Thousands of crafters worldwide are creating goods in a bid to help the wildlife caught in the Australian fires. But will they be judiciously used?

Kyla Gill had never so much as touched a sewing machine or picked up a crochet hook two weeks ago. Now, she’s hooked on crafting for critters 10,000 miles (16,000 km) away, to the point of temporarily putting aside her floor refinishing business in Pittsburgh. “I do hard labour so I’m rough with my hands. Sewing, knitting — that’s just completely out of my realm,” she said and added, “But to go to work the next day knowing that there are animals and people suffering? I just pretty much wiped my schedule clean and put my projects on hold.”

Hoping to help the wildlife harmed in the Australian wildfires, thousands of crafters worldwide are churning out swaddling wraps for bats, hanging enclosures for kangaroos, and cozy pouches for wallabies and other animals. But confusion abounds about whether the items actually are needed or will be used.

The Animal Rescue Craft Guild, based in Australia, and associated groups have told their members to pause work while they take stock of donated items. And some wildlife organisations say what they need most is money, not handmade goods, which can help pay for cages, medical supplies, specialised animal feed and other critical items, said Megan Davidson, CEO of Wildlife Victoria.

“While we have been overwhelmed by the kindness of people wanting to donate items for wildlife, physical donations of clothes, knitted items and food are very difficult for relief agencies to sort through, distribute and store — especially during peak periods like the current bushfire crisis,” she said. “It is so lovely that people want to help. The most practical way to help right now is by a direct donation.”

The unprecedentedly fierce fires in southeast Australia have claimed the lives of at least 28 people since September, destroyed more than 2,600 homes, mostly in New South Wales state. The area burned is larger than the US state of Indiana. Half of the money will go to front-line responder groups, with the other $25 million funding an advisory panel to analyse affected areas and plan for long-term habitat restoration.

A donator, Anna Key gathered together a bunch of sewing, knitting and crochet patterns approved by wildlife rescue groups and posted them on social media, due to which multiple Facebook groups popped up to collect donations.

Key, who lives in Yamba in New South Wales, called the response to what she’s dubbed the #globalcraftmovement overwhelming but said participants should not be discouraged. “Rescuing our animals is a marathon, not a sprint,” she said.

In Lee, New Hampshire, 10-year-old Gibson Griffith organised an event at his church to sew dozens of bed liners for crates and cages. About 15 people donated fabric and more than a dozen showed up to help make the liners.

In Haverhill, Massachusetts, Kimberly McCullough had cut fabric for about 50 pouches and was about to start sewing when the confusion erupted.

McCullough has reached out to local animal shelters to see if they could use the items. “It really opened my eyes to ways crafters can help other animal rescue organisations,” she said. “So, it felt better to realise. I cut all this stuff out and maybe it’s not going to make it to Australia, but it might just make it to the Boston Animal Rescue League.”

Similarly, Gill has no regrets about her efforts, which included staying up until 2 am one night, getting to the fabric store before it opened the next morning, sewing more than 60 pouches with her partner and learning how to crochet bird nests. They’ve become online friends with a woman in Australia, who has invited them to stay with her next year. “It’s uplifting for her, and it made her feel better to see the humanity,” she said. “It makes me cry. It really touches me.”