Rescuing a juvenile flying-fox hanging off a wheelie bin: this is Wheelibin

[@catherinehubbard1167]

Poor little girl, wet, alone, hurt, frightened, and lacking everything else a young bat needs. As you were extricating her from the branch I was thinking that she clearly has more than the usual number of feet. He really is a lovely MOP. Plus, he said your new batty charge is beautiful. He took a photo of her face to please his wife. Obviously a sterling individual. I love the tenderness in your voice when you speak to them. I think they respond to it.

[@laurie2355]

I absolutely adore how sweet and gentle you are to these beautiful batties, makes my heart sing. Thank you

[@tbkindness]

Yes, I really like your comment. It also makes my heart sing!

[@Megabattie]

Some comments also make my heart sing. Thanks Laurie and Tbkindness

[@tamarrajames3590]

I also love the way these batties respond to Meg talking to them in her kind and gentle tones, explaining what she is doing. You can see the trust in the way they keep their eyes on her, and don’t fight the care she is giving. Some of the older bats make a fuss at first, but the juveniles mostly just seem grateful they have been rescued, and the look in their eyes says it all. This was a beautiful comment Laurie.🖤🇨🇦

[@JadeStrawberry]

That was so nice of the motorcycle mop to helping little Wheelibin. She is so sweet and pretty. I hope she recovers.

[@tomyorke3412]

That MOP was great

[@MC-qb1jg]

I know if I were in trouble and heard Megs' sweet voice, I instantly would feel relief.

[@georgia19801]

Poor girl has a sore wrist 😢 She has a beautiful, kind, face. Continue surviving beautiful

[@CM-ip3ks]

I really do enjoy your videos, Meg. You can see how much you care about the little batties. You’re a wonderful person. ❤

[@Megabattie]

It's not hard to love them because of their intelligence and curiosity, but the more you work with them the more comfortable you become, and the more you learn and notice and understand, and the more loveable they become.

[@KACn5582]

So adorable but so scared and confused. I am glad she seems to be a survivor!

[@Megabattie]

She's got a head injury so of course she's confused. It has taken her a while to come good and start self feeding.

[@gsdalpha1358]

Oh that wrist looked painful! What marvelous MOP to look out for her 🙂Poor girl looked wet, cold, and utterly helpless. A survivor? Yay! Thank you for slogging through the wet, Meg.

[@Megabattie]

Froggie valiantly drove through puddles up to her belly, and squished water everywhere and never hesitated.

[@gsdalpha1358]

@@Megabattie Way to go, Froggie! Hope you patted her and told her *what a good girl*! Driving one night in an unexpected raging snowstorm we couldn't see past the hood. It was a rural narrow road, no other traffic, no snowplows. My passenger leaned out the car window and could just barely tell where the edge of the road dropped onto the shoulder, guiding me on the road rather than into a ditch. Thankfully, it was a very straight road! IIRC, it took 30 minutes to go 7 miles. At home, I thanked the car profusely. 😌

[@pixie706]

​i talk to my car too😊 . Meg has done her usual magic but lovely MOPs are invaluable

[@Megabattie]

Froggie is froggy, so nothing more than one would expect from her. @@gsdalpha1358

[@Megabattie]

@@gsdalpha1358 Your car and passenger went above and beyond.

[@stephanieb7311]

Great to hear she is doing well and glad you were able to get to her In the rain and flooding.

[@Megabattie]

The storm stopped as soon as I got home, of course.

[@joclarke9107]

​@@Megabattie sod's law! 😕🌧🌂

[@koppsr]

That was a nice move of the guy to help her up into the tree. Little Wheelibin would've gotten hurt or worse on the ground. Poor little thing. You're doing wonderful work. Thank you so much for all your hard work and effort. ❤️

[@Megabattie]

Yes and no; he could have just called us and protected the little one till I arrived; I really don't like it when they put the bats in a tree and they're too high for me to rescue them when I get there. Interestingly I put Princess Wheelibin into the creche cage yesterday with Laddie her buddy. She's on her way to release, which given her prolonged squidginess over the first 10 days, is awesome

[@tracyjacoby2382]

Wheelibin is such a beautiful girl!🩶💛🦇🤗💕💕 So very happy to hear she survived too. Thank you so very much Meg for your awesome rescue💕💕 and to the wonderful MOP bike guy!👍🥰

[@harrietking8768]

Dear Meg, what a dear little battie. I never cease to be touched by your committment, love and dedication to this exceptional little creatures. A million blessings your way! 🙏❤️ Your fan in Tasmania, Harriet xx

[@tinawitte420]

I think it's so nice that the batties keep the plushies company so they don't feel so alone in the incubator.

