A wayward emu is on the loose in Harrison County after spooking a rancher’s livestock for two weeks. Brad Martin said his son and nephew were heading to the family fishing hole on a summer afternoon when they spotted the unwelcome guest.
“They came running up to the house, yelling, ‘Daddy, there’s a prehistoric animal at the pond!’ ” Martin said.
When Martin investigated, he found an emu: a shaggy, flightless bird of Australian origin. Emus had been the objects of a farming fad that faded in the 1990s. The birds are none too bright, he added.
“It was real gentle, just dumb as a rock, though,” he said. “You wouldn’t believe how dumb they are. The gate was open, and he’d just run back and forth. The dogs would get after him, and he wouldn’t take off down the pasture to get away from them. He’d jump up and down and do all kinds of crazy stuff.”
Martin could not find the owner. He thought about giving away the emu, but he didn’t have a trailer to transport it, and even if he did, he said he wouldn’t have known how to load the seven-foot-tall bird.
Meanwhile, the emu was “rampaging” on his property. “It wasn’t afraid of nothing,” Martin said. “It was just scaring the horses and the cows and dogs to death because they’re not used to nothing like that. It would get out there beside the fence and run up and down the fence. The cows wouldn’t eat, the horses wouldn’t eat, the dogs kept barking, and finally we let the gate open and let it go.”
Martin shooed the emu away from his property on Dehart Road, east of Diana. If any neighbors come across the wandering bird, they may report it to their county sheriff.
Kenneth “Al” Howe, the president of the Texas Emu Association, was pretty miffed when he heard that Martin had turned out the emu. He said Martin should have alerted the emu association or animal control authorities to remove the bird. He said when the market for emu meat failed to materialize in the ’90s, many speculators around East Texas and elsewhere released their flocks. Some are still laying eggs in the wild.
“Most that haven’t been hit by cars or killed by predators are pretty well hidden,” said Howe, who lives in Central Texas. “A lot of people who have big farms know they’ve got them, but they don’t bother them.”
An emu processing plant once operated in Longview but closed in the late 1990s. Emu oil is still used in cosmetic and pharmaceutical products, and Howe predicts that demand will increase in the next couple of years.
In Diana, Martin said the emu had his Red Brangus cows scattering in every direction.
“Talk about fast, when it decides to go it’s going,” Martin said. “It was a pretty wild little old experience.”
The rancher figures he hasn’t seen the last of the errant emu. “I’m sure it’s around here somewhere,” he said. “I bet it ain’t gone too far down the line.”
AN UPDATE
The day after the story about the emu appeared in the local newspaper, a Diana woman named Anita Davis called in. She thinks it’s her bird. His name is Bud. He’s 16 years old, and he’s been on his own for quite some time.
“Everybody knew my emu had gotten out, but it’s been out for six months and I just assumed it was dead,” she said.
If this emu is indeed Bud, he hasn’t wandered far in the past half-year. The Martin place is less than a mile from Davis’s spread.
“I just really feel like this is my emu,” she said.
According to Davis, Martin’s description of Bud — gentle but dumb as rocks — was pretty accurate. “He’s tame,” she said. “He was a pet when I had him, but he got out through the gate, and we couldn’t catch him.”
Davis and her husband have one emu left, Bud’s father. At one time, the Davises owned 101 emus, but they gave away almost all of the others when a market for emu meat didn’t materialize.
While some emu enthusiasts swear by the birds’ lean flesh, Davis said she doesn’t partake. “If I was starving I could probably have eaten it, but I can’t eat something I’ve given a name to,” she said.
If anybody finds Bud, Davis requests that they give her a call. Don’t try to catch him, she added.
“The males are very friendly, and that’s why they can pet him,” she said. However, “you have to know how to handle an emu or they can get hurt really bad.”
Since the newspaper story came out, Davis said her husband has heard from other neighbors who have seen Bud. “He may not want to come home,” she joked. “It sounds like he’s having a good time.”
3,534 responses to “Emu on the run”
Thanks for the strategies you are discussing on this site. Another thing I would like to say is the fact that getting hold of duplicates of your credit score in order to check accuracy of any detail will be the first activity you have to undertake in credit repair. You are looking to cleanse your credit history from harmful details flaws that wreck your credit score.
