Two male emus sitting on nothing

[luckyclucker]

I have a question for anyone who might be able to answer. I have two emus-- I took them from a man who couldn't keep them. I've had them for about 2.5 years. I believe they are both male. No mating has occurred (at least not between them, they've tried to mate me, my two Great Pyrs, the guys from the power company, et cetera).

Anyhow, about 6 days ago they both went and laid down together out at the end of my property, by a stream. They won't get up. When I go and bring them food they lay their necks out on the ground and try to hide.

Any idea how I can maybe move them along and get them to get up and feed themselves? They don't eat anything that I give them and I'm worried about them losing weight, as well as not defending themselves against skunks or raccoons.

 

[ES Emus]

have you checked to see if they are sitting on any eggs or anything they might think are eggs?

 

[Calla]

If you not sure, just roll them over towards you, and you'll see eggs, if any... one of my boys sat on an egg, but rolled him over and got egg lol 2 x just recently.
Calla

 

[briefvisit]

Wow!!! This is . . . most unusual.
Well, not eating and pretending to be invisible sounds like 'I am incubating!'
Ummm . . . if they are tame enough to be handled, could you actually gently gently gently get them on their feet, in the hope that they will snap out of it?
(Hmmm . . . that brash Supreme Emu has used the 'derangement' twice before. Not meant to upset anyone . . . but it does seem like the right word.)

SE

 

[luckyclucker]

they hiss and get fidgety when I try to check under them. i just think they are both male-- they were just trying to mate with everything but each other for the last several months, I really don't think there are any eggs. I guess I'll try the rolling over trick. They aren't eating, and it's cold here. How long does this usually go on? I love them, but really are the dumbest birds I have.

 

[briefvisit]

Hello, Luckyclucker.

It's so pleasing to be able to give really helpful advice (as opposed to semi-useless suggestions about how to separate a male from his chicks).

[It's midnight, readers, and we can hear the commanding female vocalising, from her roost about fifty metres away, at the house -- it's the lights.]

Apart from your birds being confused, they will not be in any physical danger for a good long while. In the wild, in many places in Australia, the males endure every year the 50-plus days of incubation in a cold wet environment. They lose a considerable amount of weight -- something like a third of total body weight -- during this yearly ordeal.

[If you have time, find 'Mating-Season in Australia, and start reading somewhere about two thirds of the way in. You'll find notes on a nesting male.]

So, if your birds were healthy and of normal weight when they started this silliness, you need not be at all worried about their physical well-being for weeks and weeks and weeks.

SE, Unicup, Western Australia

 

[luckyclucker]

Hey Briefvisit:

Thank you-- that is exactly what I wanted to know. I've read the general online info about emus (and an old emu-raising handbook from the 1950s) but I just wanted some "real person" reassurance about it. They are a pair of dummies, but I sure like them. We live at about 8,000 feet, up in the mountains of New Mexico. I wouldn't even have the birds here if some idiot had not taken them-- not realizing they would get larger than a chicken-- and then not wanted to keep them. I've built them a nice warm house, given them heated blankets under the straw, but they pretty much insist on sleeping out in the snow, sleet and cold. Well, they are wild animals, aren't they?

Thanks again for your helpful words. I have scoured topographical maps of Australia, looking for max temps and elevations and realize it is a very different climate and geography. That said, the few things I've read have indicated that emus live in almost all parts of your country, and handle extreme variations in climate fairly well. So... I guess they're now handling yet another type of climate!

 

[ronemu]

Hi,

Yes they may have something under them. I raised a lot of emus and ostriches back in the 80's and 90's. They should be fine, and they will get up. Good luck. I raise Ostrich now and they think any thing the color of an egg is an egg, and like to try to roll it around.