A Loose Emu Ran Down a Connecticut Road. Animal Control Caught It in a Backyard.

THOMPSON, Conn., Nov. 6, 2026 — Most Wednesday mornings in Thompson do not start with a 911-style call about a giant flightless bird jogging through the neighborhood. This one did.

Thompson Animal Control got word around 10:30 a.m. Nov. 4 of a loose emu near Thompson Hill Road and Pasay Road, NBC Connecticut reported. Officers followed the bird as it ran down the road and into a backyard, where they "peacefully apprehended" it, the town said.

The emu was unharmed and being cared for, officials told WFSB. What they could not immediately do was find its owner. The town asked anyone with information to get in touch so the bird could go home.

WTNH reported the same outline: a sudden appearance, a short chase, a quiet capture and a bird that suddenly needed a forwarding address. For a town that mostly worries about the usual New England wildlife, it was a short, strange morning that ended with one very tall guest in custody.