US woman fights for pet kangaroo

An American woman fighting to keep her paralysed pet kangaroo in Oklahoma has been told she needs to take out a US$50,000 ($62,900) insurance policy and can't take her roo out in public unless it's in a cage or restraints.

Christie Carr is seeking an exemption from the Broken Arrow City Council to keep Irwin, a red kangaroo that she cares for much like a child.

Irwin, who is named after the late "crocodile hunter" Steve Irwin, rides in a car seat, is dressed in a shirt and pants each day and is rarely away from his doting caretaker.

On Tuesday night, the council said it would amend its exotic animal act to allow Carr to keep the kangaroo as a pet but only if certain requirements were met, the Tulsa World newspaper reported on its website.

The council, worried the animal could injure someone, has stipulated that Carr must buy a US$50,000 insurance policy.

"If I could afford to throw away money like that, I could afford to move out of town," Carr told the council on Tuesday night, according to the Tulsa World.

The new rules would also prevent Carr from having the kangaroo with her in public places and on streets or footpaths unless the animal is in a cage or restraints.

Councillors plan to adopt the amendments at their next meeting, which is on May 3.

Following Tuesday's meeting, Carr called the requirements extreme and said she would have to move because she couldn't afford the insurance.

"Also, Irwin can't be in a cage," she said.

"They want to discuss animal cruelty - that is about as cruel as you can get for a disabled animal."

Along with the insurance policy, Carr would have to have certifications that Irwin has a proper enclosure, habitat and vaccinations.

She would have to comply with federal and state animal laws, have no animal-ordinance violations and pay a US$100 fee to the city every year.

City Manager Dave Wooden said the issue had brought unique challenges.

"On the one hand, you have an individual who is emotionally tied to an animal that is not normally considered a domestic pet. On the other hand, you have a wild animal living in the city, and there's no guarantee that animal may not convert to its natural tendencies and harm either its owner or someone else," he told the paper.

A council staff report said some of the feedback the city received from Australia criticised the way Carr dressed the kangaroo in clothes and exposed him to an environment more consistent with the raising of humans rather than animals, the newspaper said.

Carr told the council that some of the comments from Australia were from animal radicals who had sent her threats and degrading comments.

"You're talking about a country that mass murders its kangaroos, she said, speaking of the legality of kangaroo hunting in Australia.

Carr was a volunteer at a local animal sanctuary when she met Irwin, who had run into a fence post and suffered a broken neck and brain injury that left him paralysed.

Carr volunteered to take young kangaroo home and, while nursing him back to health, developed a bond.

Irwin cannot stand or walk on his own, although he is slowly gaining back mobility and can hop three or four times in a row with assistance, she said.

The one-year-old roo never leaves Carr's side for more than an hour, often accompanying her on errands and going out to eat.

- AAP