Dogs believed to have slaughtered 27 emus
A Red Road family returned home to the scene of a slaughter this weekend, finding 27 of their emus ripped to pieces by a pack of dogs.
“It was the worst thing I’ve ever seen,” said Teresa Paris, proprietor of the small emu far located just yards outside McMinnville city limits. “They were torn to pieces. Some were missing their heads. They were just lying in piles, chewed up.”
According to Paris, the family has been raising emus about six years. The emu is a flightless Australian bird, slightly reminiscent of an ostrich. They weight upwards of 100 pounds and can stand around six feet tall. Their only source of defense is their speed and their three-pronged claw feet.
“We had the yearlings in a fenced area and it looks like they almost knocked down the fence trying to get out,” Paris said, viewing a video tape she made of the horrific scene. “Some of them were almost 100 pounds, and the smallest about 50 pounds.”
Paris said the yearlings were worth between $100 and $300. The birds are used for their meat, hides and oil. Paris said those killed could not be sold due to their condition and were buried in a mass grave dug by a backhoe.
The incident, which occurred while she and her husband were out of town, decimated their emu flock, leaving behind only the breeders which were in another pen. Some of the breeders also suffered injuries in the attack, some sporting bite marks on their bodies.
As for the culprits, Paris pointed to numerous dog tracks inside the pin where the slaughter occurred. She said about a month ago, two of the yearlings were killed by neighborhood dogs before the canines were chased off. The dogs apparently gained entry by tunneling underneath a fence. Paris said she is not sure how many dogs were in the pack.
“We’ve had some problems with some neighborhood dogs before,” Paris said. “What scares me is these birds are bigger than a child, so if a dog would do this to these birds, it makes me worry about children around here.”
The sheriff’s department is investigating the case and Paris said she will support criminal charges against the dogs’ owner or owners. Paris also said she is considering a lawsuit against the persons who she believes owns the dogs who caused the slaughter, to recover damages for the thousands of dollars lost in the attack. Paris said she plans to continue raising emus, but that this year’s crop is a total loss.
“We raised these all the way from eggs,” Paris said. “The first time it happened, we just chased the dogs off by firing a gun up in the air. But this, this is too much. Enough is enough.”
While the city has a leash law, there is no such law outside the city limits. However, in cases where a dog causes destruction or injury, the owner can be charged with the misdemeanor crime of allowing dogs to roam at-large. The crime is generally punishable by a fine and probation.