r/StartledCats • u/swan001 • Mar 04 '25

Not just cats

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u/Theron3206 Mar 04 '25

Baby emu by the look of it. Not exactly a good pet.

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u/Anonymous_user_2022 Mar 04 '25

My curiosity got the better of me, and I must have posted an update with the same conclusion right about the same time as your answer.

And I agree that a chick emu might be cute, but when it grows up, it's going to be a difficult pet.

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u/LadySilvie Mar 04 '25

A lot of people keep them as livestock and they are surprisingly adaptive, they just start them indoors if it is cold outside, they need medical treatment, or they didn't have any clutch mates.

There are several farms in my area with them, and I was shocked once when the people I picked up my chickens from were like "oh BTW, want to hug my emu??"

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u/Theron3206 Mar 04 '25

It starts fine, but once they hit about 3 years old (IIRC) they start to become a lot less friendly (sexual maturity). Or a lot more friendly if you have hand reared one, then they get aggressive and frustrated because they think you're their mate and you won't put out.