Julia Heckathorn, 28, adopted two-year-old Boomeroo from a farm in Texas when she was just 3 weeks old. The pair have been inseparable ever since.Boomeroo, wears human clothing, lets out an excited squeak every time Julia walks into a room. She will stretch out her arms for cuddles, and follows her around the house.
Julia is a children's author and takes Boomeroo with her whenever she visits a school in the hope of teaching them more about nature.
She says Boomeroo loves to wear human clothes and even has her own wardrobe full of tops and dresses that have been specifically purchased from baby stores for her.
When she was a joey, she slept in the house with her Julia and her husband, Jason.
She eventually grew too big to spend time indoors, so the couple built a temperature controlled barn in their garden where she can sleep alongside the couple's other animals, an anteater, named Noche, four sugar glider possums, and a cat called named Larry.
Although she sleeps in the barn each night, she spends her days hopping around the house and garden with Larry, staring out the window, and sleeping at Julia's feet while she writes.
"When she was younger I used to carry her around in a bag with me to the supermarket so she could get used to seeing people," she said.
She thinks I'm her mother, and she follows me everywhere. When I come near her, she makes this little sound, like an excited chortle, just as kangaroos would do in the wild to locate their mom," she said."
Describing the kangaroo's love of human attire, she said: "When we first got her, she was wearing a little shirt and she's worn clothes ever since. The clothes give her comfort as a thunder shirt would give comfort to a dog."
"She loves her tops, and when I have to take her top off to clean it, she puts her arms out and waits for me to dress her again," said Julia.
Kangaroos are social animals, living in groups called mobs, so when she was a joey, Julia and her husband adopted Larry the cat to give her 24-hour companionship.
Talking about the animals' unorthodox friendship, she said: "Boomeroo and Larry get on really well, and the two are now the best of friends, doing everything together. They eat grass together, lay together, and watch the birds together. It's adorable."
Julia says that when she visits a school with one of her unusual animals, the childrens eyes 'light up with excitement" and they become really interested in learning about conservation.
She has put plans on hold for another animal, since the couple are expecting their first child.
"We are so excited to be expecting our first child, and I'm sure that she and the animals will be the best of friends. She will be a very lucky girl with wonderful experiences." said Julia.
Click twice on arrow to start video
FOLLOW US!
