Aussies may be famous for crock tales, koalas, didgeridoos and vegemite, but now it seems they’re also famous for punching kangaroos to protect their dogs. But, was Greg Tonkins, the man at the center of all this attention, actually justified in punching the roo’?
Man against kangaroo
Kangaroos look cute, but they can be vicious, which is likely why one man went toe-to-toe with a large one to save his dog. Tonkins, 34, has since been thrust into the limelight from the viral video of him punching the kangaroo square in the jaw.
Tonkins, who is reportedly an elephant keeper at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo, is seen running towards the kangaroo, who has the man’s dog in a headlock. The kangaroo is seen kicking the front legs of the dog, as the dog tries to escape the kangaroo’s grip. Finally, the dog escapes, and the roo’ turns his attention to Tonkins. In a bold move, Tonkins punches the animal in the face, leaving it stunned before it hops away.
Fight to kill
Kangaroos fight to kill when they feel threatened, according to Manfred Zabinskas, owner of Five Freedoms Animal Rescue. So, it lucky for Tonkins that the animal backed off, or this could have been a very different story.
In October of this year, a Kangaroo severely clawed a man and killed the family’s beloved pet dog. Justin Lewis — in an attempt to save the dog — took a broom and tried to scare away the animal. But it accepted the challenge and went after Lewis, reports 9News.
And then in May of this year, another violent attack occurred when a kangaroo launched itself on two women cyclists. One woman was left with a concussion, while the other had to undergo surgery to replace her breast implants, which apparently ruptured in the ordeal. But, the woman claims her implants probably saved her life. “They worked as air bags,” she told MailOnline.
Tomkins in hot water over punch
When the incident occurred, Tomkins was on a hunting trip with his friends looking for wild boars. The trip was organized for a friend who was dying of cancer, according to MailOnline. His employer — Taronga Zoo — isn’t happy with his use of a right-hand punch to redirect the animal away from the dogs.
“Good animal welfare and the protection of Australian wildlife are of the utmost importance to Taronga,” said a spokesperson for the zoo. “We are working with Mr. Tonkins to understand the exact circumstances of the event and will consider any appropriate action.”
Mathew Amor, who organized the hunting trip, told news.com.au, his friend “only stunned” the kangaroo. The rest of the hunting group laughed at Tonkins for “packing such a sh*t punch.” Meanwhile, the video has gone viral with millions of hits and counting. But the zoo isn’t laughing.
You decide, was Tonkins justified in going toe-to-toe with the roo’ to save his dog’s life? Or, should he have just conceded?
— Katherine Marko
That was NOT a hard punch. That was a slap and it was justified for holding the dog in a headlock. He didn’t SHOOT the Roo he only slapped him and I would have done the same thing.
Of course he was justified.Who wouldn’t try to save their dog?
He could have shot the Roo, but he didn’t. I don’t think the Roo was stunned,just surprised.
Be interesting to know, how the Roo got such a big dog in a headlock in the first place.
Dog seemed more playful, than vicious. Maybe he got too curious and too close.Who knows.
Looks like the Roo already let go of the dog when he decided to hit it and since it was stunned it was not just a tap. He needs to train his dogs so he can have control of them,because it’s obvious he did not. I hope he gets fired from the zoo, he should not be working with animals, who knows what he does
to them when they misbehave.
Totally justified. The animal started it and did not back off. What was the man supposed to do? I am all for helping animals, but there are limits.
Having read the context and the history of kangaroo attacks on people and their dogs it seems ridiculous for people to be so upset about the punch. Who would not want to save his beloved pet and to deter an aggressive animal? The kangaroo might have renewed the attack on the dog or turned its attention to the man if it had not been quickly put off such actions.
I am an animal lover, always fighting for their rights. I have two dogs. I one was in that predicament I would try anything and everything to get them out. The man did not hurt the kangaroo. It was just stunned. His head barely moved to the side. He was suprised not hurt. The man was absoutely in the right and very lucky it worked. The kangaroo was going to take him on. The man could have been killed. He did everything right. They should lay off him.
There had to be at least one whiny liberal on this thread
That’s the message/action the roo best understood…if it hadn’t happened, like that, the dog would have been evicerated and terribly wounded or dead…I doubt if the roo was badly injured. That may have actually saved the roo’s life…that’s one roo that’s less likely to attack a human and get killed as a result. He was only reacting to what he saw as a threat…no villains here….
Nancy, I think you totally misunderstand the Kangaroo – He was going to have a go at either the dog or the man. It’s easy to sit in an armchair and with hindsight insist on a course of action. I think that if he really had been the sort to treat animals badly he would not have stepped away from the roo but hit it a lot harder in the first instance and then gone in and really bashed it. So your assumptions are totally wrong as proven by Tom’s actions. I think he absolutely did the right thing and it all ended well nobody got hurt – neither roo, dog or man.
I have seen big bucks like this fighting it out with one another and let me tell you it is a frightening sight. It could have all ended up very very badly.
Perhaps you are not very familiar with kangaroos. They have huge long claws both on their hands and their feet and very large strong teeth and they are very muscular and tough. I have seen a silly footballer take on a big red kangaroo – it was minding its own business by the way no threat at all – and this dill went into the enclosure and gave it a solid punch – he was a big sort of bloke. But he, also did not know kangaroos, and the Kanga just up and punched him right back in the face and laid him out – 6’4 he was and solidly built muscly man flatten by a single punch. Carted off to hospital he was – we the stunned onlookers cheered the Kanga and his mates told the zookeepers that the kanga was not at all at fault but only defending himself from this dill.
And no I do NOT THINK HE should be fired from his job. If the kanga had attacked you (and there have been a few attacks on women and men in the area where I live) you would have wanted him to help you.
If the dogs had been vicious hunting dogs with both dogs being there the kanga could have been severely mauled so that too is not a correct observation on your part.
I say good on Tom for saving his dog and dealing with the Kanga in a calm way – the kanga understood that he was not going to win that one. And he had the opportunity to leave.