I have been surfing online more than 3 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours. It is pretty worth enough for me. In my opinion, if all webmasters and bloggers made good content as you did, the net will be much more useful than ever before.
colour trading app
okmark your weblog and check again here regularly. I am quite certain I?ll learn many new stuff right here! Good luck for the next!
A person essentially help to make seriously posts I would state. This is the very first time I frequented your website page and thus far? I amazed with the research you made to make this particular publish incredible. Magnificent job!
This website was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I’ve found something which helped me. Kudos!
Pretty! This was an incredibly wonderful post. Many thanks for providing these details.
I was extremely pleased to find this website. I want to to thank you for ones time due to this wonderful read!! I definitely savored every bit of it and i also have you book-marked to check out new things on your blog.
Pretty! This was an extremely wonderful article. Thank you for supplying this information.
I would like to thank you for the efforts you have put in penning this blog. I really hope to view the same high-grade content from you later on as well. In fact, your creative writing abilities has inspired me to get my very own blog now 😉
I’ve been absent for some time, but now I remember why I used to love this blog. Thanks , I will try and check back more frequently. How frequently you update your site?
One thing I’d like to comment on is that fat burning plan fast is possible by the appropriate diet and exercise. An individual’s size not just affects appearance, but also the overall quality of life. Self-esteem, melancholy, health risks, as well as physical skills are damaged in weight gain. It is possible to just make everything right and still gain. In such a circumstance, a condition may be the offender. While a lot food and not enough work out are usually the culprit, common health conditions and widespread prescriptions can greatly amplify size. Thanks alot : ) for your post right here.
Thank you sharing these types of wonderful threads. In addition, the right travel as well as medical insurance program can often ease those worries that come with vacationing abroad. Any medical crisis can quickly become too expensive and that’s bound to quickly put a financial impediment on the family’s finances. Putting in place the best travel insurance package prior to setting off is well worth the time and effort. Thanks a lot
Thanks for this excellent article. Yet another thing to mention is that the majority of digital cameras can come equipped with the zoom lens that permits more or less of your scene being included simply by ‘zooming’ in and out. Most of these changes in {focus|focusing|concentration|target|the a**** length are reflected within the viewfinder and on large display screen right at the back of the camera.
Greetings from Carolina! I’m bored to death at work so I decided to browse your blog on my iphone during lunch break. I love the knowledge you present here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home. I’m amazed at how quick your blog loaded on my phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, awesome blog!
Howdy! I could have sworn I’ve visited your blog before but after browsing through a few of the articles I realized it’s new to me. Anyhow, I’m certainly delighted I came across it and I’ll be bookmarking it and checking back regularly.
I blog frequently and I seriously appreciate your content. This article has really peaked my interest. I will take a note of your site and keep checking for new details about once per week. I opted in for your Feed as well.
This page really has all of the information and facts I wanted about this subject and didn’t know who to ask.
Next time I read a blog, Hopefully it does not disappoint me just as much as this one. I mean, Yes, it was my choice to read, nonetheless I genuinely thought you’d have something helpful to say. All I hear is a bunch of moaning about something you can fix if you weren’t too busy seeking attention.
Thanks alot : ) for your post. I want to say that the expense of car insurance differs from one policy to another, mainly because there are so many different facets which give rise to the overall cost. As an example, the make and model of the automobile will have a large bearing on the purchase price. A reliable old family automobile will have a more affordable premium when compared to a flashy sports car.
I have been surfing online more than three hours nowadays, but I by no means found any interesting article like yours. It?s beautiful value sufficient for me. Personally, if all webmasters and bloggers made good content material as you probably did, the web will likely be a lot more useful than ever before.
Everything is very open with a precise clarification of the issues. It was definitely informative. Your site is very useful. Many thanks for sharing.
This is the perfect blog for anybody who wants to understand this topic. You realize a whole lot its almost hard to argue with you (not that I really will need to…HaHa). You certainly put a brand new spin on a topic that’s been discussed for a long time. Wonderful stuff, just wonderful.
Greetings! Very helpful advice in this particular post! It’s the little changes that make the most significant changes. Thanks for sharing!
I seriously love your blog.. Very nice colors & theme. Did you make this site yourself? Please reply back as I’m wanting to create my own site and would like to find out where you got this from or what the theme is called. Cheers!
Oh my goodness! Amazing article dude! Thank you, However I am going through difficulties with your RSS. I don’t understand the reason why I am unable to join it. Is there anybody getting identical RSS issues? Anyone that knows the answer will you kindly respond? Thanks.
