Well at least we now know they're clean. Thank goodness there was nobody else in there at the time. We had to have a good long talk about that being something you don't do. Hope the message got through.smiley

Best wishes with your photography and also to Terri.

Cheers. Chris. 

Woko
Woko's picture

Wow! Challenges galore, Chris. Hats off to you & Wollemi & you respective partners for your love & care for your children. In fact, hats off to all parents who love & care for their children.

Hang on to those photos your son takes, Chris. Within a few years they'll be worth a fortune & people will come from all over the planet to view them.

Wollemi
Wollemi's picture

Hi Chris,

Yes! How hard can it be? If we actually knew the answer to that question before we started out it would crush us. Luckily for our kids we have no darn idea at all! So in blind faith we head into this thing called parenthood and just do what needs doing as it needs doing and learn to live in a completely new way.

If you are needing more help with communication for your son I can not recommend the Anne McDonald Centre in Victoria highly enough. SO much wisdom understanding and learning to be gained.

It would be interesting to print up and lay out those 51 photos of the track ahead and just see if you can identify what it is he was seeing and wanting to share! Perhaps simply that there IS a track ahead!

I think keeping copies of all of his photos would be an excellent idea. Good suggestion WOKO.

 A kind of photographic view of the world from the perspective of one person with autism! People do wonder about that. So having a ready record of it is quite an amazing gift really. A shiny clean urinal is afterall of utmost importance if you need to use it!

Regards

Wollemi

jason

Chris 333 wrote:

Hi Wollemi,

Thank you so much for posting your lovely photos and for sharing the story of your daughter. She is lucky to have such thoughtful and caring parents.

I totally agree with your ideas about providing continued stimulation. Even though there may not be any obvious short term advances, it's definitely a case that slow, steady and consistent input may often pay dividends in the long term.  

We have a son, Matt, who is now 21 and who is in a somewhat similar position.  He had no speech at all until after he was six, toilet training took eleven years, and when he was tested for autism he pretty much had all the criteria. You need 6 out of 12 to qualify for a diagnosis and he scored 11. The 12th was present but could be re-directed.  So as a young boy his future did not look promising. Before he was born, I had rashly offered to be the "househusband" while my wife continued her career, but it was a little more challenging that I thought! I mean, how hard can it be? You give them a bottle of milk and change their nappies for a couple of years and then, before you know it, you can pack them off to school and get back to work! Can't you? Well, not exactly, for any child regardless of ability.... dumb man...  blush 

So we plugged away with teaching him what we could, and just making sure that there were always a variety things available for Matt, even though he had no idea yet how to use them appropriately. And, as you said, kept doing a lot of things "on faith". A safe and stimulating environment, in a similar way to your sensory garden approach. Matt still only has rudimentary speech, very little social or abstract understanding and cannot go out into the community unsupported. But he can now read simple illustrated kid's books, and write very basic sentences.  He has also learned to take pictures with an inexpensive pocket camera.  He takes great delight in snapping away and then selotaping a photo into his daily "diary", which is really a sort of scrapbook.

When we did our Friday bushwalk a couple of weeks ago he was clicking away cheerfully. When we uploaded the photos there was a snap of the empty track ahead of him - fifty one times!   

His photos are always erratic and we never know what he'll shoot. Feet, sky, apparently empty zoo pens... He was taken to Landsdale Farm School for an outing recently and the photo he took turned out to be the inside of the toilets - featuring two shiny looking urinals! Well at least we now know they're clean. Thank goodness there was nobody else in there at the time. We had to have a good long talk about that being something you don't do. Hope the message got through.smiley

Best wishes with your photography and also to Terri.

Cheers. Chris. 

Chris, hope your still around.  Don't be to disheatened, my fully functioning 6yo will take 20+ photos of the same thing.  Like the TV. I could easily see him capturing the urinal.  I think they hold their finger on the capture button, well thats my hope anyway.

Thank for sharing, hope things are going well. 

J

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