Terrified koala and her joey are given a bowl of water to drink from on a scorching 46C day
- South Australia is in the midst of a record-breaking heatwave
- The extreme conditions are forcing wildlife to seek shelter near homes
- Two good Samaritans from Adelaide provided a koala and her joey with water
- RSPCA urges people to leave out water from native animals on hot days
As South Australia swelters through a record-breaking heatwave and bushfires it’s not just people who are suffering from the brutal conditions.
Two southern Adelaide residents found a terrified koala with her joey seeking shelter at their home on a day when the temperature was set to hit 46C.
The good Samaritans assisted the adorable pair by giving them a bowl of water, in a video shared to the S*it Adelaide Instagram page.
Nat Parson found a koala and her joey at the front gate of her home as she headed out to work this morning
Nat Parsons and her partner Tom found the koalas at their front gate as they headed to work in the morning.
‘These two koalas, mum and baby, were looking hot and frazzled’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
The couple approached the terrified koalas with a bowl of water and some ice and found the joey desperately clinging to its mum.
The mother koala could be heard grunting at the pair as a warning to not get to close as Tom warned Nat: ‘Be careful it might scratch you.’
Nat then gently places the bowl of water near the koalas while asking ‘Do you need a drink?’ before retreating to give them some space.
‘It was heartbreaking to see them in this state but we’re glad they were here early in the morning when we could help,’ she said.
The joey was later seen to have hopped down from it’s mother and slurped from a second bowl of water while its mum keeps a careful eye out in another video shared to the pages Insta Story.
The joey was seen appreciatively slurping up the water on a day the temperature is set to soar during an Adelaide heatwave
The couple live close to the Hallet Cove Conservation Park so believe the koalas were close to home but ventured out in the heat to find water.
‘We’ve been seeing them more and more on hot days and the local community always does whatever it can to help out,’ she said.
The South Australian RSPCA has advised that extreme heat can have ‘devastating consequences’ for wildlife.
They have urged people to leave out fresh, clean water in shallow bowls at shady locations.
They also advised people to not feed or handle the animals.