Matt Smith rescues exhausted wallaby more than 100 metres offshore
Matt Smith rowed out in a dinghy to rescue an exhausted wallaby swimming into deeper water near the Portland marina in south-west Victoria on Friday morning. The visiting South Australian boater brought the animal ashore, where wildlife carers collected it. It is now resting in their care.
Smith was tidying up aboard a visiting yacht when squawking seagulls drew his attention towards the end of the marina. He thought they had found a dog in the water. Instead, he spotted a wallaby more than 100 metres offshore.
The wallaby climbed into his dinghy on the first attempt, then jumped out again. Smith eventually managed to bring it to dry land.
His rescue drew praise on social media. He asked people on the beach to keep their dogs on leashes, saying he had “done enough rowing for one day”.
Kangaroos and wallabies sometimes swim to escape another animal, such as a dog or dingo. In 2020, a wallaby was rescued 6.2 kilometres off the coast of North Stradbroke Island in Queensland.
Smith said the wallaby might have succumbed to exhaustion without help.
Source: Boater rescues tired wallaby swimming out to sea more than 100m offshore (abc.net.au). Spotted via ABC News Good News.
Written by the HappyGood desk from the primary source linked above and checked against it. Every story links its source. Corrections: [email protected].
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