Kangaroo attacks are rare. But recently, an Australian man found dead at his home. He was believed to be killed by his kangaroo that he has kept as a pet. Surprisingly, it is the very first reported case of a kangaroo attack in Australia since 1936.
The body of the unfortunate 77-year-old man found with fatal injuries on Monday by his relative.
The kangaroo even prevents the paramedics from treating the man. Its action makes the police shoot the kangaroo dead in order to retrieve the man’s body. According to the police, the man died on the spot. A police spokesperson told the reporters that they suspected the man had been attacked earlier in the day.
A kangaroo behavior expert, Graeme Coulson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that kangaroos have “a lot of weapons” such as sharp teeth, claws, and powerful legs.
Picture: Joshua Prieto
A macropod (family of marsupials like kangaroos, wallabies) caregiver, Tanya Irwin said, “this looks like it was an adult male and they become quite aggressive and they don’t do well in captivity.”.
The male kangaroos can be aggressive and engage in conflict with others using the same techniques they do with one another. They wrestle with their opponent using their short upper limbs. They also support themselves with their powerful tail and then strike with both of their strong clawed hind legs.
“The problem with kangaroos and people is we’re both upright animals, we stand on our two feet, and an upright stance like that is a challenge to the male kangaroo,” said Associate Professor Coulson.
