Man punches kangaroo that had his dog in a headlock

A man in Australia came to the defence of his dog - and punched a kangaroo in the face after it had his pet in a chokehold.

The man was with friends in a truck in the Australian Outback when he called for his dog Max to come to him.

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The dog didn't return and the man then spots that he's got himself into a spot of bother with a large kangaroo.

WARNING: Some viewers may find footage offensive

He runs out of the truck, but the kangaroo initially doesn't let go of the dog. It then releases Max and squares up to the man, who quickly jabs the kangaroo directly in the face.

The kangaroo is left looking a little shell-shocked, before it jumps off and the man runs back to the truck.

According to the NZ Herald, the man who took the video said: "The big buck actually has hold of the dog, not the other way around. As (the man) runs in, we realise this could get dangerous."

The video of the incident, which we first spotted at the Metro, has gone viral and has been viewed millions of times on Facebook.