ST. ALBANS, WV (WOWK) — A wallaby was seen hopping around a St. Albans neighborhood Wednesday night. Now the animal’s owner and a local pet rescuer say the wallaby is home.

Pantoufle the Wallaby, who has both an Instagram and Facebook, was first spotted by Kaitlyn Pulliam Wednesday night.

Pulliam posted on Facebook at 10:58 p.m. that when she returned home from Taco Bell, she was surprised to find what she originally thought was a kangaroo in her front yard.

Pulliam uploaded photos and a video of the wallaby to Facebook.

  • A wallaby was seen hopping around a St. Albans neighborhood Wednesday night. (Photo courtesy of Kaitlyn Pulliam)
  • A wallaby was seen hopping around a St. Albans neighborhood Wednesday night. (Photo courtesy of Kaitlyn Pulliam)

PigPig of St. Albans, a Facebook page dedicated to local animal rescue, posted at 11:05 p.m. about Pulliam’s sighting. It was at this time that PigPig said rescuers were on their way to the area.

At 12:11 a.m., rescuers live-streamed on Facebook while searching for the wallaby. PigPig posted at 1:15 a.m. that rescuers did not find the animal.

On Thursday morning, PigPig told WOWK Channel 13 that Pantoufle is home. PigPig said the owner reached out through their Instagram account.

Channel 13 spoke with the owner, who wishes to remain anonymous. The owner said a neighbor helped them catch Pantoufle around 11 p.m. on Wednesday.

“At one point we got under the cars at Sparks and we grabbed him by his tail,” the owner said. “Fortunately, he is no longer small enough to crawl under the car so we grabbed his tail and pulled him out.”

Pantoufle’s owner said he got out by escaping through a malfunctioning basement door. The owner realized Pantoufle was missing when they went to feed their bunnies.

The owner prepared themselves for the worst, worried Pantoufle would be hit by a car in the dark, but they are relieved he is now home.

Pantoufle loves to run around and play with his bunny siblings, according to the owner. They are currently trying to register Pantoufle as an emotional support animal for children’s hospitals but said he needs more training before that happens.

The owner posted an update to Pantoufle’s Facebook page and thanked everyone for helping and caring.

“I managed to get out of the house last night and made a ruckus in the neighborhood,” the update said. “Thankfully, my neighbors helped my hooman to get me home safely at 11 pm! Thank you for all that are worrying about me.”