Nashville animal control officers captured Picasso, the escaped emu, similar to this one. File Photo by Raul Martinez/EPA
April 25 (UPI) — Nashville’s Metro Animal Care and Control division had an unusual visitor on Thursday — Picasso the emu.
Picasso escaped her enclosure at home in Mt. Juliet, a suburb of Nashville. She was found about a mile from home. She was only on the loose for a few hours.
Animal control officers were able to find and corral Picasso into a trailer they renovated for her needs, according to MACC spokesperson Matt Peters.
“The owner reached out to us right away. We talked with them. The emu’s very well taken care of at home. [It] turned out the latch just gave way on the gate,” Peters told WKRN on Friday.
Picasso’s owner said they will pick her up on Saturday with a trailer.
The MACC staff has been bringing her fruits and vegetables to try to make her comfortable during her stay.
It’s legal to have a pet emu in Tennessee, but they require a lot of care and maintenance, MACC said.
“If you’re going to adopt something, whether it’s a dog or a cat or even if it’s something like an emu, definitely do your research ahead of time,” Peters advised. “Talk to everybody in your family who’s going to be working with it, because taking in a pet is not something you can do part-time.”