Pet kangaroo caught in 'hop pursuit' after getting loose from owners in Colorado
Durango Police caught the moment they wrangled a kangaroo named Irwin on camera after it had gone missing from its family in Colorado. Credit: Durango Police Department /TMX
One unusual pet has been returned to its owner after a hot pursuit caught on police camera last month.
Irwin the juvenile red kangaroo was safely returned to its family after police officers in Durango, Colorado successfully wrangled the lost animal.
In a popular Facebook post, the Durango Police Department shared bodycam footage of DPD officers Preskorn, Walters, and Hamer hopping to it – to rescue Irwin.
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In the video, officers can be seen talking to one another while the little red kangaroo hops across an intersection and down the street.
One officer asked another out-of-frame, "would you think it would be better if I just used my hands?"
She then asked, "does it have rabies? Thing's going to kick me."
One officer asked another if she should use her hands or the loop tool seen in the bottom-right frame to capture the kangaroo on bodycam footage. (Durango Police/TMX)
The bodycam video then cuts to the kangaroo safely out of the streets of Durango and in someone's arms. Officers gently pet the creature and one officer offered a hand to its snout for a quick sniff.
One officer can be heard saying of the kangaroo, "so soft! Really soft. What's its name?"
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The kangaroo is then named, with the man holding the animal saying, "Irwin, like after Steve Irwin."
Steve Irwin, better known as the Crocodile Hunter, was from Australia where kangaroos originate.
The Facebook post sharing the Durango Police video read, "BREAKING NEWS: Our officers were in hot pursuit... of a kangaroo! Look closely...it's a little guy."
Irwin the kangaroo enjoyed pets from officers after he was successfully wrangled on the streets of Durango, Colorado. (Durango Police/TMX)
"No worries, the long-legged friend was released to their owner... and we’re seriously reconsidering cardio," continued the post.
It is unknown who the owner of Irwin the kangaroo is, and little Irwin was completely unharmed during the incident. It is legal for private citizens to own kangaroos in the state of Colorado, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
"No Roos were harmed in the filming of this video," Durango PD clarified in their Facebook post.
One top comment on the post reads simply, "A Durangaroo!"
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Durango Police did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
