Golden Retriever Denni Helps Koala Joey Ride Back to Its Mother in Australia
A Portland dog named Denni carried a baby koala on her back after it slipped from its mother, in a moment captured by its owner that authorities describe as rare kindness.
A baby koala that had slipped from its mother's back was carried to safety by a Golden Retriever named Denni in a Portland backyard on Thursday. Steve Lamplough, who lives in Portland, said he rushed outside after hearing his dogs barking and was stunned when Denni came running up to him with the joey resting on her back. 'Heard the dogs barking and went outside and Denni came running up to me with this on her back, both as happy as Larry,' Lamplough wrote on Facebook. The scene was filmed by the homeowner and quickly circulated online, described by witnesses as among the cutest moments they've seen.
Denni carried the joey across the yard and kept it away from potential danger until the joey climbed off and made its way back up to its mother in a tree in Lamplough's backyard. 'No-one hurt. Mum and bub still up a tree in our garden,' Lamplough said.
Experts cautioned that dogs can be a deadly threat to koalas, but noted that the breed and temperament of the dog can influence outcomes. Dr. Bill Ellis, founder of the University of Queensland's Koala Ecology Group, told Daily Mail Australia that the koala joey 'found the right dog.' 'The wrong dog would've been a disaster, but Golden Retrievers are very much less likely to attack them,' he said. 'It's come down in the right backyard and found the right dog. The breed of dog is the mediating factor in this interaction.' He added that 'little koalas will automatically grab onto virtually anything, and they're quite easy to foster if one loses a parent.'
Koalas riding on dogs is not new in Australia; Ellis noted that in the past, koala joeys would be carried by dogs during tours near wildlife sanctuaries, a practice that has become part of a broader, if rare, history of canine-assisted koala care.
The moment drew praise from online communities, with Australians hailing Denni for the act of kindness and stressing how quickly a potential danger was averted. While experts warn that dog koala encounters require caution, the incident underscores how a familiar household pet can become an unlikely savior in the wild-life context.