Pros and Cons to Keeping Emu....help, please.

[awesomefowl]

EXAMPLE: Pro #1: The chicks are cute.

I really would like an Emu, but want to know more about the pros and cons of raising one or two. Thanks.

 

[chickensducks&agoose]

con, they'll eat your children.

 

[awesomefowl]

chickensducks&agoose :

con, they'll eat your children.

True....​

 

[TigerLilly]

Sorry...to me, a 'pro' would be raising for meat (if people do such a thing). 'Cute' is something most things grow out of & is responsible for lots of unwanted pets. I'm not bashing (please don't take it that way).
Please do some serious research first! (pro)

 

[awesomefowl]

I did do research.

 

[chickenzoo]

Pro's - they are pretty easy to raise
- they don't eat a lot of feed
- you can use them as livestock protection when raised up around livestock
- they are not typically aggressive
- people think twice before coming in the yard
- they can be a lot of fun and when raised from chicks they can be very social and love attention
- they love water and enjoy being sprayed with a hose or given a kiddie pool
- they are such clowns and love to jump, run and roll around
- they eat small reptiles, mice and love to chase cats

Cons - they grow to 5 plus feet tall, weight 125 lbs or so and can run 45 miles an hour
- you need a good tall fence with running room
- they have sharp claws that can easily disembowel you
- they are attracted to anything shiny, bright colored or sticking outward that they will quickly peck - lost many earrings , bitten ears, hard to keep nails & screws away from them
- they can jump pretty high
- they are not the smartest of creatures and will often keep repeating a certain task.....
- they will go after any animal that they do not see as part of the flock, so adding a new animals must be done in a separate pen.
- they can be hard to catch if they get loose

 

[awesomefowl]

thank you chickenzoo! ! !
How many sq ft minimum do you think 1 emu would take? I would have to build it a pen. Would 20+ x about 10-12 feet be enough?

 

[kburen]

Quote:
Found out recently that we have one in the area on the run that has been for nearly a year or more because noone can catch it!

 

[awesomefowl]

How many sq ft do emu take each?

 

[ShadowRooster]

As much as you can give them!

We have two emus in a 20ft by 50ft pen and they are happy, though they would love if we made it bigger. The emu farm where I got them have 30ft by 100ft for 3-5 emus. If the pen is 100 feet of 50 feet they still walk the fence, our pen looks like a race track- grass grows only in the middle. The rest is just dirt. I would say you could keep one in a 10ft by 25ft, they like longer pens. Other peaple will say more or less.