The emu is an Australian bird that may be highly profitable if raised, cared for, and sold in the United States. However, this is not everyone’s first choice. Emu is uncommon on American farms as a result, which is why owning one might be quite profitable in addition to offering other benefits. Nevertheless, there are many things to understand about raising emus on a farm, and the initial cost of an emu is only one of them.

Since emus are used to living freely in their native Australia, they are not the best pets. However, they are often seen on ranches in Texas, which is not surprising given that Texas is home to both traditional and American culture.

Numerous individuals think that owning an emu may be a highly lucrative venture, but this is also an unusual and steep business approach. Nevertheless, there are several advantages since these very similar-looking birds have excellent meat and excellent leather and feathers.

It’s also important to note the amazing value of emu oil, which is the reason so many individuals are pursuing emu ranching. Nevertheless, a lot of individuals enter this industry and make investments in purchasing emus without realizing the true cost. Although it’s not an easy process, it may be rather fulfilling.

This post will go over the worth of emus and their price depending on their age, country of origin, and other characteristics. You may learn how to become a skilled emu rancher while keeping costs in mind by reading this article. We’ll also go into depth about other topics, such as what emu birds eat and how to care for and ranch them.

To discover more about how to make emu ranching a multimillion-dollar industry and how to transform this unorthodox business plan into one, keep reading this article.

In a nutshell: Emus are scarce and restricted to Australia, making them very costly birds due to their magnificent look. You can spend at least $800 on an Emu chick, but over $30,000 may be spent on a confirmed breeding couple that produces many offspring.

The emu is a huge, flightless bird that shares many physical characteristics with the ostrich, including size. They are unique to Australia for ranching purposes and are found nowhere else in the world outside of their native environment. It is the second biggest bird in the world, only to the ostrich, although it is flightless, like its relative.

Emus are unable to fly despite having huge, long necks and legs due to their short wings. They may reach a height of 5.7 feet and weigh between 110 and 120 pounds for males and up to 130 pounds for females.

Despite being endemic to Australia, these animals also had subspecies that existed on Tasmania and King Island until their extinction due to hunting and ranching practices. Numerous conservatorship initiatives have been made to preserve emus, but widespread ranching operations make that impossible.

The fact that emus’ red flesh is somewhat comparable to beef’s is the reason so many people are amenable to farming emus. But, it’s important to note that, in comparison to beef, the meat has a superior flavor and is lower in cholesterol and other harmful fats. But because it’s more costly, that’s precisely the reason you ought to into the emu ranching industry.

Emu ranching has become more popular and profitable for the farmers for two primary reasons. The first justification is the practice of rearing young emus and then profitably selling them. The meat, which is at its peak quality when emu chicks are a year old, is the other factor. Even at that age, the emu leather quality is flawless.

Whatever your motivation for wanting to purchase an emu bird, here are the fees and expectations that come with it.

What Is the Price of Emu?

The age of the emu is the primary aspect that determines its cost. However, other elements like health, breeding status, and a few other things could also affect the cost.

One of the most crucial things to remember when buying an emu is that younger emus will usually be less expensive than older ones. The emu’s age should be the first thing you notice and inquire about when you attend an open animal market. You can then bargain for a better price depending on the emu’s age, breeding status, and other considerations.

Just look at this comparison to get an idea of how different an emu’s pricing may be. Depending on the breeding status and other factors, you should budget between $800 and $1,100 if you’re searching for a young chick that is one to seven days old.

But if you want to buy a sexed pair of yearlings, be prepared to shell out anywhere between $15,000 and $20,000. These sharp price variations are precisely the reason we remark that emus come in such a wide range of costs.

See the brief chart below for an overview of the price range for emus at various ages, and keep reading for a more thorough cost estimate.

Cost of Emu Eggs:

Your best option, if money is tight, is to invest in that strategy and buy emu eggs. However, if you’re unskilled and haven’t raised emus before, this is a highly dangerous terrain. For them to grow correctly, certain criteria must be met.

A viable emu egg costs $100, however an infertile egg might cost as much as $50. Having faith in the vendor you choose to purchase from is the greatest method to determine whether the eggs are viable or not.

Cost of Emu Chicks: 

The second-cheapest choice is emu chicks since you don’t want to take a chance with emu eggs and you know that the older they become, the more costly they are. You may get those that are no more than seven days old for around $1,000. They might be more costly the older they become. Additionally, bear in mind that young emus are hard to come by since everyone wants to buy at least one-year-old emus for themselves.

