​WHY HAVE A NATIVE ANIMALS SANCTUARY ?
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Human actions and population growth have resulted in wild-life habitat destruction at the fastest rate in the world, unique Australian animals are dying out. We are helping maintain native wildlife diversity​​.Deforestation is putting our unique wildlife on the fast-track to extinction.
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The increase and spread of human population have led to an increase in native animals injured on the roads. Jirrahlinga provides medical treatment, rehabilitation and refuge for injured wildlife until they can be released back into the wild.
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Jirrahlinga provides sanctuary for those animals that cannot be released due to on-going physical impairment.
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Our wildlife session educates the public regarding the uniqueness of Australian wildlife and the importance of wildlife conservation as native habitats decrease.
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Jirrahlinga provides an immersive experience for the public to view up close a variety of native animals in one place.
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We conserve a pure Dingo gene pool (i.e. no inter-breeding) We conduct genetic testing for purity. Currently we have 128 Dingos.
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The Jirrahlinga experience proven to be therapeutic for humans living with conditions such as dementia, Aspergers and developmental issues. Our staff pay particular attention to these visitors. Please let us know so that we can help. Jirrahlinga is a ‘Boutique’ type sanctuary and we pride ourselves on personalizing the experience.
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​HOW DO WE ACQUIRE OUR ANIMALS ?
We do not capture native animals to populate Jirrahlinga.
Often birds or reptiles, are surrendered by their owners for various reasons. The majority of these animals have been born into captivity and would not survive in the wild as they have become habituated to human care.
In Victoria, the crossbreeding of dingoes and domestic dogs is prohibited, a special licence must be obtained from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action for those who wish to keep them. Jirrahlinga holds the appropriate licence and is fully compliant with D.E.E.C.A. regulations.
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Jirrahlinga is primarily a native animal sanctuary, however, very occasionally an introduced species will 'slip through'.
Useful links:​​
The Early Years in Barwon Heads
The original Jirrahlinga property was sited on five acres of land on the northern edge of Barwon Heads. ‘Jirrahlinga’, Aboriginal for ‘Seek a home for a kangaroo’, was established more than 50 years ago by Tehree Gordon, to be a haven for injured wildlife. Whilst the business was always prefixed ‘Jirrahlinga’, its' full title has gone through several incarnations before settling on the current name ‘Jirrahlinga Dingo Conservation & Wildlife Education Centre’; this title more correctly reflects the core values of the sanctuary as it has evolved. Jirrahlinga provides sanctuary for those animals that cannot be released due to ongoing physical impairment. The wildlife session educates the public regarding the uniqueness of native Australian wildlife and the need to actively participate in the preservation of our native animals.
Following the Ash Wednesday bushfires in 1983, Jirrahlinga received national and international media coverage acclaiming the rescue mission launched to seek out and treat shocked and burnt animals.
Saving Chewtons' Dingoes
In 2004 the owner of the “Dingo Farm” in Chewton passed away, leaving 295 adult dingoes and over 200 pups on death row, facing euthanasia. Tehree Gordon and her husband Hamish saved the dingoes after months of red tape and in 2005 the resident dingoes got a reprieve from their sentence. The property was run down and required a significant amount of work, including rounding up and sorting numerous dingo packs that were loose and running wild in the valley, the property was not securely fenced. Tehree tells the story of personally carrying home an aged dingo, the trip through the valley taking her 8 exhausting hours.
The relevant Victorian Government department at the time only lifted the dingoes’ death notice if Tehree agreed to take on the management of the 15-acre park and its’ dingoes. Eventually, only 2 dingoes with long-standing injuries were euthanized, a female with a broken back and a male with a deformed broken leg. The others lived to an old age in vastly improved conditions.
True to their commitment to preserve the purity of their dingoes, a program of de-sexing many of the hybrid dingoes was implemented immediately, with the assistance of wildlife vet Dr. Marcus Holdsworth. Marcus, being a NSW vet, required specific permission from the authorities to operate in Victoria. Another early measure the couple undertook was to remove the word ‘Farm’ from the properties’ name, as it did not reflect their purpose: to provide sanctuary for injured and permanently impaired native animals; the word 'farm' implied breeding native animals in captivity for financial gain.
