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Bennet Wallaby
(Macropus rufogriseus) Article By Shannon Grange Exotics These are the largest and the most common of the Wallabies in the U.S. and Canada. They are most commonly greys (a mixture of grey and brown with a light colored chest and belly), although there are an increasing number of albinos available. They grow to be between 35 - 50 lbs., with the male being the larger. They are quite hardy, and can survive the cold climates quite well. They live up to about 15 years in captivity. As with all breeds of Wallabies, the Bennetts require shelter and a spacious pen in which to run and play. They are diurnal, and spend the hot part of the days in the shade of a tree or in their shelter. Mine seem to sleep in a series of naps throughout the day and night, and are very active early morning and the time around dusk. On the hot days of summer, these guys love access to a pool of water, or if possible a sprinkler, and they frolic and play and cool off by running through the sprinkler and dipping their arms in the water. In the winter, when the temperature dips to the point where the water is frozen consistently, a heat lamp or two is a good idea to take the edge off. They will go outside for short periods even on these frosty days if the have access to the outdoors. If you have bottle raised or relatively calm mother-raised wallabies, a 5-foot fence is probably plenty. For these wallabies, it is as much a question of keeping intruders out as it is the wallabies in. They should always have access to an inside spot where they feel safe, so that if they feel threatened they can hide there, rather than panicking and running headfirst into a fence. Many a wallaby has suffered a broken neck due to being chased by a dog or something along a fence line. A dog is a wallaby's natural enemy, and unless raised from a baby along with your dog, you should not allow a dog access to the pen area even on the outside of the fence. When harassed, a wallaby seems to forget that the fence is there, and will run full speed at it in an attempt to escape. Wallabies have a tendency to get stressed when not treated with the respect an exotic animal deserves. They are susceptible to shipping fever or stress myopathy if not handled gently, but all in all they are hardy animals. The wallaby’s diet consists of grass for grazing or good quality hay at all times, a kangaroo/wallaby diet free choice (in the U.S. a food called Happy Hopper is widely used and in Canada Mazuri kangaroo/wallaby diet). I also feed a broodmare ration freechoice, and they should get fruits/vegetables each day. They love sweet apples, sweet potatoes, yams, kiwi, carrot, corn, celery, grapes, oranges, and many others. Mine love bananas, but they eat the peels first, grapes where they eat the vines first, and their favorite part of the apple is the stem. The sweet fruits should be given in moderation. They love bread, but only feed whole wheat, not white. Only feed romaine lettuce, no white potatoes, no gassy vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower or cabbage. Introduce any new thing slowly and watch for any adverse reactions. Keep in mind that the more fruits and vegetables you give them, the looser the stools. Always make sure that they are eating their main diet, and if they aren’t, cut back on the fruit/vegetables. It is also a good idea to provide branches for them to chew on – just make sure that they are not poisonous. The best way to start with a wallaby is to get a young joey and bottle raise it. It will remain a pet, and will not stress as much if you need to medicate, treat or move it. They are very loving, and will bond to their caregiver as well as any exotic. They are usually somewhat suspicious of strangers, however treated gently and with quiet persistence, they will soon overcome their concerns. Some people maintain that a hand-raised wallaby will not breed as well, as it does not know that it is a wallaby. I have not found this to be so, but maybe it is true in some cases. Another opinion is to not hand-rear male joeys if you are going to be using it as a breeder, as it does not have the same respect for you and will challenge you around females in heat. Again, this has not been my experience, but many things seem to depend on the individual animal, so it is something to consider. I find my hand-raised male became more cautious and shy around me when he reached maturity with the females around, but he has never been the least bit aggressive. However, forewarned is forearmed. Wallabies are sensitive to many commonly used medicines, and you should have a good vet with knowledge (or access to it) about wallabies. They are very different from most of the animals we are used to – both in their tolerance to drugs, and in the handling of them. You cannot treat wallabies with penicillin or most tetracycline drugs. I have had luck with the following drugs (these are Canadian brands, so for U.S. equivalents ask your vet) - Exenel (Naxel in the U.S.) gentacin and baytril. Wallabies should be wormed and kept away from birds and cats. All in all, these animals make great pets when bottle-raised, and you will get untold enjoyment from them. They are bright and curious, and very sweet tempered. However many people envision keeping their pet wallaby in the house most of the time, and treating it like a dog. These are exotic animals, and should be treated as such. They need room to run, and a habitat that is comfortable and feels safe for them. Before they are weaned they are capable of creating havoc in your house if not supervised, as they can run and jump with amazing agility, and are curious about everything. Once the joey is of weaning age (about 10 lbs.), he/she should be slowly moved outside to its permanent home outside where it can enjoy its natural lifestyle with plenty of visits from mom or dad. Interview