You haven’t lived a full life until you have seen an emu and a llama playing tag together. If that is an unlikely animal pairing that you never thought you would say, you wouldn’t be wrong.
But these irresistibly adorable animals with their lanky grace and goofy demeanors run and play around with each other like a couple of human children, and it is positively heartwarming!
Between these two, the emu seems to be the more playful creature. The llama is happy to play this whimsical game of tag, but the emu definitely seems to be more active of the two.
It all starts with the bird instigating this game, telling their llama sibling that they are it, and their cute chase begins. At one point, they actually attempt to approach each other at exactly the same time, which very adorably ends with them having a “synchronized retreat.”
And although they may have temporarily startled each other for the moment, it’s not long before they are back to their fun and games, with the emu telling their playful llama sibling, “Hey, catch me if you can!”
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And of course, the llama takes this invitation when they respond, “Hey, wait up!” The chase is once again on; the fun and games never end with these two! That is, until the llama gets tired after a lap around the farm yard and the game comes to a halt.
The emu, who seems to secretly double as the Energizer Bunny, is ready to go again after a short break, trying to instigate a new game of chase when they proclaim, “Tag, I’m it!” But it is to no avail. Their llama sibling is too tuckered out for another round.
“You give up?” The emu asks. The llama is so tired, they don’t even respond. But it’s okay, the emu takes it all in stride. They are willing to let their llama sibling rest.
They even notice that the llama has something in their fur and does them the courtesy of removing it, like any caring sibling would.
Emus Are Social Creatures
While this emu-llama pairing might seem unlikely at a glance, the truth is that these birds are very social creatures.
As such, there are benefits to them growing up with animal friends. This can help them learn to be more friendly while influencing them to behave in a more dignified manner.
It can help them learn to share food, get along with others, and be less territorial. Some animals that might be well suited for companionship with emus include horses, goats, donkeys, chickens, ponies, ostriches, geese, pigs, sheep, and Peafowls.
As always, when introducing animals, especially when they are of two different species, it is best to take things slow to make sure that they are comfortable with each other.
But once they are comfortable, there is a good chance that an enduring friendship and playfulness, like the one between the emu and the llama in this video, can flourish.
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