Motivations and Characteristics of Volunteer Flying-Fox Rehabilitators in Australia

Bibliographic Data

ID2609045
AuthorsNicola Markus (The University of Queensland), Judith K Blackshaw (The University of Queensland)
Year1998
Volume11
Issue4
Pages203-209
Publication date1998-12-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAnthrozoös (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0892-7936 • E-ISSN: 1753-0377
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.2752/089279398787000562
OpenAlexW2034933851
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited5

A survey of volunteers involved in flying-fox rehabilitation was undertaken to determine the demographic profile of Carers, their motivations for rehabilitation and the costs incurred in the care of flying-foxes. Carers (n=119) from the east coast of Australia responded by completing a two-page questionnaire. Ninety percent of Carers were women and Carers' ages ranged from <20 to 50+ years, with a majority (60%) aged between 30–50 years. Most Carers were employed and almost 30% had professional or para-professional occupations. Carers appeared to be motivated by altruism rather than by a nurturance instinct or the desire to conserve the species. Respondents considered the time-demand of rehabilitation to be the single greatest challenge to the task, while the risk of contracting a bat-transmitted disease caused concern to 41.2% of Carers. Recruitment of new Carers occurred predominantly through contact with care groups or individual bat supporters which indicated a potential avenue for the dissemination of information and conservation messages to the public

Animal welfare · Animal-assisted therapy · Biology · Criminology · Geography · HUBzero · Pet therapy · Volunteer · Leadership, Courage, and Heroism Studies · Psychology · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts · Viral Infections and Vectors · Ecology · Social Psychology

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