with Larry Munchrath, Wallaby Maniac, and Teresa Woodson Positives of Bennett Wallabies as pets? TW: They are very lovable, the minute you hold one you are hooked! I have had two and each had such a different personality! Each loved to be held and cared for. we did not have Skippy very long before he had an accident. We were so heart sick.. We then got Pogo. It was such a joy for me to carry Pogo everywhere I went in his pouch bag! Each was a total joy to watch! Negatives of Bennett Wallabies as pets? TW: The stress factor is a big one. Pogo had a real problem while playing once and it turned into a disaster, he went into the fear mode with my husband (thinking of him as a preditor) he began fear biting my husband. I had been told they may suddenly go into a fear mode when in play for no reason at all. Most as I am told will forgive and get back on track...Pogo did not. We experienced it first hand. Pogo always had a little bit of a tendency to be a bitter, so that was a problem with him...not all do that! It was his way of dealing with everything - he had different forms of biting so I knew what he wanted...(.much like a dog has a different bark for different things ) My first joey was the opposite...he was a licker and such a lover baby! He loved people and attention they gave him. He was much more gentle in nature and not as independent in nature. When he wanted something he licked you. They are very delicate. Pogo died from just bumping his side when he fell. It wasnt a big fall - he just lost his balance from being weak -from being sick. His legs went out from under him as he jumped out of the play pen and he bumped against something. I could hardly believe it! We had been taking him in and out of the play pen he was just too weak to jump. But he was getting better and thought he could do it that day since he was jumping some that morning. People do need to be aware that they are a very delicate creature. I am sure as they grow older and gain full growth they are hardier but still very fragile. You have to be watchful. It can take so little for one to hemmorhage and go into shock and die within minutes. A bump on the head can be fatal. That is why I watched them as if they were a toddler. Anecdotes/stories about your Bennett wallaby pet? TW: The funniest was when he was going through a biting phase at my husband - he got put into “time out” a lot. That was to go into the play pen with the cover over it so he was confined until he got an attitude check and learn this is not acceptable behavoir. Well, one day he just could not stand it ..had to run up to my husband and bite his leg while he was at the compter....well, he knew that was wrong...and before I could scoop him up... he ran to his play pen and flip flopped into his pouch bag and curled up... he knew he was in time out for that act he just committed! I am sure other wallaby families have shared this one. Pogo loved to hop into the shower mostly with my husband. He would wash himself all over. When done he would hop out and reach for a towel! He loved to go hopping through the house. This was our funniest time with him! He had a set path he liked to take and would he fly!! He loved to dodge chairs hop over obsticles. I would be working around the house and hear a...thump, thump, thump and knew I had better stand perfectly still..and would see a blurred flash go past me. One day my son who is 8, had been playing ball. He had thrown his glove down. Pogo after doing some grazing decided it was time for a rest...no pouch bag in sight...he did his customary flip into the ball glove not a good fit...but he seemed content all the same. He did this with his ball cap a time or two also - it was a better fit. He got somewhat angry when an attempt was made to make him move! Pogo was funny like a toddler....he had to have his blanket. He had a fleese fabric for a blanket in his pouch bag. He would not be happy at all unless it was there. It had to go everywhere with him! One hot summer day I took it out.. it was hot... he got all discontented... I had to give it back - then all was fine. The first time I washed his blanket he got upset with me! He smelled of it and just was not happy at all. I had to respect his blanket. This may be a good place to offer some very interesting information I learned with Pogo. There is a lot I learned here so I will be as brief as possible. I have already mentioned he had a tendency to be a bitter in nature. He began to get aggressive, especially after the playing incident when he got frightened- going into the fear mode thinking my husband was a preditor..etc...we thought he was really getting worse and could not get him over it. I asked advise everywhere I could! I tried flower remedies, which generally work well on the emotions but did not work on Pogo. I even noticed a very interesting thing happening.....my son had ADD a couple years earlier...he was over that with an excellent supplement....we live near a chemical plant....I know these chemicals do affect us, and with my son in the summer I have to get him back onto his supplement for the hot weather allows him to absorb the chemicals more and the Add symptoms start showing mildly again. I began to see this pattern forming with Pogo! I put him on liver cleansers...chemicals will go to the liver...that is the emotion organ...this could of accounted for some of the aggressive behavior. It seemed to help some, but he still had a problem... We decided he must be going into the male aggression time a little early. So I had him neutured soon as possible. It did not help...he was becomming more and more aggressive and emotional. I was at my end, my husband was demanding I get rid of him. Pogo was biting him for no reason and would just go up to him and bite him. One evening I got a call from Australia! Could hardly believe it. Well, as it turned out, he gave me some very valuable information! As