It's a battleground at Dr Chris Blair's Blue Mountains veterinary surgery where furred and feathered patients are being treated for burns, smoke inhalation and shock.
The Pet Friends vet hospital at Winmalee, one of the areas to bear the brunt of the devastating NSW bushfires, has had about 100 animals brought in since the fires broke out on Friday, Dr Blair estimates.
They include small native animals like possums and ducks and scores of beloved family pets.
Some of the cats and dogs have been brought in with injuries and others are strays picked up in the streets.
"We've been seeing a stack of (pets), most of them, thank heavens, are suffering from what I consider to be relatively minor burns and smoke inhalation," he told AAP.
"The ones we've got in the hospital are the ones with really badly burnt paws, they're the ones that need anaesthetics to have their wounds dressed."
Injured native animals suffering smoke inhalation and stress haven't fared as well, Dr Blair says.
"Unfortunately they're perishing very quickly, they don't stand much of a chance being in the middle of the fires I'm afraid," he said.
"Their little systems just aren't designed to cope with such trauma."
The veterinary hospital is posting photos of lost animals on its Facebook page and many have been reunited with overjoyed owners.
"People are discovering them on Facebook and they're turning up and picking them up," Dr Blair said.
"You just can't believe the look on a family's face when they thought their dog was dead and they find the dog alive here."
Dr Blair said while staff at the surgery had been working around the clock, the animals had shown a "remarkable degree of self-preservation", and many stories of miraculous escapes had emerged.
Share
