The owner of a runaway emu had to ditch her Wetherspoon’s curry after she got a call saying he’d gone AWOL and been spotted out on the road.

A rare meal out for Amey James, who runs Happy Pants Ranch off Iwade Road in Bobbing, was disturbed after locals spotted the emu – named Dougie – on the loose at 3.45pm yesterday (Thursday).

The large, flightless bird had escaped through a fence panel which fell during high winds.

Seven-year-old Dougie was the only animal to make a bid for freedom and head out for a bit of an adventure, as a South American ostrich, a rheas called Rogue, stayed put as the emu fled.

Amey said: “I was in the middle of my curry at Wetherspoon’s and got a phone call saying there’s an emu in Iwade road. Straight away I thought it’s got to be Dougie because I don’t know any other emus around here.”

Dougie, who has lived at the animal sanctuary for five years, is said to have taken “his opportunity to go out and have a bit of a roam”.

Amey said: “He didn’t go far, bless him. Luckily he’s really tame and friendly.”

While the emu “could have disappeared for miles” Amey found him in the field over the road at around 4pm, just before it got dark. He was out for less than an hour.

Amey described being a “little panicked” as she called out to Dougie to come back, as she was on her own and in the dark as rain poured down.

She said: “As soon as he heard my voice, he came. I opened the gates and he followed – which was very lucky.

“He’s a very good emu, he’s a little bit naughty for going out but he’s grounded now anyway,” she added.

It is not the first time Dougie has escaped. In the past he has got out through the back of the ranch and went into one of the farmer’s fields.

The emu was found standing next to a tree locals call Lonely Tree and is well known by people in the area, according to the sanctuary owner.

Amey said: “People around here know him as a bit of a guard emu, because he likes to patrol the gates at the front.

“Every time a delivery or a postman comes, they’re like ‘I don’t know whether to come in because you’ve got an emu’. But he’s so friendly.

“He loves cars. When he’s here at the sanctuary he loves hanging around people’s cars and looking at himself in the window.”

Dougie, who was rescued by the sanctuary after outgrowing his previous owner's garden in Sevenoaks, is said to be a “home boy” who doesn’t like to wander far.

While Amey said the escape “could have been a lot worse,” Dougie is now back safe and sound.