This Island Is Looking For A “Chief Wombat Cuddler” And It Could Be You

Derek the wombat is up for some cuddles AND HE FITS IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND!

1. Flinders Island, just northeast of Tasmania, is currently looking for someone to come down and help out with an urgent request: a baby wombat that needs cuddling.

2. That’s right, Derek the baby wombat has been trotting his little paws around the beach, in desperate search of some cuddles.

Derek was rescued from his mother’s pouch after she was hit by a car when he was just 8 months old.

3. A spokesperson for Tourism Tasmania told BuzzFeed News he only weighed 700 grams when he was first found.

Sean Scott Photography / Courtesy of Tourism Tasmania

4. The chief wombat cuddler would be flown from their city to Flinders Island and shacked up for three nights, plenty of time to explore Derek’s home and give him heaps of hugs.

Kate Mooney took the initial job of raising Derek, having hand-raised over 100 wombats to health over the years. Her 100-acre home houses fifteen wombats, all of which will be released into the wild once they’ve reached full health.

5. HE FITS IN THE PALM OF YOUR FLIPPIN’ HAND!!

Sean Scott Photography / Courtesy of Tourism Tasmania

6. You can find out more about the competition, and enter, here.

7. Want more proof that Australia is the greatest place on earth? Sign up for BuzzFeed’s “Meanwhile in Australia” newsletter!



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Brad Esposito is a news reporter for BuzzFeed and is based in Sydney, Australia.
 
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