The owners of an exotic animal farm in B.C. say they're relieved to have their wayward wallaby back in its enclosure, after a three-day search for the animal.
The six-year-old wallaby, called "Gracie," had slipped through an unlatched gate and was spotted hopping around Langley, B.C., late last week. The animal became a running joke in the area, with residents on social media sharing photos of it under the hashtag #WallabyWatch.
RCMP eventually located the animal and recaptured it with the help of its owners, Janet and Ruedi Uebelhardt.
"We can't thank everyone enough," Janet Uebelhardt told CTV Vancouver. "We probably did not sleep for two days."
The wallaby has since been reunited with four other wallabies at the farm, where the Uebelhardts keep a variety of exotic animals. In addition to the wallabies, they have five capybaras, some camels, three zebras and a steer.
The Uebelhardts say all of the animals are legal under provincial law and city bylaw, and that they were purchased at auctions in Alberta and the United States.
Ruedi Uebelhardt says farming animals is in his blood, and as he's grown older, "well, I like a little bit of different animals."
The Uebelhardts insist they take good care of the animals on their 0.8-kilometre-square property, and they're eager to leave the public spotlight behind after this incident.
"There are always going to be critics," Janet Uebelhardt said, adding that the farm is "something that we've just done quietly."
