The History of Kangaroo Attacks

How dangerous are Kangaroos? Let’s check the kangaroo history attacks. The very first attack was in 1936 by an Australian kangaroo. The recent victim claimed to be an owner of a southwest Australian kangaroo. A man in his mid 70’s was found by a relative, on his own property with severe injuries. Did the kangaroo intend to kill its claimed owner? Was the wild buck provoked? Was this kangaroo protecting itself from danger? Was it the fact the man kept a wild kangaroo as a pet? Take a moment to think about that.

Male kangaroos are well known to be very aggressive and extremely strong. Their stance is precisely the same technique they use on each of their own. The first attack was in 1936, William Cruickshank died a few months after being attacked by a wild kangaroo. Cruickshank was just 38 years old when he was attacked on the Australian East Coast. He suffered major head injuries and a broken jaw due to saving his two dogs.

The western gray kangaroos can stand about 4 feet tall and weigh 119 pounds. Tanya Irwin owns a rescue center that rehabilitates native animals. Irwin says, “Unless you have a wildlife center that had well-trained people who know exactly what they’re doing, and a special permit to do so. No, I would not recommend anyone to have any wild animals as their pet. We don’t know what the situation was. Keep in mind that they are not cute animals, they’re wild and dangerous animals. It’s very unfortunate, he was captivated while in pain.” Agreeing with Irwin, no wild animal should be kept as a pet. Risking a being’s life to have a large wild kangaroo as a pet isn’t worth it.

They were several kangaroo attacks between the years 1936 through the recent years. With that being said let’s go deeper into the history of Kangaroo attacks. Chris Rickard, a 77-year-old citizen was walking his dog located in Arthur’s Creek, Victoria in November 2009. Then suddenly they came across a sleeping kangaroo and were frightened, began running away to get away from the dog. His dog might have the kangaroo wanted to play with him. So instantly the dog ran after the kangaroo into a small pond. Rickard was near his property so he didn’t think there would be a kangaroo on the loose.

Scared for his dog’s life he ran after him, to stop his dog from chasing the wild animal. During an attempt to free his dog from drowning by the buck, he suffered several injuries. He got a huge gash on his forehead and gruesome gashes on his chest and abdomen. Terrified trying his best to get his dog out of the jack’s grasp. Finally, he managed to free himself and his dog. When reaching their local hospital he told the workers there about what happened. He also stated the movie “Skippy” will never be the same to watch.

There were other several attacks throughout the years. The year was 2010, Alan Jones, age 77, was walking down a hill enjoying nature. Near his house in the Emerald Beach area, when suddenly he came across a small family of kangaroos. Without any warning one of the two adult kangaroos charged at Alan. Before he knew it, he was already on the ground. Yet he managed to get away after standing up. After inspecting his body he had major injuries to his right forearm, right buttock, and both of his legs. His pants and long-sleeved shirt were also shredded. In conclusion, always be aware of the surroundings, and when seeing a troop (a group of kangaroos) waste no time getting out there before they notice.

Written by Tiffany Fleming
Edited by Sheena Robertson

Sources:

NBC News: Australian Man Killed by Wild Kangaroo By The Associated Press
People: Kangaroo Kills Man, Blocks Paramedics From Saving His Life by Charmaine Patterson
Wild Explained: Are Kangaroos Dangerous? By Alex

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Brain Costelloe‘s Flickr page – Creative Commons License

Insert image Courtesy of Steve Bittinger‘s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License