You’ve probably heard of Crocodile Dundee, but how about Kangaroo Dundee?
Meet Chris Barnes, the amazing Australian who has spent the past 10 years rescuing and raising orphaned baby kangaroos.
Nicknamed ‘Brolga’, the Aboriginal word for crane, due to his 6’7” stature, Chris quit his job as a tour guide to start his own kangaroo sanctuary in Alice Springs after finding Palau, on the side of the road. Palau’s mother had been dead for a few days but the little joey was still holding on for dear life inside her mother’s pouch.
A finalist for Australian of the Year last year, Brogla has saved over 200 orphaned kangaroos since 2005, creating faux pouches for young joeys out of canvas bags and pillow cases. His efforts have been documented in a two part-BBC series, Kangaroo Dundee, about his story of being a surrogate mother to so many baby joeys.
Brolga is hoping to build Central Australia’s first wildlife hospital on the grounds of his 36-hectare property, The Kangaroo Sanctuary, which is also Alice Spring’s number one attraction on trip advisor.
You can visit the sanctuary for sunset tours or, if you want to support Brolga’s good work, you can give a donation through The Kangaroo Sanctuary’s website.
