MORE ABOUT LAURIE Laurie Salzler developed an affinity for more than wildlife at FLCC. “My English professor tried to get me to change my major from natural resources conservation to English literature after reading the stories I'd submitted in her class. I promised her I would someday write a book. It took 20 years, but I got it done ... then I just kept writing.” Laurie published her first novel “A Kiss Before Dawn” in 2012. She has since released four more contemporary women’s fiction titles, a young adult novel, two illustrated children’s books, and “Eye of the Beholder,” a book of musings and photography. She is currently working on her first murder mystery. THELAKER | 15 “Chris White was my advisor while I was at CCFL,” she said, using the College’s original name, Community College of the Finger Lakes. “One day he came in with an orphaned raccoon whose mother had been killed on the road and o ered it to me to raise. e desire to be more involved with wildlife grew from that experience.” Laurie decided to move to Australia a er vacationing there. “I took a two-week holiday here and just fell in love with the culture, and the diversity of wildlife. Shortly therea er, I talked to my dad about moving here. He told me to do it if I wanted, I could always come back to the U.S. But the most important thing was to live life without the regret of not trying.” Since her training, Laurie has rescued a wide range of birds, including hawks, eagles, honeyeaters, doves, magpies, parrots, butcherbirds, currawongs, and pardalotes. Laurie has raised 96 macropods, o en taking the “pinkies,” meaning babies with no fur. “ eir care is very intensive, with feeds up to ve or six times a day, round the clock. It wasn’t unusual for me to have ve in care at a time.” More recently, she has cut back to monitoring and rescuing the koalas in her town. “One of my best koala moments was releasing a female who’d been in hospital for several months. I’d initially rescued her from a residence with a very big dog. She was rushed up to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary where she had surgery. Prince Phillip was in attendance to witness some of the surgery. From there, she spent her recovery time at Australia Zoo. Named Viv, she eventually came back, and I released her in an area where she was monitored. erea er, she visited a friend's backyard gum tree annually with that year’s joey.” In 2022, Australia listed koalas as endangered in New South Wales, Queensland, and the Australian Capital Territory. Drought and bush res, worsened by climate change, and development reduces their habitat. Stress makes them vulnerable to diseases, and they increasingly contend with dog attacks and car strikes. “I am also the team leader for my branch's Volunteer Emergency Response Team. We get called out to search for wildlife a er a bush re area is declared safe, but we can also be involved assisting in oods, as well as heat events where large numbers of ying foxes are a ected. ey are highly susceptible to extreme heat, which can lead to mass mortality.” When not rescuing wildlife or writing, Laurie spends time with her four dogs, two Vizslas, a kelpie cross and a Jack Russell, and riding her horse. A welcome swallow Laurie rescued during Cyclone Alfred in 2025. Pinky joeys – baby marsupials without fur – require intensive care.
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