it turned out...Pogo was not just going through the male aggression he was also going through the mating cycle at the same time! It all made sense then. This is not the average pattern but can happen. As I watched his behavior closer with this in mind...I could see a pattern I was not seeing before. He was already upset with my husband....but now...he was a rival for my attention also!! The wallaby can be aggressive during mating time! He had attacked me a few times, I then understood what was happening. I learned the difference of being angry and the mating aggression. We had to wait out the process until it all ran the cycle- which could take I was told up to 3 months! We basically gave him his space. So my husband gave him time to allow this to work through and see how he did then. Well, as it turned out he died before completing the cycle. He was an emotional mess one minute all miffed, the next wanting his bottle and to be loved-I was “mama” but he was confused as to who his mate was so he directed his emotions to me. We did not know for sure but I think he was older than we all thought when I got him-even the breeder- due to his small size. What I had expected as the average time frame to have him neutured was too late for him..so he went into the cycles. Much of his behavior seemed to be older but, he was also very independent in nature so we did not think anything of it at the time. I do not know if his size made any difference also in his hormonal level of what he was going through, he may of also had problems in properlybalalncing out. We will never know. I do know this,....when he died we had an autopsy done, and found out he had an accident which caused him to hemmorhage...I was so shocked. He had been ill- a blockage in his intestine but it had finally dislodged before having to do surgery and he was on the road to recovery. He was moving about too much that day and just was not back to being a strong kangaroo as he thought he was and had fallen while getting out of his play pen. I was so heart sick over this, I had taken such careful careof him. But, we learned also, he was very healthy! I have been told many times a dwarf animal will have problems health wise, many times organs do not develop properly. etc. But, Pogo seemed to be perfect in every way. I am also into alternative health and gave him herbs and various formulas and was pleased to find how healthy his organs were-especially his liver! I hope this information will help someone else with a male wallaby....there are always reasons for any behavior....we have to just understand it. Pogo did not do anything by the rules! So my experiences with him were different than most. I am looking forward to having a little girl this time and it should be a different situation all the way around. And a whole new learning experience! Do they have scent glands or an offensive smell?
LM: The wallabies do not have any odor, or scent glands. They are
like a cat and very clean. The only smell you may encounter is in the
diaper, so change it regularly, if it is a house pet. I do bathe mine
when her diaper gets too full, or she gets soft stool, and it collects
in her diaper. But normally, the droppings are rabbit like p, but can
be king size. What is their average lifespan? LM:
12-15 years. Do they enjoy interaction? LM: The
wallabies are very curious and enjoy attention. My babies will pull on
my shirt or pants until I give them attention, usually by picking them
up. They are most annoying at feeding time, when I am making the bottle.
As adults, however, they are just as curious to see what special treats
you have brought them to eat. Mine love sweet potatoes and will follow
me anywhere to get one. After they have checked you out, they will go
back to their nap, or under the shade trees. Once their curiosity has
been satisfied, they are content to leave and go back to what ever they
were doing. Sometimes they don't even get up to see what you brought,
and you have to go to them. They seem to be a bit more nonchalant about
most things than the wallaroos. They can take you or leave you. What is their general personality, disposition, and
attitude? LM: They have a wonderful, non destructive
personality and a laid back attitude towards most things. They are playful
towards each other and are petable if you have handled them in early life.
One thing that they are terrified of is change and something different.
If a dog, horse, or any strange animal or person comes into the area,
they get very frightened. If a guest comes over in a large black coat,
and they have not been used to that, or even a hat, they will go nuts.
They have been known to have heart attacks, or break their necks in a
fence trying to escape from something strange, different, or large. I
almost lost several of mine one day when I was knocking ice off the shade
tarps I have in a nearby pen. The ice was sliding off in sheets and I
had to catch my two adult males and place them in dog carriers, make them
dark, and let them settle down for an hour or so before I could let them
back out. Even after I had stopped, they continued to freak out and kept
throwing themselves into the fence. This was scaring everyone else too.
Are they sweet and petable, or mischievious and playful?
WM: They are best characterized as being "sweet and petable".
How destructive are they for an average household?
LM: They can jump and will jump on cabinets, furniture,
and beds. They are not destructive on purpose, but can cause havoc on
an office desk full of papers, or hurt themselves landing on a hot stove
or grill. Do they climb or tear up furniture? WM: Yes, they love hopping on top of any furniture. The real problem is that they will knock over objects such as lamps, knicknacks, etc, either by handling them with their front paws or inadvertently sweeping them off with the powerful tail. Are there any problems associated with their claws?
