Please help with my 2 week old emu

[Di Warren]

Hi everyone,

We picked up our baby yesterday, and she/he seems much smaller (scrawnier) than I was expecting. The pictures of 2 week old babies that I have seen posted here seem much more robust. I am feeding her chopped up kale, spinach and finely grated apples.
Can you please let me know if this is correct?

Also, yesterday was a big travel day...the trip home was several hours (I held her because she was freaking out in her brooder). I put her in the brooder for the last 2 hours of her trip while she was on the boat to get to our island, and she was running about.

At home she ate some kale, and continues walking around her brooder. She would not rest and hadn't slept for at least 8 hours.
My 19 year old daughter climbed in the brooder and layed down and within minutes the little emu cuddled into her hair and fell asleep. She slept all night, but seems almost lethargic this morning. Is it normal from the exhaustion yesterday? She hate some kale handfed and is again snuggled up in my daughters hair.

She hasn't drank any water (we have it in a chicken waterer and she knows it is there but isn't interested in it).

Is there anything else we can do that you can think of?

Thanks so much,
Dianna

 

[ES Emus]

pm sent. Put a bowl of water out and sprinkle some chopped greens on top of the water, they will usually peck at the greens and this will usually get them drinking. At 2 weeks, your emu should be very active and robust, did the seller's offer any explanation for the chick's condition? Were any other chicks available?

 

[Haida]

I was wondering when you would get your chick, but I was hoping for better news!

You did say the breeder wasn't feeding her actual feed yet (just carrots and stuff, if I remember right)... maybe its a vitamin-related issue? Also, I agree with ES Emus--greens in water definitely get their attention.

My chicks don't do so well with any kind of change to their environment. I am surprised at how sensitive they are... I remove them to clean out their pen... I change out the bedding, put the feed and waterer right back where they were and put them back in... they spend about 5 minutes trembling and running around. They'll still come up to me and peck at me, eat, drink, ect, but still shakey. And I keep them nice and warm, too, so it isn't like they're cold! Sometimes, we'll get visitors... much to my dismay... and the emus are always on "display." These 'strangers' come and peek their heads in and say as loud as possible "OH WOW LOOK AT THE EMU, HI LITTLE FELLAS!" and the emu take off for the farthest corner and do the trembling thing again. And these are adults doing this! I keep telling everyone to talk softly to the emu as to not freak them out, but no one listens to me! I've heard family members talking to each other about the emu, they say things like "they're shy, they don't like people, they shake a lot," but its like we aren't even interacting with the same birds. They'll stand right in my lap and follow me around their pen! (Sorry about the rant, lol) So I guess what I'm saying is, she might just need time to adjust.

Is there any way you could spend more time with her? Or give her a nice towel or blanket to snuggle in? Oh, a trick I've used on turkey poults (who can't be alone at all) is... stick a small mirror in the brooder, like up against the wall or something (so its standing right up)... she'll see 'another emu' and she might relax a bit. However, saying this, I don't know if it's possible if she would bond to the mirror or not. That would be kind of odd, lol. I dunno, just a thought.

I hope she picks up, though, I know you were very excited about her!

 

[Di Warren]

Thanks everyone for your advise.

Yesterday we removed the chicken waterer and put her water into a bowl with floaty kale bits on top, and she drank up. She drank a full 3 bowls of water yesterday and another half bowl through the night.

We also started her on non-medicated chick starter yesterday, and it took about 6 hours of coaxing but she finally tried a piece then ate a half bowl. Her poop has gone from a watery light green to a nice firm (almost pasty dark green) and she seems much more energetic. (I swear she grew a centimeter overnight!)

She is very used to us and between the 4 of us (we have 2-19 year old daughters) she is never alone. My crazy daughter even lets her snuggle up on her hair to sleep under the heat lamp (she lays right inside the brooder with her at night to put her to sleep), so she loves people. I think we are becoming her flock.

She has lots of toys (we set her brooder up the same as someone else posted, using an 8 panel XPen, with puppy pads lining the bottom and a long dowel across to top to hang her toys. Also on that dowel I hang a bunch of kale, I am trying to encourage her to reach up with her neck to get it. She isn't strong enough to rip pieces off yet though, so I shredded a bit with scissors so it is only holding by a bit. She seems so proud of herself when she does get a piece off (all her humans cheering at the sidelines).

Our entire house is hardwood floors and we are so afraid of her slipping. We put an 8 x12 area run in the middle of the livingroom and each of us take a side to let her run about several times each day....it isn't ideal but until the weather warms up a bit our play is limited to indoors only. She seems to be able to play for about 5 minutes then she wants to nap again, she will curl up on one of us and go to sleep. At that point we return her to her brooder under the heat lamp and play again a couple hours later.

This is only day 2 and I really feel she has come so far. I am hoping everyday is an improvement. It is unbelievable how much we all love this little thing.

 

[Di Warren]

Oh I forgot something..you had mentioned putting a blanket in, we hung a blanket on the side of the brooder and she uses it as a cave, its pretty cute. We also gave her an alpaca fur teddy bear. She snuggles into the long soft fur often. I have pics but I cant figure out how to post them.

 

[Haida]

Yay! I'm glad she's coming along okay!!! Awesome!

 

[The Sheriff]

How is the little one doing? We bought these for our babies and they loved them. They all scooted as far back in it as they could get and cuddled. It was the best purchase we ever made. They were so content.

