Why have my Emus started fighting?

[Avipt]

So my two emus thats 1 year and 3 months old i think, just started fighting eachother, they start hizzing and kicking each other, like the bump chest and kick forward. For what we know they have been doing this for 3 days now. They dont walk together anymore but keep their seperate distances.

Why is this?

 

[birdeo]

that is very common when the have turned one year of age even if they have grown up together from chicks.
Be prepared to separate them ( asap ) and/or put some kind of sight barrier in the pen ... something they can run and get behind and away from each other .. or you may wind up with some serious injuries/death there.
If you don't have another pen built where you can move one you can just divide the pen you have now with sturdy gates or wire... then feed and water them at the dividing line until they are sleeping side by side at the divider and not fighting through the fence at each other, only then will it be safe to try and reunite them.

 

[Avipt]

They have alot of room, and they do keep their distance and have places to lay low. Are they only doing this cause they are the same sex? Cause we havent determine what sex they are yet. We where afraid we had to get rid of one of them, and there arent many Emu Breeders around here

 

[birdeo]

no rhyme or reason to it, opposite and same sex will fight but as a rule, the females seem to be the worst for going at each each other .
( again, that's no guarantee as to what you have )
You might want to consider having them DNA'd but in a few months you will be able to tell what you have there.
In the meantime, watch them carefully for before you know it you could lose one , if you have a sight barrier ( like a big round bale of hay or something ) it can only help. Personally I would separate them and give them time to " work it out" at a common fence line.

 

[briefvisit]

'Sight barriers'! Nice term.

Yah, sight barriers work.

se

 

[Avipt]

But emus do tend to "work it out"? in situations like this

 

[briefvisit]

No, they will kill one another. That is, it's not certain; however, in the wild, the option of flight to another territory is always there.

My observations of wild emus taught me that they fight ceaselessly. Yours may -- having been raised as pets -- be a little gentler. But it's in 'em!!

SE

 

[birdeo]

If you separate them and try as I suggest it may very well work out just fine, it has worked for myself and others.
My first " bonded" pair took to wanting to fight as coming two's, I separated them ... fed and watered them at the common fence line then put them back together after they were sleeping side by side and no kicking etc. was going on through the fence.
They got along fine after that ( bred well , etc. ) until one terrible stormy night a few months later
the male broke both of the females legs in what I can only assume was a relentless fight.
He had been setting at the bottom of the pasture at the time, ( Never again will I let a male set on his own eggs ) and
still not sure just what all happened during the night but it was a sad find the next morning .
My best guess is she got spooked by the storm and ran over him while he was setting and he retaliated.

 

[Avipt]

Im sorry for you loss But lets just say my Emus wont get along and we have to get rid of one of them, cause our layout isnt really made for 2 seperate Emu pens. How are they doing as loners? Do they get depressed or something? Not that i want him to be alone but might take awhile to get a replacement or something.

 

[ES Emus]

Emus in captivity will also gang up on another bird, often times a weaker or injured bird and kill it...