[@Megabattie]

good observation

[@tamarrajames3590]

Tina, I’m sure the plushies are happy to be drawn out of the big pile in the basket among all the rest. They can get a rest from having someone’s foot poking their eye, or finding themselves nose to bum with some other rude plushie. For awhile they can enjoy the relative peace and quiet of being hugged by a little battie in need of some love.🖤🇨🇦

[@wolfangel369]

Awww Dear little Sweetheart xxx Wishing her well ❤❤❤

[@kellycharette7999]

I've been following your channel long enough to appreciate the annual rescue cycle. There's pregnancy season. Then there's babies taken from dead mothers or otherwise in distress. Then the juveniles whose inexperience has landed them in some kind of trouble make an appearance. And finally, there seems to be a release season when healed batties who over-summered in care are launched back into the wild. Seems as if we're in inexperienced juvie seasons again.😀

[@debbiej.2168]

Looks like you've got it down!

[@Megabattie]

Definitely new pilot season where they're smacking into things all over town. You forgot netting season which is usually summer.

[@tamarrajames3590]

That would make a fun illuminated Book of Hours subject…the seasons of the Flying-fox beautifully told in calligraphic words and illuminated pictures filling the borders. It could be a very interesting read as well, given the many ways the bats can find themselves in difficulty.🖤🇨🇦

[@dany.adelfinger]

Another nice motorbike guy - and a survivor. Yay!

[@WendyAlyson]

So happy to see that Weelibin is a survivor along with Hector! That wrist really looked like it was painful for her, poor little sweetheart! I just love their eyes. They really convey how they are feeling! Thank you for how you always treat them like the intelligent beings they are. That’s what makes you top notch! ❤🦇❤️

[@Megabattie]

They are intelligent beings and respond well to being treated as such. I always eyeball them when I'm caring for them and ask permission to handle them (unless they're cranky and not responding to reason). I look at them and catch their eye, and look to what I'm doing and either ask if it's OK or let them know what I'm doing. They respond so much better if you chat to them all the time.

[@tamarrajames3590]

I love that too, the subtle communication that develops between Meg and bat. I appreciate knowing what doctors and nurses are going to do to me over having them just start messing about with my person. These bats have already had a traumatic event, so I’m very sure they are comforted by Meg not just taking liberties with their person without explaining her intentions. They know they are in good hands, and are not disrespected.🖤🇨🇦

[@Megabattie]

LOL during covid I had a dream that one of the vets (fortunately not Adrian) were commandeered to look after humans because of the crisis and lack of doctors, and she took extreme liberties with my body without so much as lifting my tail first. No explanations, just did it. I sent her a text message saying next time she haunted my dreams could she please give me warning about such liberties about to be taken... @@tamarrajames3590

[@lesal.1373]

Such a quiet girl. I'm happy to read that she's a survivor! Heal and hopefully fly free later Wheelibin!

[@marcel_max]

３rd rescue on that day? That can keep someone busy, especially with all the coming and going in the car.

[@Megabattie]

Yeah, had the call come in sooner I could have collected Wheelibin after Pagoda and sorted the pair out together.

[@dazylulu1832]

Such a sweet and compliant patient, she knows you’re taking care of her 💕🦇💕🦇💕🦇

[@Megabattie]

She's too concussed to be other than compliant.

[@lindam2090]

Survivor.... Always happy to hear that. I am in love with those ears!

[@littleredflying-fox]

I hope Weelibin makes a full recovery, she looks so sad and lonely. Wouldn't it be nice if we had Flying Foxes in North America, migrating between North Carolina and Florida?

[@Megabattie]

I suspect your population, like the general Australian population, would loathe them and try to disperse their camps and cull them.

[@shirleyw8720]

Such a gentle little soul. I hope she’ll soon begin to recover from whatever is wrong with her wrist ❤

[@Megabattie]

The wrist swelling went down; just soft tissue swelling.

