In the period between parturition and the first emergence from the pouch the mother pays little attention to the tiny young apart from pouch cleaning. the mother consumes urine and faeces of the young and recycles about a third of the water used in milk production. Licking of its cloacal region stimulates urination and defecation by the joey so the mother is able to directly clean up its excreta. As the young gets older it increases activity, wriggling and turning, so that a leg or tail may protrude from the pouch. the mother seems rather unconcerned by this activity. Even when the joey starts to stick its head out of the pouch the mother's responses are relatively minor and restricted to some sniffing and grooming.
Most growth and development occurs in the latter half of pouch life. In the euro and wallaroos and in red kangaroos the young is continuously attached to the nipple until 120-130 days, during which it is pink and naked with its eyes closed for most of the time. Red kangaroo young start taking their look at the outside world at around 150 days, while eastern greys take theirs at around 186 days.