Emu Rescue
Posted by Kate (Wildlife Rescue)
The Rescue Crew received a phone call from worried locals south of Eumundi – there was an Emu running across the road with a big injury to its neck. The Rescue Crew loaded up our Emu Box, wrangled Bonnie the Australia Zoo Veterinarian away from her patients, and quickly headed up!
Once we arrived at the property, we searched and searched for the injured Emu but it had escaped the contained area through some barbed wire, and all that remained was a few feathers caught in the barbs. After searching the nearby properties, we had to wait for another sighting to resume the rescue.
A few days later, we received a call from the Post Office at Eumundi – An Injured Emu had just walked down the main street, past the post office and down into the fields below! We asked our local carers to locate him, but once again, the elusive Emu had disappeared!
The very next morning, we received a call from a family near the main street; they had managed to corral the Emu into a cattle yard and had closed the gates! SUCCESS! So we headed straight there, Emu box in tow, to check out the injuries! We were able to tell from the injury that it was possibly a wild dog attack, and so time was of the essence!
Briano and James had the difficult job of containing the Emu, while Kado secured a bag over his head to calm him down, once secure, the team transported him into the Emu Box, and back to the AWH! We were able to have a quick glimpse of the injury – it didn’t look good.
Once at the Australian Wildlife Hospital, Dr Peter McKinney quickly anaesthetised the Emu, and all of the team were on standby to help out if he woke up. After over an hour and a half of working on him, and perfectly sewing up his open trachea and neck, sadly the Emu was not strong enough to come out of the anaesthetic and he passed away.
If you have a Wildlife rescue or concern, please call Australia Zoo Rescue on 5436 2000.
Tags: Australia Zoo Rescue, Emu, wildlife. rescue
