A CORNISH pasty boss was caught on the hop – and given a very Australian surprise when a wallaby bounced across his path during his early morning drive to work.

Scot Weller, owner of Original Cornish Pasties at Millers Business Park in Liskeard, was heading into town at around 5.20am on Monday when he spotted what he initially thought was a dog sitting in the road.

However, the mystery animal soon hopped into action, leaving Scot to realise his morning commute had taken an unexpected trip Down Under.

“I saw something just sat there halfway across the road,” he said. “Originally, I thought it was a German Shepherd or something like that. Then it got up and started bouncing down towards the cattle market and I thought, ‘Oh, that’s that wallaby I’ve seen on the social media pages.’”

Scot said there were several cars behind him and, concerned the animal could be hit, he decided to follow it.

“I put my hazards on and followed it, just to see where it was going and to make sure it didn’t get hit or anything,” he said.

The wallaby continued past the cattle market before hopping onto the pavement and stopping. Scot then pulled alongside his unexpected companion and decided to strike up a conversation.

“I said, ‘Hello, you’re not from around here, are you?’” he said.

The wallaby was apparently unimpressed by the attempt at conversation and soon disappeared down a side road towards the local Co-op, using the cut-through by the local Foodbank.

“One of the cars tried to whizz past it, so I kind of used my van to slow things down,” Scot said.

He then headed towards the industrial estate before deciding the unusual sighting needed reporting.

“I drove to the unit and contacted 101,” said Scot, who said he initially considered contacting the RSPCA, but decided it was too early in the morning and called police instead.

“I said, ‘I want to report something – I’ve just been following a wallaby.’

“They literally said, ‘A wallaby?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ They asked, ‘What do you mean, a wallaby?’ I said, ‘The Australian type of small kangaroo that jumps.’ They were like, ‘What, really?’”

Police were given the animal’s last known location and told Scot they would dispatch officers to look for it.

Since the encounter, Scot has heard of other sightings around the town, including one near Westbourne car park by Wildanet. He has also been told there could be wild wallabies living in the wider area, with possible colonies around Seaton Valley, Stoke Climsland and the industrial estate up by Liskeard Hospital.

Scot believes the recent hot and dry weather could have encouraged the animal to venture further in search of food and water.

“It was a bit sad that he was out there on his own, as there can’t have been much for it to eat because of the heatwave we’ve been having,” he said. “I just thought, ‘Poor thing, he’s lost’

“It was a bit mad, really. It’s not something you normally see on your daily drive!”