When will our Emuss start laying Eggs?

[redguinea]

mine are only one year old so they will get MUCH bigger in the way of bulk. there already 6.2 when they stand straight up. 

It must just be the photo. Did you hatch them from eggs?

 

[xxnativewolfxx]

no i bought them as chicks from a breeder an hour from me lol

 

[Drealynn]

the laying season is coming to an end sadly it starts in November and it ends in march. there at that age they should lay now ....HOWEVER ....i am not sure females will lay without a male present. some people say they do but many say they will not! it might be best to get some chicks or maybe find an adult male or 2 depending on if you want pairs or a trio.  but you can get them sexed http://www.avianbiotech.com/Feathers.htm there is one in the UK i think.

 

[Drealynn]

...

[/quote

I'm new to this website completely excited. I wanted to say that I had a few female issues that were resolved by finding them a male or I also fid the fake egg trick. I bought an empty egg poured hodge podge hardener on the inside and swirled around than painted the outside with it, 3 coats. I layed this egg in a nesting area and she began to lay.

 

[drumstick diva]

I knew someone with two pairs of mature emus. The one female was flirting and carrying on to beat the band, the male just ignored her. The other pair the female chased off the male. I believe she ended up rehoming them. They did lay eggs but, the male's wouldn't sit on them . I think they(eggs) were just blown out later.

 

[Emu House]

Hello fellow emu friend. I agree with you about the size. The emu I bought (as a chick) in NZ - is now fully grown and she is significantly smaller than the ones that used to roam around a remote part of West Australia where I used to live. In places where the gene pool is limited, that's the result. Smaller, therefore more vulnerable, susceptible to ailments due to lesser resistance to disease, more chicks born with bandy legs -and overall the lack of variation of 'fresh' genes to that limited pool will continue to produce weak birds. I am sure that's what has happened in NZ. On the topic of eggs, mine is over 3yrs now and no eggs. I asked an emu farmer if the female needs a male present and they were not sure - their uncertainty was probably because they have never had a female on its own. I can confidently conclude that mine will never lay an egg and it does seem that a male is required for that to happen. I would not be able to introduce another emu here because a single emu becomes highly territorial. As much as I think at times she would have liked another of her own kind, I have a feeling she would reject another emu based on how territorial she has become. Even introducing the new pup was a risk as she took months to accept it as part of the family then finally gave up on running it down. The single emu makes a wonderful 'guard dog' for that very reason - it will not let any other animal on to the place - which is a good thing as we never have to worry about stray dogs or anything else coming onto the property. I am still battling what I think is an issue with intestinal parasites. My girl is still off her food and has lost a considerable amount of weight. Despite having shelter, she sits out in the rain and when she's wet, it is easy to tell how emaciated she is beneath the flattened wet feathers. I have tried everything so I just wake every morning and check to see where she is, hoping she is still alive. When I offer her food, she looks at it then shakes her head as if she has smelled or tasted something bitter even though she hasn't touched it! Then she walks away. She has absolutely no interest in food whatsoever. I give her lots of choice and nothing entices her. When these birds get sick and no one can shed any light on the cause, it leaves you guessing and a trial and error path is a sure way to lose confidence in your animal husbandry skills, especially when you see the animal deteriorating in front of your very eyes. All I can do now is wait and see if the latest worming worked or not. If not, I will undoubtedly be burying this beloved emu very soon.

 

[farmchick897]

Perhaps she swallowed something she shouldn't have as you have said you have her free range and she has access to pretty much everything. She could have blockage in her throat or stomach and that would cause her not to eat and slowly starve to death. You might not be in favor of fences but keeping them safe inside an enclosure may be the best thing for a domesticated emu.

 

[Emu House]

Thank you for you reply. I agree, the safety issue is important when considering whether or not you keep a pet emu in an enclosure. Ours is free-roaming because there are no 'evident' dangers. We cleaned up the 6 acre property extensively when we moved here 6 years ago and felt confident about letting her roaming around here. Admittedly we don't know what she might pick out of the little stream where she plays occasionally in the warmer months and we don't know what else she might come across in the forested area which might prove toxic (certain fungi in the forest perhaps?). She seems content with her freedom and I would not like to take that away form her. On the rare occasion I have put her in the large dog yard area away from work trucks coming and going during building projects, she paced up and down the fence line and was clearly frustrated at being confined. Most likely because she was not used to it. It is one of those things we dare to risk when letting them free-roam for the sake of the bird's happiness. I do see your point about the need for some people to have them in enclosures if that's where they are going to be safe. I'm happy to share with you what I consider to be a bit of break through this morning when I went to feed her, and as usual she turned away. But then I followed her to the forest edge where she was seemingly looking down for food on the ground so I tossed the container of peas (peas used to be her favorite treat) onto the ground in front of her and she proceeded to pick them up and eat them !! I'll be doing that all day every day if I have to. Anything to get her to eat !. Wish me luck and thank you again for your reply. There is no one around here to share the trials and tribulations of owning an emu so all comments and suggestions etc are sincerely appreciated

 

[farmchick897]

When you say free roam it means to me she has access to the house, yard (maybe not native plants), cars, etc. It would seem to be there would be a lot of things an emu could get into especially since they like shiny things. What are you feeding her, so you know for sure she is female? Maybe she is egg bound?

 

[birdeo]

Hello fellow emu friend. I agree with you about the size. The emu I bought (as a chick) in NZ - is now fully grown and she is significantly smaller than the ones that used to roam around a remote part of West Australia where I used to live. In places where the gene pool is limited, that's the result. Smaller, therefore more vulnerable, susceptible to ailments due to lesser resistance to disease, more chicks born with bandy legs -and overall the lack of variation of 'fresh' genes to that limited pool will continue to produce weak birds. I am sure that's what has happened in NZ. On the topic of eggs, mine is over 3yrs now and no eggs. I asked an emu farmer if the female needs a male present and they were not sure - their uncertainty was probably because they have never had a female on its own. I can confidently conclude that mine will never lay an egg and it does seem that a male is required for that to happen. I would not be able to introduce another emu here because a single emu becomes highly territorial. As much as I think at times she would have liked another of her own kind, I have a feeling she would reject another emu based on how territorial she has become. Even introducing the new pup was a risk as she took months to accept it as part of the family then finally gave up on running it down. The single emu makes a wonderful 'guard dog' for that very reason - it will not let any other animal on to the place - which is a good thing as we never have to worry about stray dogs or anything else coming onto the property. I am still battling what I think is an issue with intestinal parasites. My girl is still off her food and has lost a considerable amount of weight. Despite having shelter, she sits out in the rain and when she's wet, it is easy to tell how emaciated she is beneath the flattened wet feathers. I have tried everything so I just wake every morning and check to see where she is, hoping she is still alive. When I offer her food, she looks at it then shakes her head as if she has smelled or tasted something bitter even though she hasn't touched it! Then she walks away. She has absolutely no interest in food whatsoever. I give her lots of choice and nothing entices her. When these birds get sick and no one can shed any light on the cause, it leaves you guessing and a trial and error path is a sure way to lose confidence in your animal husbandry skills, especially when you see the animal deteriorating in front of your very eyes. All I can do now is wait and see if the latest worming worked or not. If not, I will undoubtedly be burying this beloved emu very soon.

take a stool sample to a vet to see if/what kind of parasites the bird has. Could be something else...possibly encephalitis... but no sense in letting the bird waste away like that.