World Scene: Australia

Kangaroo wounds man

An Australian man was in stable condition yesterday after being slashed across the abdomen and face by a kangaroo that was holding his dog underwater.

Chris Rickard, 49, said he was walking his blue heeler, Rocky, on Sunday morning when they surprised a sleeping kangaroo in Arthur's Creek northeast of Melbourne. The dog chased the animal into a pond but it then turned and pinned the pet underwater. When Rickard tried to pull his dog free, the kangaroo turned on him, attacking with its hind legs and tearing a gash into his abdomen and across his face.