Swampy a force of nature

Paul Dunlop
THE long arm of the law now has paws.
Pakenham Police Senior Constable Sharon Patterson is taking care of a baby wallaby, which was rescued from its dead mother’s pouch after she was found dead on a roadside.
Swampy is about six months old and has become a popular member of the family.
Sen Const Patterson, a youth resource officer, is used to dealing with young people’s issues but has had to stretch her responsibilities to include a young marsupial.
“He’s at the toddler stage at the moment,” she said.
“My husband found him and we’ve looked after him since just after Christmas. He’s tripled in size since then.”
Bottlefed using a special milk formula, Swampy seems perfectly happy and right at home in his new surroundings but never strays too far from his new mum.
“She treats him like one of the children,” police colleague Helen Marsham said of Sen Const Patterson.
The young wallaby sleeps in a fleecylined pouch and his weight is carefully monitored.
Sen Const Patterson said she would like her young charge to eventually find a home at one of the local wildlife rescue shelters.
Meanwhile, her two human children loved the new arrival, although Sen Const Patterson said the fuss had not gone down well with another member of the family.
“My poor dog has had her nose out of joint ever since Swampy came to live with us,” she said.