Much ado about an emu

The county was buzzing Monday afternoon as an unusual PCEMA alert went out via text: An emu (a large ostrich-like bird) is along the road at the intersection of HWY 22W and HWY 1054. If you know of an emu owner in that area, please call Pendleton County Dispatch at 859-654-3300.

At that moment, the race was on to see the emu.

While the curious drove around the area in hopes of seeing the sight, dispatch was doing its job to get the bird to safety. Animal Control was dispatched immediately.

John Bloomfield, Pendleton County's Animal Control Officer, said this was a first for him, and he did not hesitate to call Honey Hill Farms, the local petting zoo owned by Sally Powell, to get advice as to how to work with the animal.

"They told me what to do and what NOT to do," he said. "That was the good part. I don't have all the equipment I needed for it, but some of the stuff I do have. I could have caught it if I needed to, but from what I understand, don't stand in front of them. They evidently can kick and they can kick hard and do some damage. The other thing was that if you get them around the neck, you have to catch them from the side or the back, and if you don't, they can peck you. The biggest thing the Farm told me that obviously the owner should know more about the animal how to deal with it, and one of the owners is coming."

The emu's behaviors are what drew to attention to it in the first place. "It kept pacing along the outside of the fence line," Bloomfield stated as he pointed to the white fence that corners out HWYs 22 and 1054. "He ran back and forth for about 45 minutes. While he paced the fence line, I tried to find the owner. Before I could do that, and he darted around the fence right here (he indicated where the fence ends and meets the wooded area at the intersection), and then he went into the woods. I'm not chasing him into that."

According to the owner, Melissa Schalk, and Rob Powell of Honey Hill, the emu's kick is not like a horse's kick.

"They will glove you," Schalk told Bloomfield. "They will rake their claws down your front if you approach them from the front and just peel you from head to foot."

Powell confirmed Schalk's words and added more description. "They are dangerous. You have to herd them. You can't just pick them up. Adult emus are fast and are as tall as a person. They will kick, and they can kill you if you don't know what you are doing."

Powell says that, of all the animals they have on the farm, the emu is hardest to catch if it gets loose. And for those who are concerned about the animal being loose in the wild, Powell says his sister, Megan Larkin, has more experience with emus, and she said that the emu will likely be fine as it is on the loose.

"Megan says not many things are a threat to it in the wild. They are fast and strong. They are unlikely to be caught by a coyote or a predator because they can't catch it, and even if they do, the emu will likely cause the more damage to the predator."

Meanwhile, as of 12:15 on Tuesday afternoon, the emu is still on the lam and is grabbing the attention of media outlets across the tri-state. While we are entertained by the story, the main goal of everyone in the county is to get the emu back home.

If anyone sees the emu or can provide information concerning its whereabouts, Bloomfield recommends calling dispatch at 859-654-3300. He cautions that no one should approach the emu or try to herd it himself or herself. Calling dispatch will allow them to send the proper authorities to hopefully wrangle the emu in.