Why this video of a kangaroo fighting off a pack of dogs has fuelled an Aussie urban myth about the native animal

A video of a pack of dogs attempting to attack a large eastern grey kangaroo has reignited an old myth about the native animal.

Disturbing footage showed the kangaroo standing in a creek while four dogs barked at it from the shore.

A black dog eventually shot forward and ran at the kangaroo, only to be knocked away.

The move prompted the remaining dogs to charge the kangaroo but none attempted to bite it.

After barking and forcing the kangaroo to the other side of the small creek, the dogs backed off and returned to their owner – who stood filming nearby.

While many commenters were worried for the kangaroo, others cited a popular myth that the marsupials ‘lure’ dogs to water.

Alyssa Wormald, from the Victorian Kangaroo Association, debunked the theory, claiming kangaroos are not aggressive and often only flee to water as a final defence.

‘Kangaroos don’t lure dogs into danger, they retreat into water as a last resort to defend themselves from attack. They fight back only in self defence, and that’s clear in the video,’ she told Yahoo News. 

It’s believed kangaroos learned to drown animals in order to survive dingo attacks.

Ms Wormald joined dozens of commenters in condemning the owner for not keeping her dogs away from the kangaroo.

‘Seriously why would you let your dogs near a poor kangaroo,’ one wrote.

‘Control your dogs, luckily it was a kangaroo and not a child,’ another said.

Ms Wormald explained the stress only of a dog attack is enough to kill a kangaroo. 

‘It’s so upsetting to see this magnificent kangaroo retreating in terror in the water… the saddest part is that if he sustained just one bite he will likely die slowly from infection,’ she said.

‘If that doesn’t kill him, chances are he will die from stress myopathy. Male kangaroos look big and tough but they are like all kangaroos, fragile and easily stressed.’