The owners of an animal sanctuary have put out an emotional update on their missing emu Irwin. The emu went missing in Wiltshire at the end of last month.
At the time, the Malmesbury Animal Sanctuary feared the animal may have been swept down river when it flooded following days or torrential rain. While emus are natural swimmers, the sanctuary feared at the time that Irwin might have been unable to get out of the River Avon opposite his field.
The charity asked for anyone along the river between Dark Lane and Daniel’s Well to keep an eye out and report Irwin if they spotted him. Now in an update today, it announced Irwin was found dead in the water.
On its Facebook page the animal charity said: “It is with an extremely heavy heart that we have to announce that our beloved emu, Irwin has been found dead. This concurs with our initial theory which was that during play, while the emus were chasing each other around, Irwin must have slipped, and stumbled into the river.
“In normal circumstances this shouldn’t have been a problem as emus are very adept at swimming, however it occurred at night – a time during which their vision is not best suited. And due to the recent heavy rainfall the river had broken its banks and run into the field making the area sodden, and very slippery.
“We believe due to these conditions, and perhaps shock, he simply didn’t have sufficient opportunity to right himself and swim to safety. In calmer weather he would easily have swum for the bank, and made it back to dry land safe and sound. Whatever the case we sincerely hope Irwin didn’t suffer for long. The thought of his struggle will always be with us. His absence always felt.”
The animal sanctuary added: “We simply don’t have words to explain how sad this makes us all feel. Not only our fabulously dedicated team of volunteers who work tirelessly for the animals’ wellbeing, but also the Malmesbury community as a whole. We extend our heartfelt, and sincere gratitude to everybody who sent us best wishes, reposted on social media, and searched with us. Your spirit of hope and positive energy has given us much strength this past week.”
In their sad message, the sanctuary said Irwin was a “jolly emu who loved cuddles, and especially cold showers during summer whereupon he would roll over before standing up and shaking himself dry and looking to us for another dowsing”.
They added: “He was also feisty and loved to chase the young emus around until they got bigger and gave as good as they got. Irwin gave us much love, and lived happily at The Malmesbury Animal Sanctuary. He will never be forgotten. Irwin will live on in all our hearts.”