Dunsborough emus run riot

Dunsborough played host to some unusual visitors this month when two escaped emus were seen walking through town.

Bemused residents reported seeing the emus on Dunn Bay Road in town, Schooner Crescent in the Naturaliste Heights Estate, along Caves Road and as far as Elmore Road in Quindalup.

Country Life Farm owner John O’Sullivan said he spent three hours looking for the animals in response to phone calls, but repeatedly came up short.

“Every time I went somewhere I couldn’t find them. It was like a mad comic caper,” he said.

Mr O’Sullivan eventually located the emus on Commonage Road in Quindalup, and enclosed them at a nearby farm.

Despite the exhausting search, Mr O’Sullivan said the animals did not belong to him, but were “leftover” from the former Bannamah Wildlife Park on Caves Road, now a construction site for gourmet tavern Clancy’s Fish Pub.

“They’re from the adjoining property, but we care for them and feed them everyday. They’re like our pets,” he said.

Mr O’Sullivan said the construction of Clancy’s had disturbed the fencing on the property, leading to the emus escaping up to four times a week.

He said he was in the process of contacting the property’s owner to resolve the problem, but in the meantime there was no need for worry, with the emus more likely to charm residents than harm them.