At the same time, Tehree was still running the Barwon Heads Sanctuary and holding down a full-time job as the first female Ranger at the Bellarine Borough of Queenscliff. Hamish was holding down the extensive animal management, urgent repairs, veterinary treatments, horticultural consultation and revegetation at the Chewton property.
Two Sanctuaries Become One
Tehrees’ work on the Bellarine Peninsula saw her spearheading Victorias’ first off-lead dog beach, off-lead dog park, and mobile dog grooming program for their elderly, infirmed, and disabled clients.
Eventually, health issues and the workload involved in a full-time job and running two distant properties resulted in selling the Bellarine property and Tehree joined Hamish at the Chewton site. The couple, with a small group of dedicated volunteers and employees, spent countless hours securely fencing and revegetating the denuded property, providing the required veterinary attention and nursing for the injured dingoes they inherited, cleaning up and building enclosures for multiple varieties of native animals, and eventually relocating animals from their former Barwon Heads Sanctuary.
Tehree and Hamish eventually settled on the name Jirrahlinga Dingo Conservation and Wildlife Education Centre, for the Chewton property. The Sanctuary is bound by the Department of Energy Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) Victorian Wildlife Rehabilitation Guidelines , these govern Jirrahlinga’s actions regarding wildlife.
Jirrahlinga in 2024
In 2024 Jirrahlinga is home to 128 dingos and around 200 additional mixed native animals such as reptiles, birds (barking owls, barn owls, Emus, Eagles, tawny frogmouth, parrots of various kinds etc.) Kangaroos, Wallabies, Koalas, Bettongs, Wombats, Possums, Bats etc. Each week Jirrahlinga has to source and cut a truckload of a specific variety of fresh eucalypt leaves to feed their Koalas. The reptiles require mice and rats, bred on site; mealworms, crickets, fresh fruit etc. is supplied to feed some of the other animals; all this before even considering the dingoes feed requirements. The sanctuary has to supply medications and dressings, and appropriate veterinary treatment to injured animals. Tehree has shared her blanket and slept with traumatized dingoes, woken up every two hours to feed premature kangaroos, possums, wombats etc. Jirrahlinga is a huge undertaking with so many responsibilities.
Jirrahlinga is situated on a steep hill with narrow stony pathways winding through the various enclosures with an attractive boardwalk edging a dam. This sanctuary is not a slick, modern version of a well-funded zoo. Jirrahlinga is a not-for-profit labour of love; the enclosures are clean, secure, comfortable, and well-appointed, the animals are healthy and appear happy and serene.
The property has a rustic, whimsical ‘Alice in an Australian Wonderland’ vibe. The occasional giant dinosaur statue or over-sized farm animal figurine will delight children. The placement of a table set with crystal candlesticks, rustic sculptures, a swing chair, and other oddities should amuse the adults. These items are peppered amongst the animal enclosures and native Australian vegetation. The love, care, and effort that has gone into the animals and their environment is evident even though money is tight. The ‘Billabong’ cafe serves light refreshments, friendly conversation and another place to sit and take in the atmosphere and reflect on the animals.
Jirrahlinga is a not-for-profit sanctuary funded primarily by Tehree and Hamish, along with donations, entry fees, and the occasional grant. The sanctuary could not run without your donations, volunteers and 5 full-time staff members (Including Tehree and Hamish), and around 20 other regular volunteers.
Getting there
Follow the trail of paw prints and arrows affixed to trees alongside the winding dirt track and around 3km into the bush you will find yourself at the top of a steep incline. Walking down into the historic goldfields gully to the Billabong Cafe, you may be met with the chorus of howls by 128 dingoes as they respond to the alpha dingo’s call.
Jirrahlinga acknowledges and respects the Traditional Owners as the original custodians of the land and waters, their ability to care for Country, and deep spiritual connection to it. We honour Elders past and present whose knowledge and wisdom has ensured the continuation of culture and traditional practices.