A PET FARM IN Carlow believe someone has stolen a young emu from their enclosure.

Chris Kavanagh, owner of the Southern County Fishing Resort and Wildlife Park in Garryhill, says one of three emus he bought as an attraction is missing, with no sign of how it could have escaped.

He told DailyEdge.ie he believes someone must have taken the four-foot-tall bird – a flightless relative of the ostrich – as there is no evidence of escape or attack.

I’ve walked around, checked the whole area. Looking for indications that some might have attacked it. But they’re extremely fast birds. It’s impossible for them to get out. And if one did get out the others would follow.

Kavanagh first got in touch with local radio station KCLR, hoping that someone might have seen the large bird in the area. However it was not successful, and he now plans to report the theft to gardaí.

An adult emu in the wild blathlean blathlean

Native to Australia, emus grow between six and seven feet tall as adults. Although already four feet tall, the emu is only a few months old and Kavanagh is concerned for its safety without its siblings.

They do not survive on their own. They get very depressed. They’re fierce happy going around together, and they go off for a run now and again. But when they’re alone they get very depressed and they don’t eat.

He added: “I don’t know what anybody would want an emu for.”

Kavanagh now plans to offer a reward for information leading to the bird’s return. “Not just because it’s missing, but for the safety,” he said. “You’d get fond of it and it’s a bit sad now seeing only two of them in the field.”

Anyone with information can email Chris at info@southerncounty.ie.

Thanks Stephen Byrne

More: Here’s why flying ants are terrorising parts of Dublin this evening>