Russell Brand ‘devastated’ after his dog mauls wallaby to death

‘Absolutely no one is ­blaming Russell or his dog – it’s just a horrible accident,’ neighbour says

Russell Brand and his dog, Bear (Russell Brand/Instagram)

Russell Brand is reportedly devastated after his dog mauled a wallaby to death.

His dog, whose name is Bear, caught the female while they were on a walk near the comedian’s home in Henley-on-Thames, in Oxfordshire, according to The Sun.

The town has a population of wild wallabies which are believed to have escaped from a private collection more than 20 years ago.

Mr Brand noticed the wallaby had its baby in its pouch and tried to save them both on Monday, locals told The Sun.

Although he managed to rescue the baby, the mother died.

“Absolutely no one is ­blaming Russell or his dog – it’s just a horrible accident,” one neighbour told the newspaper.

“In fact Russell was the hero because he managed to save the little joey.

“It could have been far worse if he hadn’t stepped in so quickly.

“He is a very caring man with animals – he has plenty of pets and they’re all his babies.

“I understand he’s devastated over what happened. It’s really sad.”

Mr Brand regularly posts videos of his animals on social media.

Last month, he shared a video of his cats stopping Bear from eating his food, with Mr Brand saying: “You all right, Bear? They bullying you?”

He also described the animal as a “tornado of fur”.

The Independent has contacted Mr Brand’s agent for comment.