 

[briefvisit]

Hey, Haida!!

[Background: I am the only BYC person whose background is with wild birds, which I observed for a long time. There's a full-grown female rothschildi eating wheat just beyond my garden right now. If you can find an old post by 'Supreme Emu,' me, one of the chicks in the avatar photos is Number One, the bird that's here. She's six now; was one then. 'Tame-wild.;]

I don't know if this will help: they are imprinting on you, which might account for them not being anxious while with you. I am not surprised, though, that they are anxious around others. These critters -- although it's a different kettle of fish if cornered, or protecting their young -- are hardwired for flight.

On the several occasions on which I have had to get terrified chicks out of the backyard -- when Sassybird and her two sisters were young -- I learned how easily they panic, and I learned that a lack of sound and movement is the very very best antidote.

Now, there is in place here a 'protocol,' and if people don't like that, they can leave. Visiting dogs, for example, gotta be tied up (though I'd put my money on the emu . . . )

I suggest that it is entirely reasonable that you forthwith enact a protocal whereby visitors are required, no if or buts, to be silent, move slowly, and perhaps not even get too close.

A little later, when the chicks are more used to people, it won't be a problem. Right now, though, they are, in the evolutionary sense, a long long way from 'home.'

Try it and see.

se

 

[Haida]

Hey, Haida!!

[Background: I am the only BYC person whose background is with wild birds, which I observed for a long time. There's a full-grown female rothschildi eating wheat just beyond my garden right now. If you can find an old post by 'Supreme Emu,' me, one of the chicks in the avatar photos is Number One, the bird that's here. She's six now; was one then. 'Tame-wild.;]

I don't know if this will help: they are imprinting on you, which might account for them not being anxious while with you. I am not surprised, though, that they are anxious around others. These critters -- although it's a different kettle of fish if cornered, or protecting their young -- are hardwired for flight.

On the several occasions on which I have had to get terrified chicks out of the backyard -- when Sassybird and her two sisters were young -- I learned how easily they panic, and I learned that a lack of sound and movement is the very very best antidote.

Now, there is in place here a 'protocol,' and if people don't like that, they can leave. Visiting dogs, for example, gotta be tied up (though I'd put my money on the emu . . . )

I suggest that it is entirely reasonable that you forthwith enact a protocal whereby visitors are required, no if or buts, to be silent, move slowly, and perhaps not even get too close.

A little later, when the chicks are more used to people, it won't be a problem. Right now, though, they are, in the evolutionary sense, a long long way from 'home.'

Try it and see.

se

I am actually a huge fan of your posts! I love love love hearing about your tame-wild birds! They're so awesome!

Well, I am glad you think they're imprinting on me! I have tried to do so with them, I took off work to be their for the hatch (I was talking and whistling to them, cheering them on... and I wanted to be the first thing they saw) and I spend as much time as I can with them. I want them to be as calm as possible with me when they're older, and I'm not going to lie, its so much fun to be around them! Especially since I found out they were female, everything I've read says the girls can be tough to handle... or something, lol.

You are right, though, I do need to step it up! I think I am going to make a sign to remind people to be quiet when I'm not there. That might help drive the point home. OH, that reminds me! I noticed they're sensitive to the vibes people give off, too. I was sitting in their pen with them, and I heard my mother-in-law coming... she didn't know I was in there. They heard her, too, and started trembling and came right over into my lap and behind me. They can't see out of their pen, either. The MIL didn't even say anything, or even peek in, but they could feel her... and I don't blame them... she has a very 'heavy' presence, if that makes sense. She was gone in about 5 minutes. Then everything went back to normal. Its just incredible to me that they are that instinctual/sensitive to their environment.

We'll be moving them out of the barn in a week or so, I think that will make them a lot more comfortable. Hopefully this winter weather will stop paying us a visit. It was 80°F this weekend, then snowed last night. Go away, winter. (Well, I'll have a heat lamp set up in their new shed/house, but they'll have access to the outside and I don't want to have emu-popsicles).

 

[briefvisit]

Hey, Di. Please excuse me, my attendance here is sporadic.

Have you surfed the two 'formal-observation threads'?\

First is Mating Season in Australia. Second is Planet Rothschildi. And check Notes from the Homeland. First ever post here.

People like Sheriff and KBGH and others go back that far.


Note on the trembling: bear in mind that these life forms are hardwired for flight as their primary means of defence. That's why they are famous for surfing over barbed wire fences: run now; think later.

Well . . . captivity deducts that prospect. A chick listening to an Unknow approaching is thinking, Run!!' -- but can't

There is stuff on the threads about how a male with a clutch withdraws from a threat. Same thing evident here, in a way: the restricted speed of the chicks must be factored in. I once saw a male with a lone chick only a couple of days old mosey from the gums. It was quite evident from the male's gait that he was 'steppin' real short' for Chick.

And last, check the Miniature Gallery of Wonderful Youtube Stuff on Emus. The one in which the rednecks chase the Dad and clutch??? Well, watch the first seconds REALLY REALLY closely. What you see is Dad doing a classical withdrawl thing: the chicks head off. Dad moves to interdict the vehicle, then breaks of to speed to the head of the clutch. Once got to watch a Dad with seven chicks do a three-stage withdrawl in open country. The chicks loped steadily away; but Dad propped repeatedly to observe me.

se