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Kangaroo Cuddles By Kelly Malleck

Photos by Macy Malleck

Have you ever boxed a kangaroo? Neither have I. But I recently had the opportunity to cuddle one.

It was a perfect October day to visit Fall City. As my teenage daughter and I left our home, the air was

chilly and misty and the sun was just starting to peek through. We enjoyed the meandering roads that

led us to Fall City Wallaby Ranch.

Homeschoolers’ Support

Association

Field Trip to Fall City

Wallaby Ranch

October 4, 2018

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We arrived and met up with other homeschooling families and gathered inside the barn for an

informative and entertaining slide presentation from our host, Rex Paperd (pictured with me on page 1),

the owner of the ranch. We liked him immediately. Not only is Rex knowledgeable about marsupials, but

his love for these animals is abundant, and his ability to keep our group entertained and engaged was

remarkable.

He asked how many of us had ever touched a wallaby or kangaroo. No one raised a hand. While many of

us had seen these animals at zoos, not one person had touched one…until after the presentation.

Questions Rex asked us during the presentation included:

What’s the difference between a kangaroo and a wallaby?

Size. If it weighs 44 pounds or less, it’s a wallaby. If it weighs 45 pounds or more, it’s a kangaroo.

What does a kangaroo use its tail for?

While many people from our group incorrectly guessed “balance,” the tail actually helps the kangaroo move forward. Because of the position of the large hind legs, kangaroos are unable to put one foot in front of the other to walk. Instead, they press their large, strong tail on the ground and then with their front feet on the ground, they hop the back feet forward. If they need to move quickly, however, kangaroos can bound forward 25 feet without pressing their tails on the ground. In Australia, for instance, wild kangaroos can accelerate up to 25 miles per hour to escape predators such as packs of dingoes.

Did you know that adult female kangaroos are almost always

pregnant?

While that fact in and of itself is amazing, the SUPER AMAZING thing about kangaroo moms is that they can nurse different offspring even when they are at different stages of development and produce different stage-appropriate food (i.e., infant formula from one nipple, young baby formula from another, and older baby formula from another) for each of her young. In addition, she can “pause” the development of a fertilized embryo and release it for development after her youngest “peanut” has reduced its suckling. (Side Note: Rex provided video footage of peanut-stage baby kangaroos for National Geographic’s The Kangaroo King.)

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After the presentation, we left the barn and walked out into the fenced area that contained the

wallabies (pictured above). Rex asked us to walk calmly and slowly so we didn’t startle them. We

followed Rex around the grassy area and were able to crouch down and pet them. They are soft, fuzzy,

and adorable, and had names like Victoria Secret and Vanilla Bean. Rex tore up some wheat bread to

lure them, and sure enough, they wanted to enjoy these treats.

Wallabies

Red Kangaroos

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After visiting the wallabies, we entered a separate area to meet the kangaroos. Red kangaroos are the

largest marsupials in the world. We met Rocky and Jasper, two males first. Rocky was splayed out like he

was posing for a calendar, very congenial and relaxed lying down—and he was the one that later gave

me a hug. Jasper was a little more stand-offish, but still super sweet. Rex said that when he stands up,

Jasper is seven feet tall. They are large, strong, and powerful. We also met a female, Juno, who had a

joey in her pouch (you can see the joey’s ears in the picture above). She was probably the softest, and

you might think that a mama with a baby in her pouch would be defensive or skittish or even mean, but

that was not the case. She was elegant and peaceful, and did not mind when the adults and kids in our

group petted her soft fur.

We learned a lot about kangaroos and wallabies at the Fall City Wallaby Ranch. Not just facts about

marsupials. We also learned that it was a rare opportunity that we were able to interact with them, and

this is something that would never happen in Australia. In fact, many Australians think kangaroos are

vicious. We didn’t see any of that type of behavior on our tour. We saw a ranch full of well-loved

animals and met a man who’s passionate about sharing them with the community.

Red Kangaroos, continued