Emu 'abandoned' by parents as a baby, raised by chicken foster-mother named Nugget at Birdworld

• ITV News Meridian's Juliette Fletcher spoke to staff at Birdworld.

An emu that was abandoned by her parents has been raised by a chicken, named Nugget, at Birdworld.

The attraction in Farnham, Surrey shared the four-year-old's unique story as part of National Adoption Week.

The baby, named Shrub, weighed just 500g, the same as a loaf of bread, when keepers rescued her after parents, Forest and Mathilda, rejected her.

Nugget, a small Bantam Hen, took the young emu under her wing and taught her essential life skills, including how to eat and walk.

After outgrowing her foster mother, the now three-foot tall Shrub has been re-introduced to her birth parents and lives with them in an enclosure at the site.

Unlike most birds, emus typically breed during the winter and it is up to the male to incubate and hatch the eggs.

In Shrub's case, however, Mathilda had laid eggs in Summer and Forest was not incubating them.

When keepers discovered that Mathilda had successfully hatched the egg, they were dismayed to find neither parent willing to take on the role of caregiver.

Keeper's say both parents had a difficult start to life themselves, with Forest developing limited eyesight and walking difficulties after being raised in a dimly lit barn, before coming to Birdworld.

• Polly Bramham, at Birdworld describes how Nugget helped raise Shrub.

Polly Bramham, Living Collections Manager at Birdworld said: "We didn’t expect the eggs to hatch and were surprised when they found Shrub cold, muddy, and neglected in the nest.

"She was rushed to an ICU, warmed up, and fortunately turned out to be a resilient survivor, much like her father.

"Nugget was the best foster Shrub could hope for, busy, bossy, and showing her lots of fuss and care.

"Shrub quickly learnt how to pick up food, drink, and coordinate her gangly legs. The keepers loved watching the two of them together."

Keepers later took over Shrub’s development, after she outgrew Nugget, playing enrichment games and activities to help develop her coordination and build essential muscle.

“In time, we knew the moment had come to start reconnecting Shrub with her parents,” said Polly.

"However, emus can be very reactive and defensive, and to let Shrub in with Forest and Mathilda would have been fatal."

To combat this obstacle, Birdworld’s keepers would walk Shrub outside Forest and Mathilda’s enclosure to interact with her birth parents from outside the safety of the fence.

Polly said: "It was particularly important to do this while Shrub was still a juvenile, so that Forest and Mathilda would not see her as a threat.

"We found Shrub to be a very happy-go-lucky emu, frequently misjudging social etiquette and getting disciplined as a result.

"Emus are extremely large and potentially dangerous birds with strong kicking legs, meaning that Shrub would continue to be separated from the adults at night for the next couple of months as she learnt the rules of emu life."

"Seeing Shrub with her parents as they race around their paddock, you would never guess their difficult beginnings.

"Shrub is an amazing lady, and the keepers are so proud that she has no confusion about who she is. She is 100% emu, but with all the time in the world for her keepers."

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