After more than three weeks on the run, Edgar the Emu of Ancramdale has been captured and returned to his farm family safe and sound.
Occasionally sighted on Roche Road, Edgar was spotted on August 18 on Wiltsie Bridge Road. Farm manager Kiersten Higgins quickly arrived on the scene, but catching the emu was no simple task. “Edgar came right up to me and ate out of my hand, but there were so many onlookers and cars that he got spooked and ran to the far back of the nearby field,” Higgins said.
When two different drivers reported his return to the site several hours later, Higgins called Isaac Angell and Teddy Chase of Bentley Veterinary Practice in Stanfordville. Together, they managed to grab the runaway bird and wrap his legs so he couldn’t run, kick or scratch. Edgar submitted calmly, with the help of a light sedative.
Now Ancramdale’s eminent emu is home recuperating. Higgins said it will take time for Edgar to reacclimate to farm life after his three weeks off the grid. She thanked members of the community for keeping an eye out for him, and said the farm family is relieved that Edgar has returned to his daughter Ursula and the rest of the emu flock.