‘Hey You’ emu that wandered Las Cruces is back home with ex-state lawmaker who owns it

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico — A former state lawmaker’s emu that had been missing since Thanksgiving is safely back at its home near Las Cruces.

Former state Rep. Brad Cates learned his emu, after being gone 3 months, had resurfaced last week thanks to a barrage of images people shared on social media and with ABC-7.

Pictures of the emu wandering around a subdivision near Cates’ home prompted inquiries from a state livestock inspector and a game warden. Cates, with some help, was later able to corral the 150-pound emu named “Hey You!”

Cates was also the Republican nominee for Dona Ana County district attorney in 2016. He lost to Mark D’Antonio.