JOEY CARE GUIDE
MACROPODS: KANGAROOS & WALLABIES
REQUIRED SUPPLIES
And where to order them!
Please purchase the necessary supplies below as your care package will run out in approximately 1 week. You will need to order these ahead of time as shipping may take some time. Links provided in red. You can also purchase these supplies from us at pickup, but they need to be reserved ahead of time (our prices in parentheses).
Milk Replacer: Wombaroo Kangaroo Milk Replacer >0.7. There are smaller and larger volume options available on the website. In most instances, your joey will consume at least a 5kg bag before weaning.
Bottle-feeding supplies: Soft Feeding Bottle ($5) and one of the following teats:
We love the Long Australian Nipples ($8).
For ease of ordering from the same website as the rest of the supplies on this page, you can also use Jumbo Teats for kangaroos and Large Teats for wallabies. Wallabies can switch to the Jumbo Teat as they grow. ($5)
Kangaroo Cereal: Mazuri Kangaroo/Wallaby Diet ($50 per 40# bag).
Soft, Fine Hay: Timothy Hay or Orchard Grass Hay - make sure they are soft and not stemmy! Hay should always be offered free choice.
Extra Pouches: Perfect Pets Pouches. While we provide a free pouch, you will want extras for when the first one gets dirty, and a size up for your macropod to grow into. Wallabies come home with a Small pouch and will eventually need a Medium; kangaroos come with a Medium pouch and will eventually need a Large. ($70 for L, $60 for M, $50 for S)
Kitchen Scale: To measure the milk replacer. Our favorite here.
How to care for your new joey
IMPORTANT: Joeys are prone to aspiration pneumonia if not fed properly. The holes in the teats must be very small to allow the joey to drink slowly. Replace the teats as necessary as they wear out rather quickly.
FEEDING TIMES
Your joey will either be on a 4 or 5 bottles per day feeding schedule when you first get him/her. These are the times we feed, however you can adjust them if you’re more of an early bird than I am!
Feeding times for 4x daily: 8AM, 1PM, 6PM, 11PM (every 5 hours, no overnight)
Feeding times for 5x daily: 8AM, 12PM, 4PM, 8PM, 12AM (every 4 hours, no overnight)
FEEDING AMOUNTS
IMPORTANT! Before preparing any milk, please read the following instructions and feeding chart for your joey’s species to know how much to feed and how to properly prepare and store milk.
Remember, if your joey is a healthy weight, you can use its weight to determine the amount of milk it requires per day. However, if your joey is too thin or too heavy, it is more accurate to go by foot and tail length measurements.
Divide the daily amount of feed indicated on the chart by the number of bottles. This is how much your joey should be taking per bottle.
You will also need to add EXTRA water to every bottle using a syringe. Daily water requirements are based on 5-6% of your joey’s weight. You can add it directly to the milk bottle at each feeding (this is what we do) or feed it separately between feedings. The charts above will also tell you what your joey’s daily water intake should be.
If you just adopted a joey from us, scroll to the bottom of the page for their appropriate feeding amounts at time of pickup.
MIXING UP KANGAROO MILK REPLACER
These instructions are specifically for Wombaroo >0.7 formula only!
You will need a kitchen scale, airtight container, spoon/scoop, and syringe or graduated bottle.
To make 100ml of milk, add 25g of powder to 80ml of warm (preferably pre-boiled) water. For larger amounts…
To make 250ml of milk, add 62g of powder to 188ml warm water.
To make 500ml of milk, add 124g of powder to 376ml warm water.
Mix well with a spoon, whisk, or small handheld mixer until there are no clumps.
Use a syringe or other measuring tool to measure the appropriate amount of milk per feeding to add to the bottle. Store the extra prepared milk inside an airtight container in the refrigerator. Prepared milk should be used within 24 hours in the refrigerator or up to 2 weeks in the freezer.
If you don’t yet have a scale, you can approximate by adding 3 packed tablespoon scoops of powder to 80ml warm water to make 100ml of milk. However, you will need to purchase a scale in order to prepare the milk accurately.