LM: No, they use them to groom themselves and are important
to holding their food, and scratching around in the dirt. If you think
you need to have them declawed, I suggest that you first cut your fingers
off at the knuckle and see how you like it, and how easy it is to do what
the fingers were designed for. Then I would never sell you one of these
animals. Their claws are not sharp like a cat. You can trim the tips of
the nails off if you wish, but that is about all anyone should do. How messy are their droppings? LM:
Not messy, easy to pick up, usually dry like rabbit pellets, only much
larger. I keep my wallaby in diapers and change it several times a day.
When she gets a lot of grass or moist vegetables, the stool is soft and
makes a pack inside the diaper. That is changed more often I use pull-ups
when they are older, and the Velcro strips when they are joeys. The diapers
with the tape strips are not good, because they can't be reattached and
will pull the hair out of the baby. Also, you need to be careful to watch
how tight the strips are attached to the diaper. They can cause a sore,
and bald spot at the top of the leg due to the rubbing and irritation.
You may have to trim the diaper to fit better. I do this by tearing the
diaper from the top of the leg towards the bottom and do this by making
the tear about an inch. This differs according to the age of the baby,
and the style of the diaper. Can they be litter box trained? LM:
I have heard that they can, but I have not ever tried. I can't see how
the litter would not be scattered all around by the hopping in and out
of the box. Besides, my wallabies and wallaroos like to eat the clay litter,
as well as the crystals that they have come out with. Can they be trained? LM: I assume
that with the intelligence that they display, they can be trained. If
you want to train them to leash walk, start early by putting a harness
on them. If you don't do this early, they will HATE it, and hate anything
around their neck. The neck is a very sensitive area. How are they with other pets, larger and smaller?
LM: Small pets are OK, but larger ones may hurt or scare
them, unless you have raised them together, or know that they will not
be hurt by them. Consistency is the best rule, and placing a new pet in
the household with an older wallaby may scare it. If you are going to
have several pets, do it while they are young. My cats, and dogs are scared
of my female that is in the house. She will chase them away if they are
near me, or too close to her. What size cage/enclosure do they need? LM:
A standard size backyard with a 6 foot fence is fine. But if you like
a landscaped yard, you will need to fence it off. I am sure an electric
fence will work. What do you feed them? LM: I use
horse pellets, such as Strategy, by Purina. A friend of mine uses Pure
Pride 200, which is similar, but has less fat than Strategy. It is also
more expensive and harder to get for me. Others use the Macropod feed,
Mazuri diet, for kangaroos, by Purina. There is also a product called
Happy Hopper. There are two formulas of this for young and older Macropods.
It is specifically for kangaroos and wallabies. Monkey chow is also used
by many breeders. They also need grass hay, free choice, (NO sharp pieces!)
and rabbit chow, a trace mineral block, powdered vitamins with E and Selenium,
vegetables, dark green leafy vegetables, Alfalfa hay with stems removed,
sweet potatoes, apples, carrots corn, broccoli, celery, grapes, endive,
and anything that you think they will like. If they have anything that
may have a sharp end or stem, they may get lumpy jaw, due to the mouth
injury. They need grass hay, such as Bermuda, to toughen up their mouth.
Of course, none of these feeds should be used as the sole diet. The variety
will keep them trim and fit. An obese animal will not be healthy. What vaccinations/vet care do they require?
LM: Some give theirs a tetanus shot, but others do not give anything.
I have given mine injections of a selenium &vitamin E solution that you
have to get from the vet. I do this due to the low selenium in the feed
I use, and the lack of green vegetation during the winter where I live.
At what age would it be best to get one?
LM: As soon as the breeder has the joey taking the bottle well.
They will bond to their new owners better if they are taken at a younger
age, such as at 6-7 months of age. They will have to continue to be bottle
fed for several months. You will need to also begin to offer solid foods
at that time. Other Consideration for owners of Bennett Wallabies?
LM: Check out the permits, or ordinances where you live.
Barking dogs next door are not a good thing. They will likely cause the
wallaby to die. Dogs can dig under fences very easily. What kind of person should own these animals?
LM: Anyone who loves animals would love these guys. They are different,
interesting, and have special needs. They cannot be put outside and left
alone. They have a mob mentality and must have contact with other wallabies,
or humans to have a fulfilled and happy life. They require more time than
most pets, and if you have the time and love to give, you would be a good
foster family for these animals. If they escape to the outside, they will
not come when you call them like a dog. They are much too scared and would
run away, probably dying of a heart attack, or being killed by a dog,
its worst enemy, or hit by a car. If you cannot give it security, and
a loving, save home, you do not need a wallaby. If you cannot keep it
safe from predators, children with guns or rocks, safe from escape, or
other animals coming into their pen, you should consider some other type
of activity besides owning one of these wonderful and unusual animals.
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