Jaxson is a local boy who spends his days cruising the trees of Goonellabah. He was brought in to the Friends of the Koala Hospital recently with a case of “chlamydial cystitis” (bladder infection with chlamydia) as someone reported his brown stained bottom. It is the second time Jaxson has visited the care centre in his short six years of life. His illness is a fairly typical presentation of the disease that koalas suffer from most commonly in our area.

If caught early, chlamydial disease in male koalas can be treated with antibiotics and after one to two months of treatment they are often released back to their home. Luckily for Jaxson, he has many local human followers who look out for him and monitor him regularly. When someone noticed his bottom had a dark brown stain, which is a classic sign of urogenital chlamydia, we knew it was time to bring him in for a checkup.

Fortunately, Jaxson also received an injection of a vaccination that will hopefully prevent him being re-infected with chlamydia. This is not only great for him, but it will also help slow the spread of this deadly disease in the population. As much as we love him, we hope that Jaxson does not come back soon to visit us here in the koala hospital.