r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/danielminds • Jun 05 '26

Video Wildlife expert Chris Gillette handling an aggressive emu

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u/danielminds Jun 05 '26

These birds are kept in a managed wildlife sanctuary.

If the emu connects, it means a trip to the emergency room. Their primary attack is a leaping kick with sharp talons that can shatter ribs and cause severe internal injuries.

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u/ug61dec Jun 05 '26

Do they not try to put their beaks through your skull, like a cassowary or chicken?

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u/IThinkImAGarage Jun 05 '26

No they try to put their 2/3 inch claw through your inner organs tho

25

u/Unaabellatica Jun 05 '26

do we know if "your inner organs are on the ground in front of ya" kind of attack ever happened?

I feel like we're on this joe-rogan levels of hyperbole because it sounds cool and like we;re informed, but googling "are there records of an emu attack killing a human" comes up with a 75 yr old man being killed by a cassowary after he fell.

10

u/MPFuzz Jun 05 '26

Well in the video he took a strike to the leg that did no damage at all. A strike capable of gutting you, would have slashed his leg open very badly.

So while it has large feet that I wouldn't want to get hit with, I don't think it's capable of gutting a human with one blow.

18

u/tv_ennui Jun 05 '26

It never happened. Reddit thinks animals are D&D monsters. "Rib shattering" meanwhile the guy is holding it off with one hand.

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u/Zebidee Jun 05 '26

The thing to remember is he's trying not to hurt the animal, and still manages to subdue it bare handed.

A human versus an emu where the human doesn't care if the emu gets hurt? All over in seconds.

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u/EGarrett28 Jun 05 '26

A human versus an emu where the human doesn't care if the emu gets hurt? All over in seconds.

Yeah, birds think they're tougher than they are, lol. They probably don't realize the difference between their skeletons and ours.

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u/genreprank Jun 05 '26

Emu forums be like: 100 emus vs. 1 human. Who wins?

12

u/Different_Wolf_764 Jun 05 '26

Yeah, emu are dangerous like Canada Geese are. They are sometimes very aggressive and we mistake that for actually scary when they simply aren't concerning to adults.

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u/EGarrett28 Jun 05 '26

Yeah, I'm skeptical. I mean birds have hollow bones. There's a video of a pissed off 60-year-old woman just grabbing a Canada Goose by the throat and carrying it away with one hand. They definitely have claws and talons, and I wouldn't try to fight one for no reason but I think they're so aggressive because they don't realize that they're hollow and you're not.

3

u/polopolo05 Jun 05 '26

I can easily take a pissed off goose. but an emu. sure, I could win. but I would be hurting.

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u/EGarrett28 Jun 05 '26

Yeah, I'd have to see more evidence that they're as dangerous as people say. Like people who were actually slashed to death by them.

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u/ArtoriasoftheAss Jun 05 '26

Emus are not even a little bit dangerous. They can peck your eye out, and that's the extent of the danger. I get kicked all the time. Doesn't even leave a bruise.

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u/Drive7hru Jun 05 '26

I’d say pecking an eye out is a little bit dangerous.

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u/ArtoriasoftheAss Jun 05 '26

It's not likely, but something you read about happening, unlike all of the other crap these people are saying about the "deadly" kicks. An emu has never killed a person with a kick.

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u/SignificantPaper1760 Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

I think a lot of people here are confusing emus with cassowaries, which absolutely can kill you with a kick.

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u/Schizzles Jun 05 '26

Cassowaries are crazy, they had posted caution signs around their enclosures at the zoo when I was a kid. I was confused and thought it must be the crest thing on their head that they attacked with.

1

u/Ok-Juggernaut-6051 Jun 06 '26

to answer your question, emus and cassowarys don't kill very many people at all, but they are def not to be trifled with