810-Lancaster Farmino, Saturday, Dacambar 31,1994
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
Carol and Pete Heth raise 17
emu on their farm in Columbia.
They have fallen in love with the
long-legged birds that can grow
six-feet tall. Although emu have
wings, they cannot fly. They are
part of the ratite family.
Carol said that the family began
raising emu two years ago when
they invested some money in the
birds as a college fund for their
children, Alysa, 18; Patrick, 16;
and Katie, 13.
The family also raise sheep,
chickens, and a refugee pot-bellied
pig on the farm. The family consid
ered raising buffalo, but that would
have required getting rid of the
sheep.
After talking with several folks
who raise emu and visiting several
farms, the Heths purchased their
first emu pair, Amos and Ann.
“Emu have a great personality
and are fun and interesting,” Carol
said. “They are just like any other
animal. The more time you spend
with them, the more responsive
they become.”
Amos is known to lay his head
on Carol and fall asleep.
Generally, people purchase emu
in pairs. A pair may have 20 to 40
chicks in one breeding season.
Females lay th«ee eggs every
three days. In the wild, after a
female lays an egg, the male sits on
the eggs and raises the chicks. Typ
ically, a female will have three dif
ferent mates each year.
The Heths choose a mate for
each one, but sometimes the birds
are very choosey and will reject a
potential mate.
Because the eggs need to be kept
at 97.5 degrees, the embryos will
not survive in local temperatures,
so breeders put the newly-laid eggs
in incubators.
The eggs are sturdy and thick
shelled with a dark green color.
Eggs range in size, with females
normally laying larger eggs each
season. The size of the egg is not an
indication of the size of the chick.
EMU COLORING CONTEST
RULES
Age groups: 1- 5 years old
6-12 years old
Ist Prize: Cuddly Stuffed Emu
Animal
2nd Prize: “Edward the Emu”
story book
3rd Prize: Emu Eggshell
Rules:
• All entries must be submitted
on original newspaper entry form.
• Please include name, age,
address, and phone number.
• Paints, crayons, and colored
markers may be used.
• All entries should be submitted
at the Pennsylvania Farm Show
Eastern Regional Emu Chapter
Booth in the second floor of the
Northeast Building (Family Cen
ter). Or, mail to College Fund Emu
Farm, 4338 Fairview Rd., Colum
bia. PA 17512.
• All entries will be displayed at
the E.R.E.C. Booth.
• Deadline for the entry to reach
the booth is Wednesday, January
11, at 4 p.m.
• Judging will be done on Wed
nesday. January 11, at 4 p.m. Win
ners will be notified by January 13.
Kids
Guess Who Is New On The Farm
which is about the size of a light
bulb at birth.
It takes S 2 days in the incubator
before the chicks are ready to
hatch. If the electric goes off only
30 minutes is allowed to elapse or
the egg will not survive non
incubated temperatures. The Heths
have an alarm that sounds when the
electric goes off so that they can
switch to a generator to keep the
incubator running.
“Before the unhatched chick is
bom, the Heths whistle close to the
shell and the chick will peep back.
“When the chicks hatch, it’s
hard to believe that such a large
chick can fit inside the egg shell,”
Carol said.
The chicks are kept warm under
a heat lamp and like to snuggle
against a stuffed animal when it’s
time to sleep. An emu chick grows
very fast. At three months old, it is
about 3/4 -feet tall.
After the brown and yellow
chicks hatch, they soon act like
spoiled kids. They follow family
members and even the dog around.
“Gretchen, the dog, looks like
the Pied Piper as she walks around
the barnyard with all the chicks fol
lowing in single file,” Carol said.
Generally the birds seem to be
curious about noises and will fol
low a person mowing the grass
around the lawn, but some birds are
fearful of new noises and people if
the chicks haven’t been pampered
individually when growing up.
“Even after the chicks are
they think they are people
instead of birds,” Carol said. “If we
sit on the patio they will come and
sit with us.”
Emus begin laying eggs
between 18 months and three
years. They will lay for 25 years
and live to be about 30 yean old.
A microchip is inserted in each
chick at birth for security reasons.
The chicks are fed specially
formulated pellets.
Emu are structured similar to
turkey and chicken but taste more
like beef. The meat is a very lean
(97 percent fat free) red meat. It
K oX4l6^^
Carol Hath shows the prizes that will be given to winners In the emu coloring con
test. First prize Is a stuffed emu, second prize Is a book, and third Is a hollow emu egg.
higher in protein, vitamin C, and
iron than beef, and lower in choles
terol than chicken.
The meat contains no chemical
additives or preservatives. An
opportunity to taste emu will be
given at the State Farm Show.
Also, a taste comparison will be
held at the Farm Show on Wednes
day, when local celebrities will be
served both beef and emu and
asked to determined which is
which.
Currently, emu meat that is sold
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5
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commercially is imported from
Australia, but Texas will begin
slaughtering it next year. The Pen
nsylvania Emu chapter is working
to get USDA approval to slaughter
emu meat in this state.
(Turn to
Pag* B 11)