SWEENY, Texas – It was something this family never thought they'd see in their yard -- the family found out-of-place marsupials hopping around.
WATCH:Â Wallabies on the loose in Brazoria County
Ben Mansfield has lived on the outskirts of Sweeny for years. Earlier this week, he heard his wife screaming.
"I was in there brushing my teeth, I came outside to find out what she was yelling about, and she told me the dogs were chasing a kangaroo around the yard. We don't have them around here," Mansfield said.
He's exactly right.
A neighbor of his, Mike Vicars, caught this video of the same marsupials that Mansfield's wife saw.
"I didn't believe her. I thought it was a wounded deer," Mansfield said.
It turns out, Brazoria County Sheriff's deputies said the animals were actually wallabies -- smaller animals that resemble kangaroos and are in the same family. Deputies told KPRC that a nearby neighbor is licensed with the USDA to have exotic animals and is licensed to breed the wallabies, according to deputies.
For now, the wallabies, a male and female, are on the loose.
"When the dogs went after them, one went to the right and the other went to the left," Mansfield said.
It was hard to fathom what his family saw.
"We've seen just about everything else," Mansfield said, laughing.
Deputies said the wallabies were bred in Texas and that the owner had had them imported to the area Monday with the intent of breeding them, but the wallabies got loose later that day.
"We've been trying to find ways to catch them -- capture them humanely," Mansfield said.
Brazoria County sheriff's deputies had advised the owner on how to potentially get them back. However, they're asking anyone who sees the wallabies to give the Brazoria County Sheriff's Office a call.
"They're still on the loose," Mansfield said.