This is a manual of the ‘others’: the uncommon, the un-recognised and unappreciated. The animals in this manual make up a very small percentage of the total wildlife that come into care. Yet, amongst the ‘others’ are some of Australia’s most diverse and interesting species that come into care. They are species in the Critical Weight Range – a weight where the introduced feral species – the dog, fox, cat, pig, cane toad and goat have impacted upon their survival in the wild. They are species that are often confused with introduced rats and mice, but Australia’s rodents and dasyurids have not been able to adapt well to changes in habitat that have occurred as a consequence of humans.

The goal of this manual is to improve the care of these uncommon species when they enter into care. There is still so much more that needs to be learned! The manual cannot stay current with changing taxonomy. The idea is to use some more common species, or more accurately, those with some research done, to provide guidelines for care for other species. Good identification is critical, but often challenging.

At last, the 2023 version available from March now has pygmy possums and gliders added. So, bigger and better than ever.