Best pet- emu, ostrich or Rhea? And WI breeders?

[Noellereagan]

Over the winter months I am going to be preparing for one of these types of birds. I'm very much leaning towards emu thus far. They would be strictly pets. I want only two.
I’m also wondering where in Wisconsin I get pick up freshly (as in same day of hatch) hatched chicks in terms of emus. I spoke to the most wonderful lady - joy - today who was listed as having an emu farm. But her husband died four years ago and she sold the farm but was very informative.

I most definitely need chicks because I have turkeys I plan to raise them with. I don’t want an adult to stomp my little turkey angels that I adore. They’ll be separate anyway- but you know, just to be safe.

Anwyway, emu? Ostrich? Rhea? And go! Please include why you pick the bird you do (ie why are they the best pet choice out of the three?)
Thanks a bunch!

 

[Pyxis]

I have emus. I have always loved them and got lucky enough to win an egg, then bought three more to be sure I had more than one chick hatch.

Emus are silly, good-tempered, and generally not aggressive towards humans. While large, they are not as large as ostriches, which I found to be another plus. I really love my two.

 

[Noellereagan]

I have emus. I have always loved them and got lucky enough to win an egg, then bought three more to be sure I had more than one chick hatch.

Emus are silly, good-tempered, and generally not aggressive towards humans. While large, they are not as large as ostriches, which I found to be another plus. I really love my two.

They do make good pets? I watch your emu thread. I hear a ton of people say they're not good pets. But then again, they say the same thing about turkeys. And one thing is for sure- I have seven turkeys that prove otherwise. What about having only one? I don't really want two. Keep in mind I'm fortunate enough to own a business that allows me to spend a LOT of time with the birds.

 

[Pyxis]

I find mine to be good pets. Desi, the male, is shy and not so keen on being petted, etc, but Ciara, the female, is in my pocket whenever I'm in their pen. She likes to be petted, and if I sit in my bird watching chair, she often will sit down beside me to keep me company.

I would definitely recommend at least two. They mostly hang out in pairs, but in the wild, in the off season when they're not breeding, emus can travel together in large flocks when looking for food and water. So they are fairly social.

 

[mich9510]

I have 2 emus. A female (Daryl) and male (Ernie). I absolutely adore them and it seems they adore me. They are friendly, silly, hardy, and are good at keeping the deer out of my garden. Nothing warms my heart more than seeing them get the zoomies or "doing the spazzy dance" as @briefvisit calls it. I hatched and hand raised them as single chicks. Daryl hatched January 2017 and Ernie just this past march. They get along for now but females can become aggressive toward a male if she hasn't chosen him as her mate. Daryl has also decided my husband is not worth of her affections and has recently started aggressing toward him on occasion.
He has to raise his arms over his head and grunt...make himself the bigger emu. She'll back down and pout. After a little while curiosity will prevail and she will allow him to pet her and take treats from him.
This is her first mating season and since I raised her I think I am her chosen mate. She doesn't know we are different. I have a friend who has rheas and they aren't very friendly. They are fully mature one male and 2 females. The male hatched a chick a little while ago and didn't do a real good job taking care of him. A predator got him. And I have no experience with ostrich but I know they can be dangerous... An 8 foot tall 300 lb bird scares me a little. But I love my emus. Daryl is about 6 ft tall and I would guess 130 pounds maybe a little more..I'm bad a guessing weights.

 

[mich9510]

Here they are a few months ago

 

[Chicks 'n ducks]

Following!

 

[briefvisit]

Sooooo many folks shockingly underestimate the investment of time and money that a ratite requires. Emus are big. Ostriches are huge (and ornery). They live a long time.

My preference: emus, at least several, if you have a massive amount of room. Emus are really funny people.

This is Limpychick, finally old enough to jump up and score the first plums on the early-plum tree.

SE