Houston Chronicle


White Wallaby Captured In Memorial Park
Owner Cited For Having Wild Animal
Posted: 2:21 p.m. CDT August 20, 2001
Updated: 5:13 p.m. CDT August 20, 2001

HOUSTON -- A rare exotic wallaby was captured Monday after running lose in a Houston park.

Authorities said that the 3-feet tall, white wallaby was first spotted Sunday by some bikers and then some park rangers in Memorial park in southwest Houston.

A wallaby is related to kangaroos, but is generally smaller and often has a colorful coat. It is found in Australia and its adjacent islands.

A man walking on a mountain bike trail with his dog, Chelsea, spotted the wallaby Monday morning in the park.

"Chelsea saw something," John Demarco said. "Next thing I know, I saw an albino wallaby running through the woods."

The wallaby was next spotted by a mountain biker.

"I heard a guy yelling for his dog," Matt Tyler said. "And then suddenly, a white kangaroo flew out on a trail in front of me."

Authorities said that the wallaby's name is Thumper and that she had escaped from her owner's home in River Oaks.

Houston animal control officials said that Thumper was injured and was checked out by a veterinarian.

"Wallabies are gentle creatures," Dr. Joe Flanagan said. "They're very peaceful. They're like a rabbit as far as temperament."

So, what will happen to Thumper?

Officials said that it is unlikely Thumper's owner will get to keep her because if they "make an exception for the wallaby's owner, then they will have to make an exception for everyone."

Her owner was citied by animal control for having a wild animal in the city.

 

Muz,

I always thought that your GROUP BUYS were getting out of control. Now I have proof! You need to quit using Wallabies as packing material...

 

I've never seen an albino wallaby or kangaroo before - and we have plague proportions of the mongrel things

 

Obviously the writer hasn't seen what they do to Lions

Wallabies beat Lions

 

By the looks of it, one might think that the Lions were using the Wallabies as the ball. They are both certainly held the same way!


Congrats on your victory! The game sounded very close and exciting.


Using your link, I found the following excerpt to be very funny when read literally. That is if a group of Wallabies really did play a group of Lions as mentioned in your post.



Okay, maybe it's not funny the second time I read it, but it was funny before.

 

It doesn't get btter than this.

We defeated the evil British Lions coached by a devious New Zealander.......

 

I love the irony. American tourists come here expecting to see Kangaroos and Wallabies hopping around the streets (which naturally does not happen, unless you happen to live in Canberra) and they've actually got them back home .

 

"Wallabies are gentle creatures," Dr. Joe Flanagan said. "They're very peaceful. They're like a rabbit as far as temperament."

They taste just like chicken!

 

Actually they are more like a aromatic kind of beef. I'm proud to say I've eaten both animals on our coat of arms.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by joe_s2k
[B]Muz,

I always thought that your GROUP BUYS were getting out of control.