Heartwarmer: Depressed wombat is back on track

Tonka the wombat became so depressed after Cyclone Yasi kept visitors away that he lost 20% of his bodyweight. Now that the visitors are back, he is back to full health.

After staff at the Billabong Sanctuary in Townsville "forked out some serious cash" on tests and vet bills it emerged that Tonka was depressed because of a lack of cuddles from human visitors.

But now that he is back to his regular routine, meeting visitors and having his photo taken, he’s regained most of the weight, and is back to his old feisty self.

Billabong Sanctuary manager Brett Flemming said: "Tonka was hand-reared by one of our rangers and normally spends a good part of his day with people," he said.

"At Billabong he is the star. Everyone wants to visit Tonka.

"After the cyclone he missed the public - the patting, the photos, the cuddles and the endless posing for the paparazzi."