Woman Chased by Emu in Tennessee

Summary:

MT. JULIET, TN – Before Metro Animal Care and Control managed to capture an escaped emu Thursday, a woman said the giant bird chased her and knocked her down to the street while she was walking her dog in Mt. Juliet. Ann Edwards told News 2 she’s now unable to use her left arm after suffering bruising across her left side, all from what started as a simple stroll with her dog on Thursday, April 23.

“When I saw him barking and looking behind me, my dog, I turned around and I saw that thing and I thought, ‘What in the world am I going to do?’” Edwards recalled. She called 911 as quickly as she could. “I had some pepper spray, but he kept chasing me, and I fell and got hurt,” Edwards told the 911 dispatcher. According to the Mt. Juliet woman, nearby construction workers rushed over to shoo the bird away and help her up, but the emu was still after her, so the workers had to follow her home.

The emu — a female named Picasso — escaped from her Mt. Juliet home through an open-door latch Thursday, and she was found less than a mile away just a few hours later. A MACC spokesperson said animal control officers corralled Picasso into a trailer renovated for her needs and brought her to Nashville. The owner picked her up shortly after.

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