A frightened young emu escaped a farm in Luseland. Now its owner is racing to bring it home

More than a week later, she is still searching. But what began as the hunt for a missing pet has become a race against time.

The juvenile emu is still wearing an identification tag fastened with what Sheppard-Lee describes as a thick plastic zip tie. After removing an identical tag from the second young emu that remained at home, she fears the one on the missing bird could tighten around its leg as it continues to grow.

“This is scary as he grows, these will tighten and cause him to lose his legs,” she stated.

“At this point, it’s pretty critical that we can get him soon before something like that happens.”

The emu was one of two juveniles Sheppard-Lee brought home that day after purchasing them through an Alberta auction. The birds had originally come from the United States.

“I let them out into my yard and they were all running with the other emus and the other birds,” she said.

When evening came, Sheppard-Lee began locking up the animals for the night, as she does every day. The new arrival, unfamiliar with its surroundings, panicked.

“He was getting panicky because he didn’t know routines or know the home yet,” she said.

Realizing she was only pushing it farther away, Sheppard-Lee backed off and hoped the bird might return after hearing the other emus. It didn’t.

Since then, she has enlisted a drone operator, alerted local police and aerial spraying companies, and shared the emu’s photo widely on social media in hopes someone recognizes it. A reported sighting southwest of Luseland several days later prompted another search, but the bird wasn’t found before nightfall.

She believes someone spotting the emu could make all the difference.

“The best thing to do, if they’re able to, is to right away take a picture,” she said.

“Approaching him and trying to catch him, he’s just gonna run, because he is in what you call ‘fight-or-flight’ mode.”

Instead, she hopes anyone who sees the bird can keep it in sight while she and a drone operator make their way to the area, allowing the emu to settle before attempting a careful rescue.

The bird also faces dangers beyond remaining lost.

“They still are so much at risk at night because they can’t see and they have to go to sleep,” Sheppard-Lee said, adding coyotes, foxes and even farm dogs could threaten it while it rests.

The most recent reported sighting came today from a resident near St. Walburg, who believed they had seen the emu.

Despite its unusual appearance, she said the young emu poses no danger to people.

“He’s not a danger, because he’s just a baby still,” she said. “He’s not mean, he’s not aggressive, he’s just scared.”

For now, Sheppard-Lee is asking anyone who spots the emu not to chase it, but to take a photo, keep it in sight if possible and call or text her at 403-594-4200.

—

Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com

by Kenneth Cheung

A frightened young emu escaped a farm in Luseland. Now its owner is racing to bring it home

What's Trending