[@PamBishop-hl6ps]

MEG, YOUR SO WONDERFUL FOR TAKING SUCH GOOD CARE OF YOUR FLY FOX, I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS SO MUCH 😊

[@Kim-lc3fv]

I look forward to the next episode of Wheelibin and her incubator mate, Hecator (sp?). 😊

[@missnaomi613]

Heal well, little Wheelie Bin! ❤🦇

[@Lisa-eu9fy]

Glad you're a survivor lil darlin!!! 💜🦇💜🦇💜

[@Catherine-hf6zc]

Poor thing is so stunned! Crash landings and rain is just so not recommended. Thanks you for putting the survivor teaser in, look foreward to the show🤓

[@Megabattie]

She has had an interesting journey. It's 12 days now and she's only just self feeding. She had 2 days with me at the beginning, then went to Merryn's aviary with Hector, then came back to me when she was away for the weekend because she wasn't self feeding; she stayed with me for 5 days variously ignoring food and being difficult, now she's gone to another carer who has young ones and a less complicated aviary where she can get individual care, and apparently she is self feeding now.

[@donataj2213]

Weelibin beautiful and so peaceful. Get well little one🦇💚

[@marisaera2353]

Hope she'll be ok. Beautiful little girl. X

[@Megabattie]

She's doing OK finally now after about 2 weeks

[@marisaera2353]

I'm so glad. Thanks Meg. X

[@sonialignani]

Just a sweet girl, a sweetheart,( Meg, you use this word for your batties and I like it!!!) A survivor, i love her. In the description you used 2 words i' ve never heard" it was bucketing rain" and in my language the meaning is the same( piove a secchiate) secchio is bucket!!

[@Megabattie]

Yep bucketing rain just means it's raining a lot; we also say it's bucketing down, or it's raining cats and dogs.

[@EGSimon-ds1vf]

Beautiful girl.

[@helenpenn2]

I've watched so many of your videos - you are such a kind nurse and the little bats are such grateful patients.

[@Megabattie]

Hah, the bats aren't the faintest bit grateful and want to escape at any opportunity, however I love seeing them heal and get released. Wheelibin had a tricky recovery, so stay tuned for progress videos.

[@tamarrajames3590]

I think sometimes they are grateful, while others seem to grudgingly accept the ministrations. It’s mostly juveniles that get that adoring look in their eyes, and just seem relieved they don’t have to figure out what to do anymore, but can let themselves be taken care of. I so often wonder how they got into the situation they were rescued from.🖤🇨🇦

[@Megabattie]

With the juvies they tend to be more accepting, and scared and inexperienced. I don't think they get an adoring look in their eyes - it's more bewildered and totally out of oomph and struggle, and they just stare at you mutely, wondering when the axe is going to fall whilst seeing that though what you're doing is puzzling, they are feeling a bit better. @@tamarrajames3590

[@KaylaBall-os3cr]

Charming babies

[@irisjankowska9726]

Wheelibin my sweethart ❤️🦇❤️

[@Marty22408]

Uh I always read Meg's description with fear, looking for the word "survivor". 🙈 I hope sweet baby continues to thrive ❤️❤️❤️

[@Megabattie]

She's had a tricky time in care but she's doing better now

[@Marty22408]

@@Megabattie So hap hap to hear that :)

[@lindalumae]

It seems you can see that swollen risk through her wing on the thumbnail. I hope she flies again.

[@Megabattie]

Yes from the pix he sent I could see her swollen wrist, both on the wheel and in the tree.

[@tamarrajames3590]

That thumbnail is a gorgeous photo, the MOP has some skills going on there, as well as kindness and knowing what to do in an emergency.🖤🇨🇦

[@kathyferrara4444]

She really trusts you Meg. What a sweet girl.

[@lesleachelf8507]

Yaay

[@mariacav6662]

amori belli 💟

[@anniedarkhorse6791]

Awesome job, as usual. I didn't know you were in Sydney. I gather you moved to Queensland - or moved here. We need bat carers in Sydney. So many of them here.

[@Megabattie]

I'm in Sydney; Mandi moved to Queensland about 8ish years ago and I post her videos. I'm Meg. Yes we have a lot of batties needing rescue in the inner west, east and Inner south; I'm totally busy doing this.

