Ranching Of Rare Emu Birds Starting To Take Off In Oregon -- Animals From Australia Are Marketed For Meat, Oil, Leather

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. - First you sense the sound.

It's not obvious, but pulsating, like an electrified heartbeat, or maybe a bassoonist blowing a series of low-pitched tunes.

Then there's the creature itself.

Adults stand 6 feet tall, weigh up to 150 pounds and look something like a mound of moldy leaves with spindly, reptilian legs, and the neck and head of a friendly cartoon critter. Look closely and the top-notches come in a variety of hairdos, from punk to Shirley Temple curly to reggae-style dreadlocks.

Welcome to the world of emus.

Interest in the fascinating land-bound birds is taking flight because of their developing commercial potential. The meat tastes like beef but has one-third the cholesterol and is 97 percent fat free. Their natural oils are used as healing salves, body treatment creams plus hair shampoos and conditioners. Hides are valued for fashion leather. Even their eggs, toenails and feathers are recycled as jewelry, crafts and fishing flies.

But emus represent more than just potential profits.

"We were taken with the birds themselves," explains Keith Walker, who with his family operates High Cascades Emus, one of southern Oregon's larger emu ranches. "They're so personable you like to be with them."

Walker and his wife, BoNell, with their daughter and son-in-law Kay and Bob Craig, have 15 breeding pairs, 40 yearlings and, this time of year, chicks in and emerging from their shells. Hens lay

anywhere from 20 to 60 eggs per season, which lasts from October through April or May.

The Walkers bought two pairs of emu yearlings three years ago after their curiosity was piqued. At the time, Walker owned a business that manufactured livestock equipment, including corrals, stalls and equestrian barns. One customer ordered some contraptions that didn't seem suited for horses or other livestock.

"As he was describing what he wanted, I said, `What is this for?' He said, `Emus.' I didn't even know what an emu was."

Unlike ostriches, their Australian cousin, emus are curious and friendly. Being inside a pen full of emu yearlings is like visiting a kids' daycare center. Emu youngsters like to get close. They vie for attention and, when they can get away with it, untie shoelaces and try to pick pockets.

The Walkers and Craigs have fun with their birds, but it is a business.

The Walkers' operation is off Oregon Highway 140, eight miles south of Fish Lake. A network of corrals and barns formerly occupied by racing horses has been converted for breeding pairs of emus. During the breeding season eggs are collected, placed in a cool place and manually rotated several times a day.

Each Saturday the Walkers' harvest is taken 12 miles down the highway to the Craigs. The two families' eggs are labeled and placed in a mechanically controlled incubator for about 50 days.

Each egg's progress is observed by an infrared candler, with the image viewed on a monitor. If there are chicks inside, the eggs, which look like plump avocados, are moved to a hatcher, where the chicks peck their way out.

Soon after hatching, Kay Craig injects a microchip, which is used with an electronic scanner to forever identify each bird. Chicks are moved to a minibrooder and, in the following days and months, moved to a succession of greenhouses and outdoor runs. Keith Walker, an officer of the Oregon Emu Association, says the state group has about 125 members, and wants more.