See the birth of a joey.

Yes, that’s little baby Charlie. He has just been born and he has crawled up through Indie’s fur and is about to enter her pouch.

The birth of a kangaroo is the most miraculous thing I have ever witnessed.

Just three short days after her night on the veranda with Leo, Indie left.

I felt so sad, but this was how it was meant to be. She was ready to go off and be a wild roo, and if she was ready to become a mother, then I had done my job right.

Thirty days passed.

That evening at dusk, I looked up the hill through the window and there she was. Leo, along with two of the other big males, appeared to be escorting her back home.

What a sight. Happy tears. I could see she was alright. I walked out onto the veranda and called, “Indie-girl, is that you?”

Her eyes smiled as she came bounding down the hill to me, then marched straight into the kitchen for a snack. She was so proud of herself. She had been away for a whole month, out there growing up. (I like to think she insisted those boys bring her home to her mumma!). For what felt like the longest time, she just wanted to hold my hand and make her little self-soothing sucking sounds. Her way of cuddling.

She did have a small cut on her nose and a slightly bigger one on her leg that needed cleaning, and a quick spritz of pink Cetrigen antiseptic to make sure it wouldn’t get infected. After some kangaroo snacks (she likes low protein horse pellets and almonds), she headed back outside to nap on her bed under the window.

Max was overjoyed to have her home. He had been spending more time with the boys of the mob, but he still loved the comfort of the veranda. I think he had been hoping she would come back, and she did. Listen to that little clucking sound he’s making in the video below. As happy as he was to have her back, he still wanted HIS side of the bed.

She was very hormonal. One minute she would be lovingly grooming Max, the next she was making it very clear he needed to keep his distance. Some of their interactions were quite hilarious.

With me, she was all affection. Long cuddles, every chance she got. She was happy to lean in on me for 30 minutes at a time, she melted my heart daily.

Five days later, it was time.

She waited until I was sitting on the veranda before she gave birth to little Charlie.

On the morning of March 8, 2023, at 8:30am, she began vigorously cleaning out her pouch, her very own nursery.

Around 9am, the contractions started. Before that day, I had no idea that kangaroos experienced contractions before giving birth. She would lie down, then roll more onto her back with her fingers splayed, clearly communicating discomfort. Then she would get up, fuss about, as the contraction passed and then lay down again. After each one, she would rest briefly before the next began. Max lay beside her, not too close to bother her, but just to be there.

Just after 9:30am, she stood up and walked around my chair so she could be right beside me.

Her water broke.

Within a minute, her tiny embryo of a baby, no bigger than a jellybean, emerged and began its journey. Using its tiny arms, it climbed along the path she had carefully licked through her fur, making its way toward the opening of her pouch.

The journey, roughly 300mm (12 inches), took about three and a half minutes.

This blind, pink little creature, with its itty-bitty hands, moved with such purpose.

Indie tracked it carefully the entire time.

Even after it disappeared into the pouch, she continued to guide it, gently nudging and licking the outside, following its progress until it reached one of her four teats.

Max was there too. He kept his distance while she gave birth, lying on his bed.

But as soon as she was done, she hopped up onto the patio sofa and he came straight over to her. He sniffed her pouch and she sniffed his head. I was in awe, watching them communicate so gently. This lasted for quite some time as she fussed about. Finally she lay down on the couch and Max lay down on the cool floor in front, so he could keep watch while she enjoyed a little snooze.

She stayed very close to home, always wanting cuddles and even resting her head on my lap when I sat on her favourite patio sofa.

Two months later, while busy grooming my hair, she allowed me to carefully slip a tiny microscopic camera into her pouch for a brief glimpse of her baby. See little Charlie’s mouth sucking on her teat? and that little hand with it’s tiny nails?

Being a part of her life in this was such a happy surprise, I immediately started pondering how I could share it in a book: