Exotics
Elliot the Wallaby
Wallabies (and kangaroos) are baby-making machines. They can be pregnant with one baby, have one baby full time in the pouch, another baby out of the pouch but still going back in to sleep, and another baby out of the pouch full time but still nursing once in a while. Sometimes, however, there is a hiccup in the process and the mother wallaby finds herself, or thinks she finds herself, with an extra baby. When this happens the mother will sometimes simply evict a baby from the pouch, whether it’s ready to go or not. This is what happened to Elliot, he was evicted from the pouch while still nursing full time, so he had to be bottle fed around the clock. His mother’s owner was not up for this task, so Elliot came to live with me. I was careful for Elliot to stay a wallaby and not become a house pet, as wallabies are social creatures and I wanted him, when he was older, to be able to join a wallaby “mob” and have a somewhat normal social life. Right now he just lives with Traveler Tortoise, but we hope to find another wallaby or two to keep him company in the future.
Traveler Tortoise
Traveler came with me from California, where he had been used in education programs at schools, camps, and parties. However, he had gotten too large to transport, and his temperament was not suitable for his task, so he came to live with me. He is a shy tortoise, not inclined to approach people, although he will waddle over to get a nice chunk of lettuce or some watermelon. He enjoys the long warm days of North Carolina and especially the lush grass which he grazes on all day.
