Well, I know you guys were probably expecting to see cute little emus and they are definitely cute, but not so little! They were unloaded into their yard and wandered calmly and curiously around the newly trimmed wattle trees, pecking at the cabbage (they love cabbage) I had sprinkled here and there. They did look rather longingly out to the back paddock and, because they have been raised on a farm, they are not as tameable as the other Emerys were, so it is going to be a bit of a challenge but I did manage to pat a couple of them later in the afternoon so I don’t think it will take long for them to trust me. I hope so because I really want to let them free range as soon as possible because the yard, though big enough and fox proofed, is not exactly the Ritz (you can blame the pigs for that!) and the lack of grass is a problem.
This morning when I went out, I was surprised to see how much water they had drunk until I remembered falling into their pool last night! I didn’t tell Son about this but since I woke up with a black eye I had to admit what happened and, yes, he and Husband are sharing yet another laugh at my expense – not funny!
Today we have the job of clearing out the wattle branches, raking the yard and distributing lawn clippings. Son is extremely excited about these chores (do you detect a note of sarcasm?) He is angry with me, not for getting the emus but for keeping it a secret. “We’re supposed to tell each other everything,” he said. “Oh,” I said, “I didn’t know that was a rule.” I’m actually a little nervous of him telling me everything; after all he is a 17-year-old male! We’ll see if his rule has longevity, although I have to admit Son always has told us everything and, when he was much younger and first started to sprout hairs in otherwise hairless places, he would give us a daily count (think armpits please!) Thankfully, that only lasted a few weeks!
Anyway, back to the emus. Here are a couple of pictures:
jmgoyder 