Yes, it has come to this – the world’s oldest captive wombat, Patrick, is about to turn 30, and he’s used the milestone to sign up for popular dating app Tinder. Well, he was jokingly signed up for the service by his handlers, who are hoping he can finally find love online.
As ABC reports, Patrick the wombat is the resident “wombachelor” at Ballarat Wildlife Park in Victoria, and while he’s tried to find the right wombat companion over the years, he hasn’t had much luck.
Patrick is obviously a pretty decent dude, but wildlife officers think he’s too much of a “SNAW” – that’s a ‘sensitive, new-age wombat’, if you’re behind on the wombat lingo.
“The male wombat has to be very aggressive towards the female, and Patrick just isn’t a very aggressive wombat. So he chooses to be single,” says Ballarat Wildlife Park owner Julia Leonard.
With his Tinder profile now up-and-running, Patrick’s single-dom may soon come to an end. He’s even amassed more than 30,000 likes on his Facebook page to date, and some of those likes could have come from female (and even male) wombats around the world.
Another thing on Patrick’s side is his longevity, having lived much longer than the average 15 to 20 years for a typical captive wombat. The 40kg spunk is the oldest bare-nosed wombat in captivity, and probably the only wombat on Tinder.
Ballarat Wildlife Park has announced plans to host a 30th birthday bash for Patrick, with an open invitation to any “potential Tinderellas”.
“He’ll get a bit of attention, get some carrots and grass and hopefully lap up the day,” Ms Leonard says, and we’re sure he will.
Catch Patrick the wombat’s Tinder profile photo, below, and make sure you swipe right when you finally see his profile come up on your phone. You never know – he could be the one.
If you’re more of a dog person, there’s also BarkBuddy, the Tinder for dogs.
Patrick The Wombat’s Tinder Profile Pic (Via ABC / Ballarat Wildlife Park)
Feature Image: Facebook