A chick that is 3 to 5 months old will cost you up to $5,000 and in certain cases much more, since their price will increase as they get older. Remember that finding an emu less than a year old is still fairly rare, and no rancher wants to sell one.

Emu Cost: 1-2 Years Old

Selling sexed emu couples starts to become popular at this age. You should budget between $10,000 and $20,000 for a sexed emu pair, which only serves to highlight how costly these incapable of flying birds are.

For someone who is just getting started in the market, you will need to fork out anywhere from $5000 to $10,000 in order to purchase one yearling emu.

Adult emu cost

An adult emu will cost much more than a yearling since the article previously said that the price of emus increases as they get older. Having said that, a pair of sexed emus should cost you between $25,000 and $30,000. You may anticipate purchasing a single-sexed emu of two years or older for $12,500 to up to $15,000 depending on several conditions.

Cost of an Emu Breeding Pair

Expect to pay more than any other category we mentioned above if you want to buy an Emu breeding pair. Another thing you will need to consider when buying breeding pairs is their pace of output. That being stated, the emu breeding pair will be seen to have a prolific production rate and will be valued more if they provide a respectable quantity of eggs.

These pairings may cost up to $50,000, sometimes even more, which is a significant amount of money for such a rare bird. Emus can lay 30 eggs every season most likely, therefore you’re going to anticipate roughly 30 eggs each season. Emus are incredibly scarce in the United States which pushes their value so high, forcing the confirmed breeding pairs to be highly pricey.

It’s worth adding that in other nations, acquiring an emu is substantially cheaper compared to the United States.

Costs to Care for an Emu

You’re definitely taken aback by the expense of emus, particularly if you wish to acquire an established breeding pair. However, that’s not where your expenditures stop given that there are other fees for caring for emus which are thankfully not so costly.

Grasping

Emus are enormous birds which is why they require a vast dedicated place where they may spend their day, wander freely or gallop. Given they are tall, it will be essential to create a fence that is at least 6 feet tall, because even if they don’t fly, they are incredibly resourceful creatures.

Depending on your demands, it’d be advisable to purchase a fence that is composed of woven wire. It should be sturdy, and powerful to prevent the emu from fleeing, considering that much like their cousins, Ostrich, emus are also very swift. Alternatively, you may utilize a fence composed of chain links.

You should keep emus in a big yard, but bear in mind that the fence construction expenses might be anywhere from $8 to $15 per foot.

Food

Forget all you learned about feeding the birds previously since emus have a huge stomach and require more food than a chicken or a peacock would need. They need to graze often and consume meals that are rich in nutrients.

Emus consume low-fiber pellet feed, but you need also to feed them with minerals and other vitamins that will boost their development and good behaviors. Expect to spend anything from $350 to $400 for low pellets per ton

Health Costs

Emus are typically regarded as healthy birds that don’t require much care in the sense of medical monitoring. As long as they have adequate area to wander, be physically active, and consume nutritious meals, they’ll be immune from any bird-attacking ailments. However, bear in mind that there are charges for immunization and deworming treatment, as well as other parasite control techniques.

Where to Buy Emus?

We noted before that Emus are an uncommon bird, and much more so in the United States. However, if you visit Texas, you may expect to discover the biggest number of Emus than in any other state. That being said, Texas is also the finest region to acquire Emus. Below, we listed various farms where you may purchase Emus from around the United States.

3 Feathers Emu Ranch: Aside from Texas, you may also visit Washington State and drop by 3 Feathers Emu Ranch. There you may get high-quality emu goods, as well as acquire your own emu. The ranch is known for flawless emu goods like eggs and oil, but also highly peaceful emus, both adult and chicks.
Yoke Farms: Yoke Farms is known for selling emu eggs and chicks. That being said, if you want to grow emu from scratch, Yoke Farms is the perfect location to come.
Moonlight Valley Farm: If you want to acquire Emu eggs, you can’t go wrong with visiting Moonlight Valley Farm situated in Pennsylvania. They also offer emu chicks, so you may nurture them from hatchlings to fully-grown emus. They are also recognized for their uncommon white emus.
Online Emu Marketplaces

Of course, if you feel that it’s not convenient for you to go across the states, certain online markets are worth checking.

Editor’s notes: One troublesome issue about these online merchants is that you’ll have to find a means to approach the sellers personally, considering that these sites are rather restricted.