Emu behavior

[McGehee06]

Hi I know this is a chicken forum but I have gotten information here on emus too. I need some advice. I have an 18 month old male emu. He is my pet and has always been very loving towards me. It seems he suddenly turned very aggressive towards me. I don’t know why? I can’t think of anything unusual happening. He chases me out of his pen now snapping and kicking very aggressively. He doesn’t seem to mind my mom or dad being in his pen. Do emus go thru puberty Idk what to do. Any advice??

 

[madlaina]

Hi I know this is a chicken forum but I have gotten information here on emus too. I need some advice. I have an 18 month old male emu. He is my pet and has always been very loving towards me. It seems he suddenly turned very aggressive towards me. I don’t know why? I can’t think of anything unusual happening. He chases me out of his pen now snapping and kicking very aggressively. He doesn’t seem to mind my mom or dad being in his pen. Do emus go thru puberty Idk what to do. Any advice??

I have absolutely no experience with emus as pets, but a quick google search indicates they reach sexual maturity at 18-20 months, so I would say that’s the reason for your bird’s change in behaviour.

 

[McGehee06]

Thank you!! I was thinking that maybe was it. I wonder will he settle down again. It’s very disconcerting.

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC. I hope that the Emu folks can help you out. I have zero experience, sorry

 

[redranger209]

@Pyxis

 

[drumstick diva]

member Pyxis may know. You can find her and other emu folks by scrolling down the forums (see top of page). There is a forum for Ostriches, Emu & something else- Rheas, I think (whatever that is).Good luck. I know other Emu folks from years ago, and they didn't have that problem. They had pairs of Emu, maybe that makes a difference. Don't think Emus reach breeding age till 3 yrs. Don't hate me if I'm wrong about that.

 

[BlueBaby]

Hello, and welcome to BYC!

 

[007Sean]

Howdy and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Some Emus will develop that behavior. Their protecting their territory! Showing off who's the alpha male. Hard to say what to do to break him of the behavior. The ones I raised, never exhibited that behavior.

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[drumstick diva]

Sean didn't realize you raised Emus too

 

[briefvisit]

Hi I know this is a chicken forum but I have gotten information here on emus too. I need some advice. I have an 18 month old male emu. He is my pet and has always been very loving towards me. It seems he suddenly turned very aggressive towards me. I don’t know why? I can’t think of anything unusual happening. He chases me out of his pen now snapping and kicking very aggressively. He doesn’t seem to mind my mom or dad being in his pen. Do emus go thru puberty Idk what to do. Any advice??

I have just finished observing two tame-wild chicks grow through this age. I understand from the literature that they become young adults at about two years. Check this photo:

These are the two I speak of plus two of their already-gone-bush clutchmates. (These four hatched with five others, a clutch of nine that I observe for a year.) My point is that these 21-month-old chicks juuuuuust show a little chick-ness in their plumage, a little over-sized-ness in their tooshes. (The other last thing to go might be a tiny bit of black 'black-head-stage' feathers at the top of their necks.)

Now, both the two chicks first vocalised as adults just about a month ago: grunts, so they're males. That is another obvious sign. They stopped cheeping months and months ago. Then one dusk I heard the quietest little sorta 'half grunt' from one. So, adult vocalisations at about 22 months.

And . . . there has been a cheeky wild emu in the house-clearing. ('Extra Emu' I call it) It has been around for about six weeks; and this week, for the very first time, Limpychick and Tooshtoosh forbade it access to the wheat on the ground, raised their feathers, and had just a little charge at it -- another sign of adulthood: 23 months.

Actually, I'm sorta glad to get the chance to answer your question. If you search here for 'Planet Rothschildi,' you'll figure out who I am. (Drumstick Diva knows me. She's a long timer.) We have at times had the privelege of observing Eric's chicks closely for considerable periods. But it was Eric's death, which left his clutch orphaned, that gave us the first opportunity in ten years to observe chicks at this age. Normally, they'd have become independent by this age.

So, your emu? First: I always ask for more space for emus. I'm sure that aggression and minimal space are linked. Otherwise, I'd guess it's not puberty, but adulthood.

Supreme Emu, Lake Muir, W.A.