[@anitamackinnon7975]

She is such a sweet little girl!!🫠❤️🦇🇨🇦

[@tamarrajames3590]

That was a beautiful thumbnail photo…taken by the very nice MOP I presume. Wheelibin is a very pretty young girl, and a perfectly behaved patient. Aside from her swollen wrist, it looks like she gave her head a solid whack. She had that not quite here look about her. I’m going to have to search up what ingredients comprise a wheelibin cocktail. I’m guessing she didn’t break her wrist, since she is in day 5 of care…but it did look quite sore at rescue. I love that she is a survivor, and gets a second chance at growing up and honing those flying skills. What a nasty weather day, and her being your 3rd rescue. Thanks for sharing her with us, and I hope you are able to get some rest before the next one.🥂🖤🇨🇦

[@GlitzyWitch]

I hope she's going to be ok ❤

[@Megabattie]

Follow her story; there are a lot of videos of her. Search in the YT search bar for Megabattie/Wheelibin and all the videos should come up

[@sarahprice659]

Hecate! 😳Shocking! Car looks sick👍. Now Wheeli, are you under the mistaken impression that if you keep using the injured area it will eventually go away? Sorry to tell it won’t… but now you are with Meg, and she can make it feel better! So try and be cooperative, yeah?

[@irlGlitches]

It is a cruel joke that it can be unsafe to pet something that is SO FREAKING CUTE.

[@Megabattie]

A wild one wouldn't let you pet them. She's wild, but she's young and injured so she was easy; don't get the idea that they just allow you to pet them in the wild.

[@irlGlitches]

I know, but this is still wholly unfair of mother nature lol @@Megabattie

[@PK-oy4fe]

Oh..poor little baby! I'm so happy the MOP got you to safe tree ! Meg.. we have non-stop heavy rain here in Eastern US also! High winds and thunder! ( Can you believe it in February?). its better than snow as im ready for spring! This little girl is beautiful! Yay, for a survivor! The pestilence is finally slowly exiting my body! While i was sick , i made myself useful and made some hedgehog donation goodies. Will send the photos and link.😇❤️🖤🦇🖤❤️

[@SuziQ.]

Hi, Patti, will you send me photos of your hedgies, please? I hope you feel better soon.

[@PK-oy4fe]

​@SuziQ. Thanks SuziQ...will do!

[@PK-oy4fe]

​@@SuziQ.I sent photos via messages on ebay

[@tamarrajames3590]

I’m glad to hear you are improving Patti. You are so generous with your creativity, making things that help cover the costs of care for the hurt ones. I’d love to know what you made. We are having a strange February here in Toronto as well, quite a bit of rain, virtually no snow (we have had a few flurries, but the snow is all melted within a day or two), temperatures above zero most days, and rarely below -5 overnight. We’ve just had a blustery March kind of day Monday, and it is clear and in the plus temperatures again today. February is generally our worst month for snow and bone chilling cold, and it was up to +11c the other day. The trees are feathering with new growth already, and their buds are swelling. Keep getting better, and stay happy.🖤🇨🇦

[@PK-oy4fe]

​@@tamarrajames3590hi will send you some photos today!❤😇

[@jamesbarca7229]

Great to see MOPs looking out for the flying puppies. So, do you remember the name of his channel?

[@Megabattie]

I didn't ask him.

[@limolnar]

These little survivors go on to make more hardy babies.

[@joclarke9107]

♥️🖤🦇🦇🖤♥️

[@SuziQ.]

Meg, is it odd to find only one nycteribid? I haven’t heard you mention them for a few years. I hope Wheelibin and Hector feel better soon, and everyone gets their scrapes sorted when they can. 💙 That thunder is loud.

[@Megabattie]

Sometimes one, sometimes more. Depends on the weather and how tough the batties are doing it. It takes quite a while for Wheelibin to start coming good; her story continues. Hector, on the other hand, is doing just fine.

[@tamarrajames3590]

It creeps me out when there are a bunch of those things on their faces and around their eyes. I’m glad there was only the one on her toe. I’m glad this little girl made it back from her rough patch…and that Hector has rebounded quickly.🖤🇨🇦

[@bevakathedementedraccoon]

woo, i picked a survivor vid to resurface in the comments section lol. (Meg, soz for my long absence. I had a bit of a mental health blip and couldn't take the lost ones until i was back on more solid ground again. Joys of bi-polar lol. Am doing better now, got my happy pills sorted). So glad this lil lovely seems to be on the mend.. Will now have to go and watch everything i've missed (should only take me like a month of sundays with the amount u put out lmao) much love from your english raccoon x

[@Megabattie]

Hi Ms Demented Raccoon; glad to have you back; if you read the descriptions under the videos, you get to see if the batty survived or not, so you can choose if you are going to watch the video or are too fragile for it.

