Rescued Emu Refuses to Cooperate as Police Try to Load It Into a Patrol Car

A young emu in Gilbert, Arizona, had an unexpected encounter with police after residents pulled the large flightless bird from a canal. What happened next was captured on body-camera video, showing officers trying to persuade their unusual passenger to get into a patrol vehicle.

The incident happened on September 13 near Lindsay Road and Stonebridge Drive. Residents walking along the canal spotted the emu struggling in the water and managed to pull it to safety before police arrived. The bird did not appear to have suffered any injuries.

Residents Rescue the Bird From the Canal

Police dispatchers began receiving calls shortly before 8:45 a.m. about a large bird stranded in the canal. By the time officers reached the area, several local residents had already taken action and removed the soaked emu from the water.

The bird was then placed in the care of the responding officers, who needed to find a safe way to transport it to an animal rescue organization.

The Emu Has Other Ideas

Getting the bird into the police SUV proved much more difficult than rescuing it from the canal.

Body-camera footage released later showed an officer attempting to guide the emu into the back of the vehicle. The bird resisted, flapped its wings and appeared unwilling to cooperate with its new human companions.

After some effort, officers eventually managed to lift the emu into the vehicle. The unusual rescue quickly became a memorable moment for the officers involved.

A Safe Trip to an Animal Rescue

After being loaded into the patrol SUV, the emu was taken to Crystal’s Critter Haven, a local animal rescue organization in the East Valley. The rescue group cared for the bird while authorities tried to determine where it had come from.

At the time of the original report, officials had not determined how the Australian native ended up in the Gilbert canal or who owned it.

A Community Effort

Gilbert police spokesperson Brenda Carrasco thanked the residents who acted before officers arrived, recognizing their quick response in getting the animal out of the water.

The incident began as an unusual sight along a suburban canal but ended with the emu safely removed from the water and taken somewhere it could recover.

For the people who happened to be taking a morning walk that day, an ordinary outing turned into an unexpected animal rescue — and for the responding officers, it meant discovering that not every passenger is willing to climb quietly into the back of a police car.

Sources

• FOX 10 Phoenix — “Soaking wet emu rescued from Gilbert canal” — September 13, 2026.
• WZZM 13 / 9NEWS — “Bodycam video shows Arizona police officers sticking an emu in the back of a patrol car” — September 30, 2026.
• Gilbert Police Department — Information cited by FOX 10 Phoenix.