I love looking through an article that will make men and women think. Also, thanks for allowing for me to comment.
Hi, I do believe this is a great web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I am going to revisit once again since I book marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to help other people.
There is definately a lot to find out about this subject. I like all of the points you made.
Thanks for the suggestions shared in your blog. Another thing I would like to state is that fat reduction is not supposed to be about going on a fad diet and trying to get rid of as much weight that you can in a set period of time. The most effective way to lose weight naturally is by using it bit by bit and using some basic suggestions which can provide help to make the most through your attempt to shed pounds. You may understand and already be following a few of these tips, nonetheless reinforcing understanding never hurts.
Spot on with this write-up, I honestly think this website needs a great deal more attention. I’ll probably be returning to read more, thanks for the info.
Very good write-up. I certainly appreciate this site. Continue the good work!
I was more than happy to discover this web site. I want to to thank you for ones time for this particularly wonderful read!! I definitely savored every part of it and I have you book-marked to check out new things on your blog.
I just couldn’t leave your website before suggesting that I extremely enjoyed the standard information a person provide to your visitors? Is gonna be again regularly to check up on new posts
hey there and thanks to your info ? I have certainly picked up something new from right here. I did alternatively experience some technical issues the usage of this website, as I experienced to reload the web site lots of occasions prior to I could get it to load correctly. I were wondering if your hosting is OK? Not that I’m complaining, however sluggish loading cases occasions will sometimes affect your placement in google and can injury your high-quality score if ads and ***********|advertising|advertising|advertising and *********** with Adwords. Anyway I?m including this RSS to my e-mail and can look out for much more of your respective interesting content. Ensure that you replace this again very soon..
May I simply just say what a relief to discover someone that truly knows what they’re talking about on the web. You certainly know how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More and more people should read this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised you aren’t more popular because you definitely possess the gift.
Can I simply say what a relief to uncover an individual who actually knows what they’re discussing on the net. You certainly realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important. A lot more people should look at this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised you are not more popular given that you definitely possess the gift.
After exploring a few of the articles on your blog, I really like your way of writing a blog. I book-marked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back in the near future. Take a look at my website as well and tell me how you feel.
It’s nearly impossible to find experienced people in this particular subject, however, you seem like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
I was very pleased to find this great site. I wanted to thank you for your time due to this wonderful read!! I definitely appreciated every bit of it and i also have you book marked to look at new stuff on your website.
After looking into a few of the blog articles on your site, I truly like your way of blogging. I saved it to my bookmark webpage list and will be checking back in the near future. Take a look at my website too and let me know your opinion.
You ought to take part in a contest for one of the greatest blogs on the web. I will highly recommend this site!
Hello there! This post couldn’t be written much better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous roommate! He continually kept talking about this. I most certainly will forward this information to him. Pretty sure he’ll have a great read. I appreciate you for sharing!
Hi! I just would like to give you a huge thumbs up for your excellent information you have here on this post. I will be coming back to your blog for more soon.
Saved as a favorite, I like your web site.
This is a topic that is close to my heart… Take care! Where can I find the contact details for questions?
I used to be able to find good information from your articles.
Also a thing to mention is that an online business administration program is designed for individuals to be able to without problems proceed to bachelor’s degree courses. The Ninety credit diploma meets the lower bachelor college degree requirements and once you earn the associate of arts in BA online, you’ll have access to the modern technologies in such a field. Several reasons why students want to get their associate degree in business is because they are interested in this area and want to get the general training necessary ahead of jumping in to a bachelor diploma program. Thanks alot : ) for the tips you actually provide as part of your blog.
It’s my belief that mesothelioma can be the most dangerous cancer. It’s got unusual attributes. The more I really look at it the more I am sure it does not conduct itself like a true solid human cancer. In case mesothelioma is often a rogue viral infection, in that case there is the possibility of developing a vaccine plus offering vaccination for asbestos exposed people who are open to high risk of developing future asbestos relevant malignancies. Thanks for discussing your ideas for this important ailment.
I’m impressed, I must say. Seldom do I encounter a blog that’s both equally educative and amusing, and let me tell you, you’ve hit the nail on the head. The problem is something not enough men and women are speaking intelligently about. I am very happy I came across this during my hunt for something concerning this.