[@tamarrajames3590]

Sorry to hear you hit a rough patch Demented Raccoon, but glad you are doing better again, it’s nice to see you back.. there were a LOT of really cute babies this year, so catching up should be fun.🖤🇨🇦

[@BaronessErsatz]

Sporty is holding his paw up. Maybe he's waving at the baby....

[@yomama8873]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@Okie-Girl]

@megabattie , Will u do a video showing us all your birds ?

[@Megabattie]

I only have one now, and he's with one of my friends because he likes to be one of the flock. In this video he was still with me but we kind of share them; sometimes with me and sometimes with her. There are vids of my birds having babies on my channel; try looking for Megabattie/Babylon and Arkie.

[@moiraesfate1]

Do bats wings continue to grow their whole lives?

[@Megabattie]

No, they top out at a little over a metre if they're big batties and around a metre in general unless they had a difficult time as a baby and there wasn't a lot of food so they didn't grow to their birth potential.

[@tamarrajames3590]

@@MegabattieWhat age do they stop growing, having reached their full size?🖤🇨🇦

[@dewdropdesigns90]

Hi Meg. This little one is particularly beautiful. What is the insect (parasite?) you picked off her that hatch in the rain? This reminded me that I had wanted to look into bat flies. Wow! So many different species impacting bats. As they tend to species specific (or a few species) as to their host, I tried to find the type that live on eastern Australia’s flying foxes, to no avail. Do you happen to know the scientific name to help in my search?

[@Megabattie]

Nycteribiid. They are specific to each species of bats. They're bat flies. Nycteribiidae is a family of the true fly superfamily Hippoboscoidea are known as "bat flies", together with their close relatives the Streblidae.

[@dewdropdesigns90]

@@Megabattie thank you!

[@F.R.E.D.D2986]

I have wondered, do you wash the blankets between rescues? Would the scent of bats on the blanket calm rescue bats down?

[@ChipCheerio]

Probably not enough to risk any kind of infection. I’d think it would be better to keep things sanitary

[@Megabattie]

I do wash the cloths if they're dirty but if it's just been over the top of the cage or used as a bolster in the cage, I reuse it. Sometimes the batties can be territorial; I had a baby who screamed at me and bigwingsed me (and called me a slut) because I had adult male pheromones on my arms and shirt after rescuing a boy who rubbed his mating season aroma over my clothing. For a baby on a DOA mum I'd either leave the baby on the mum until I got home, or rub the teddy bear on the mum to transfer mumbat's scent.

[@joclarke9107]

​@Megabattie The reaction of the wee jealous battie waiting at home to your (obviously flirtatious 😃) rescue of the adult male always made me chuckle 😊 Did this make him your 'bat on the side'?! 😊🦇🦇🖤

[@maggiedhue9349]

The manners and attitude of young ones nowadays... tsk tsk. Big wings and derogatory language from a baby.😏

[@Megabattie]

Definitely @@joclarke9107

[@Okie-Girl]

Has wheelibin had xrays yet?

[@Megabattie]

Yes, I put up the video today.

[@harmonyexists2834]

I applaud what you and other carers do to save the bats. I think you should make more "shorts" or shorter videos. I think it would grow your channel and boost your supporters. People have a short attention span these days. They're tired, overworked, and emotionally drained. And some have a harder time than others watching animals in distress, even though you are obviously helping the bats. I'm not suggesting completely stop making longer videos, but also make more of the shorter ones.

[@Megabattie]

It's really weird, but about 5-8 years ago YT started encouraging longer videos and penalising short clips, and all my viewers kept asking for longer videos. I started putting up longer videos; I get paid more if my vids are longer than 8 minutes and a bit more if they're longer than 10 minutes (more mid roll videos). Shorts are portrait and I do all my videos landscape. To do shorts means taking videos portrait which more or less makes the same footage useless for longer YT footage. It also means editing and uploading separately and tagging. I did a couple of shorts but NFI how to make them visible. I gave up. I'm struggling to just keep my head above the water let alone starting another venture. Most of my videos earlier than 5-7 years ago are shorter.

[@harmonyexists2834]

@@Megabattie Thank you for replying and for the info. I had no idea. 😔 Sounds like KZbin missed the mark on matching the momentum of societies progress. Understandable about the landscape/portrait issue. You have my continued support.

[@Megabattie]

I have some shorts but I just can't deal with something new at the moment. I haven't made them public. @@harmonyexists2834

[@harmonyexists2834]

@@MegabattieWell that's understandable. You're only one woman with a lot on your plate. 🙄 I'll definitely watch them when you upload them.