2022/2023 Emu Hatch-a-Long

[Sneakyturtle]

Hatched a white baby two days ago from a shipped egg!

 

[Pyxis]

So I posted an ad for chicks online, just to get a ballpark idea of how many eggs I want to set this year. I also offered eggs for sale.

Got an email this morning and we were going back and forth and he was asking price and whatnot, then came out with this gem:

"And if I want a chick I have to wait till they hatch?"

Like. ???

No, I can totally get you a chick before the eggs hatch, sure. I sent an email back asking if he meant did he need to wait to pay. Really hoping that's what he meant, lol.

 

[Pyxis]

Emu ignoramus here. How tall are they? What do they weigh? How do you tell the sexes apart?

are they has HUGE as they look?

Wow, though... they are flat out GORGEOUS!

When they're standing normally, about five or so feet I would say. Ciara can look me in the eye easily, and I'm 5' 7". But they stretch up when they feel threatened or are being aggressive, which makes them taller.

They're lighter than you would think, though! They have hollow bones like other birds. An average adult female weighs about 80 pounds, and a male about 70.

It's hard to tell genders apart when they're young, but as they get older you can tell a couple ways. For one, they make different sounds! Females make a drumming sound, and males make a grunting sound.

 

[Pyxis]

I might not have a good year here with hatches. The first batch was possibly compromised when I lost power for 18 hours one day after I set the eggs. The next batch of three is probably okay, but was laid during really cold temperatures so I can never be sure if I snagged the eggs quick enough.

Then she laid six eggs over a period of two weeks when I was recovering from a back injury, so my dad was helping me and doing all the feeding and watering, but wasn't quite brave enough to lift Sebastian up to get the eggs from under him. When I finally recovered enough to get out there I found him off the eggs, and four were frozen all the way through and cracked wide open. Two were cold but not cracked, but likely they are not good.

And since then she hasn't laid again, sigh. Now it's only been a week so I can't say for sure she isn't just taking a long break in between eggs, but she was going every three to four days.

 

[Pyxis]

My goodness, the seller I bought from (I buy from her every year, she actually was here on BYC at one point) emailed me today and said she sent me out two replacement eggs for the cracked ones this year, PLUS three more that she thinks her male might have sat on for a day or two so she didn't want to sell them just in case.

 

[Chickenlover2009]

I hatched three out of 12 this year...

 

[Summer_]

I’m watching this mainly because I’m interested in emus

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

I do vinegar and water at a 1:1 ratio and it works really well! If any place in the hatcher is really gross, I let it soak in straight vinegar for awhile.

I’ll try vinegar, a lot less chemical smell. Just dirty socks smell lol

She left a gift! Now I know why they’ve really been going at the young ones…

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

Its at 30 days now

It should start to lean pretty good around 40 to 42 days.

 

[ShannonsChimkens]

Emu “carrier”, also known as work shirt.