Important notes
After each feeding, you must stimulate your joey’s cloaca so that it can urinate and/or poop.
Over feeding milk is one of the most common causes of loose stool.
Offer free choice Mazuri Kangaroo and very soft hay such as timothy and orchard grass (NEVER alfalfa).
Let your joey enjoy a little sunshine each day.
FEEDING AMOUNTS FOR NEWLY ADOPTED JOEYS
Toby appx. 235 days old, 4900g
4 bottles/day, 50 ml prepared milk + 60 ml additional water per feeding.
Walter appx. 255 days old, 2200g
4 bottles/day, 28 ml prepared milk + 32 ml additional water per feeding.
Fiona appx. 260 days old, 2300g
4 bottles/day, 30 ml prepared milk + 35 ml additional water per feeding.
Niko appx. 230 days old, 3790g
4 bottles/day, 45 ml prepared milk + 50 ml additional water per feeding.
Ollie appx. 235 days old, 4100g
4 bottles/day, 40 ml prepared milk + 50 ml additional water per feeding.
Mack appx. 215 days old, 2700g
4 bottles/day, 30 ml prepared milk + 40 ml additional water per feeding.
Wink appx. 235 days old, 1650g
4 bottles/day, 24 ml prepared milk + 22 ml additional water per feeding.
Ellie appx. 245 days old, 4500g
4 bottles/day, 45 ml prepared milk + 50 ml additional water per feeding.
Deeno appx. 235 days old, 3700g
4 bottles/day, 40 ml prepared milk + 50 ml additional water per feeding.
Hazel appx. 220 days old, 1300g
4 bottles/day, 22 ml prepared milk + 22 ml additional water per feeding.
Tilly appx. 280 days old, 7600g
1 bottles/day, 60 ml prepared milk + 60 ml additional water per feeding.
Lenny Lou appx. 200 days old, 1800g
4 bottles/day, 25 ml prepared milk + 28 ml additional water per feeding.
Tate appx. 220 days old, 3100g
4 bottles/day, 40 ml prepared milk + 50 ml additional water per feeding.
Rally, appx. 270 days old, 6100g
2 bottles/day, 75 ml prepared milk + NO additional water per feeding (she can drink water from a bowl).
Lenny, appx. 220 days old, 1300g
4 bottles/day, 20 ml prepared milk + 20 ml additional water per feeding.
Grayson, appx. 190 days old, 1500g
4 bottles/day, 22 ml prepared milk + 24 ml additional water per feeding.
Dandie, appx. 250 days old, 2000g
4 bottles/day, 26 ml prepared milk + 30 ml additional water per feeding.
Piper, appx. 330 days old, 4300g
1 bottle/day, 40 ml prepared milk
Eva, appx. 210 days old, 2100g
4 bottles/day, 30 ml prepared milk + 30 ml additional water per feeding.
Moe, appx. 210 days old, 2240g
4 bottles/day, 30 ml prepared milk + 30 ml additional water per feeding.
Priscilla, appx. 250 days old, 1930g
4 bottles/day, 25 ml prepared milk + 25 ml additional water per feeding.
Peter, appx. 250 days old, 2110g
4 bottles/day, 28 ml prepared milk + 30 ml additional water per feeding.
Rae, appx. 240 days old, 1880g
4 bottles/day, 25 ml prepared milk + 25 ml additional water per feeding.
Duke, appx. 230 days old, 3200g
4 bottles/day, 45 ml prepared milk + 45 ml additional water per feeding.
Blu, appx. 240 days old, 4200g
4 bottles/day, 45 ml prepared milk + 55 ml additional water per feeding.
Lavender, appx. 290 days old, 2900g
4 bottles/day, 35 ml prepared milk + 35 ml additional water per feeding.
Kang, appx. 240 days old, 1800g
4 bottles/day, 25 ml prepared milk + 30 ml additional water per feeding.
Kirk, appx. 220 days old, 2900g
4 bottles/day, 40 ml prepared milk + 45 ml additional water per feeding.