Three stressed-out rheas seek new home

Rosie-Lee – a near 6-ft rhea – and her two companions, Rembrandt and Marty, are looking for a new home because they are finding their current residence in St John too ‘stressful’.

Owner Seamus Nicolle, who has had the birds for 15 years, said he didn’t want to say goodbye to the trio, but feels it is in their best interests.

The birds have been living in a field next to Seamus Saddlery on St John’s Road since they came to Jersey from South America, via the UK, in 2002.

But Mr Nicolle said his family sold another field next to their pen in December, and since then the noise of farming machinery and workers has been causing the birds distress.

‘It is awful seeing them stressed,’ Mr Nicolle said: ‘They throw themselves against the fence. I will miss them.’

Rosie-Lee, who loves a hug, according to Mr Nicolle, was the subject of the media’s gaze in 2015 when she bolted from her pen after being spooked by a herd of cows.

She went on the run for more than a week before she was eventually captured in Trinity.

Rembrandt, the alpha-male, and Marty, known as the quiet one, also escaped, but were found a short distance away less than 24-hours later.

Mr Nicolle, who brought the rheas to Jersey with the help of his late father Dennis after originally seeking ostriches, said that the birds were easy to keep and that all they needed was a reasonably sized plot of land, £15 of ostrich feed every three weeks, and the occasional slice of bread.

Anyone interested in taking the birds should contact Mr Nicolle on 07797 720864. He is not looking for money, but has asked for a donation to be made to Hospice if possible.

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