A family in McKeesport in looking for justice and help after one of their pet emus was attacked and killed by a dog.
Carly Stroman tells KDKA Radio her 3-year-old, “Queen Barb”, was attacked by dogs, owned by a neighbor, that broke through a fenced in area the emus are living in late Tuesday morning.
Barb escaped her fenced-in area but was attacked by the dogs in the street
“Barb was only out because she was running for her life,” says Stroman.
Barb was put down by McKeesport police after the attack.
“There’s parts of her body that they bit out 5+ inches of her muscle,” said Stroman.
Stroman says they’ve had issues with the neighbor’s dogs for years when some of their chickens were killed a couple years ago.
Stroman adds that Animal Control has charged the neighbors with having at large dogs or, dogs without a restraint, but are waiting to hear from the dog warden about more serious charges.
“The dog warden has not returned any of my calls,” said Stroman.
One of the emus went viral last summer, when it escaped the fencing and was seen wandering around McKeesport.
Stroman say that was the emu “Cooper” that got loose in the video.
To help protect the five remaining emus on the property, Stroman says they are in the process of relocating them to a farm with five full acres her family recently acquired.
But, before they can move, proper fencing needs to be put up, and that’s expensive.
If you want to help expedite the process of moving the emus, you can donate to this GoFundMe page.
When it comes to the attack, Stroman says, “We just want justice for Queen Barb, and for the rest of our neighbors to be safe from those vicious dogs.”
