Hero dog who's suffered heartbreak braves bush fires in special socks to save koalas

A dog with a heartbreaking back-story is helping to save koala bears in fire-stricken Australia.

The pooch, called Bear, has been walking through the country's charred forests in search of the helpless herbivores.

The dog wears special socks to protect him from the burnt ground and has been specially trained to sniff out koala poo and fur.

Bear has bounced back from a tough start in life, after being abandoned by his owners because his obsessive compulsive disorder meant he did not like to play.

However, Sunshine Coast University gave the Border Collie-Koolie cross a fresh start by taking him out of the rescue home and teaching him to scout for koala bears.

The rescue dog has been trained to sniff out koala poo and fur (IFAW/Facebook)

He is now believed to be the only dog in the world that can track the animals, Mail Online reports.

The dog  and his handler have visited forests in New South Wales, Queensland and Cooroibah in recent weeks.

Animal charity IFAW campaigner Josey Sharrad told the  Brisbane Times : "Now, more than ever, saving individual koalas is critical.

"With such an intense start to the bushfire season, it will be many weeks and months before some of these fires are out,' he said.

"All the while, wildlife will continue to need to be rescued and treated, and might remain in care for some time. The road to recovery will be long."

Firefighters have been filmed saving koala bears from the bushfires in recent days. 

One of the koala bears burned in the bushfires spreading across Australia (Facebook)

Heartwarming footage shows crews cradling the badly burnt animals as they feed them water.

Large areas of koala bear habitat have been destroyed in the blazes.

Thousands of firefighters have been battling the flames in New South Wales and Queensland on the east coast for several days.

Bear had a rough start in life but is now helping to save koalas (IFAW/Facebook)

At least six people have reportedly lost their lives in the natural disaster, with up of 1,600 individual bushfires stretching out across the states.

Photos taken in New South Wales show orange and red clouds of heat swallowing up every inch of vegetation, structure and land that is visible in the frame.

In apocalyptic seeming scenes fire tornadoes can be seen spinning and spewing out clouds of smoke, flames and debris.