I am a beef cattle farmer from near Inverell in north-western NSW. My farmhouse is near a creek line and I’ve always been lucky enough to have koalas.

Farmer Libby Swan with one of the koalas that come for water at her north-western NSW farm.

Occasionally I spot one in the trees around my yard or listen to their calls during the night. They’re sleepy and content and I’ve even seen mothers with their babies. But now the trees are thinning, sky visible through leaves that should carry essential moisture for koalas. When gum trees start to drop leaves, that’s when it becomes serious. For our resident koalas, it means losing their food and water supply.

Last week my husband and I found a male koala in the yard, sitting at the base of the tree. He wouldn’t move, not when I walked up and not when I set a pot of water next to him. In the end I had to raise the pot to his head and finally he moved, leaning down to drink.

Up close, the claws of a koala are pretty sharp. Not wanting to test my luck about being near a wild animal who was clearly stressed, I tried to put the pot down so I could leave him in peace. He grabbed my hand. "Don’t take my water, stay with me," he was saying and so I stayed, not moving, his hand still resting on mine as he drank. For half an hour we sat like that.