Emu shelter related question

[Gumby123456]

I’m considering an emu and want to be certain my environment will work well to care for one before making any decisions. I have this 30x 20’ enclosure that I believe would do well to sleep a pair of emus or provide night time shelter if I did some repairs and work on it but it would obviously need to be free to roam during the days.

My question is, will an emu return to its shelter on its own as it starts to become dark or would I need to have an enclosed roaming pen where I can Shepard it to its shelter at night?

Also there isn’t a fence preventing the emu from potentially roaming out onto the street but it is a long mountain driveway that’s about a 5 minute drive to get to the neighborhood while the surrounding areas are basically wilderness. Would this be a problem?

Thanks for reading and helping me decide if this ranch is a proper fit for a pet emu

 

[briefvisit]

'there isn’t a fence preventing the emu from potentially roaming out onto the street'

Oh, this is a problem for various reasons. In the U.S. -- I am in Western Australia -- fences keep predators out as well as keeping emus in.


'about a 5 minute drive to get to the neighborhood'

In the wild, emus cover huge distances. They are inquisitive. They got all day. My guess is they'll find their way out that driveway.

It's good to teach your emus the sound of something that means 'treats.' For mine, it's the sound of a knuckle tapping their tin plate. A couple of thimbles of wheat every afternoon will soon teach them to rock up to the shelter at dusk.

Also, if they are tame, they will come if you call.

But unless the snow is inches deep, they don't need shelter -- at least, it's not a priority. Over years, we've had wonderful conversations about this, about folks who lovingly build shelters that their birds ignore.

In the wild, they do usually roost under trees.

Supreme Emu

 

[dmidkiff66]

I have 4 emu, and I walk them 3/4 times a week. I have three lage fields they like to run in. I never let them out of my site. I raised them all from chicks. I hatch two myself, the other two were three days old when I picked them up. I also have a 6 foot fence, I would never let them roam unattended. Mine don't know a stranger, and when they see people, they come running. This scares most people, who tend to run. When they run, the emu run to keep up.

I also watched every video on Youtube to learn what I needed to know........they were all wrong. They said emus will not use a shelter much, mine bed down inside every night. They said you didn't need heat, mine love the diesel heater vent, and crowd around it when it gets real cold. I installed freezer door curtains so the wind can't blow in on them, but they come and go as they please.

Also if you have dogs, or other animals, introduce them as babies to them. They will bond with animals they grow up with. My dogs go into the fence and they even play with each other at times. My neighbor's dog came into the fenced area, and was met with hisses and pecked till it left.

Emus are wonderful, low maintainance birds that are so much fun to raise. They have a sweet disposition, and can be very funny. But they are big heavy birds that can hurt you without trying, or meaning to. I have been knocked down more than once when they are running in the field and decided to change course, or they crash into each other and then into me. This is the equivelant of having a middle school football player hitting you at running speed.

They will also pull and peck at anything shiny or that catches their eye. You can't wear most jewlery or have strings on your clothing without getting them pulled. At first, my ears were always a curious thing for them, be prepaired to get a few cuts.

I would suggest to you, reading up on how far these birds can roam in the wild. The 5 minute drive you are talking about is nothing to these birds.

I would advise you to have the 5 to 6 foot fence and be sure you can hadle the commitment of emus. They are easy to raise, easy to keep, and fun to own. But they are very hard to rehome in most cases. I would never rescue emus that I didn't know their past history. If you get a bird that is afraid or has been treated bad, they are very aggressive and hard to keep. They can often change the behavior of your birds.

With all that said, please think it over carefully.