Aussie farmer's hilarious reaction to 'cheeky' encounter on rural road

Wendy Sheehan, who runs a large Queensland property, was going about her day when she was suddenly cut off.

Left, the view of the red rural road from Wendy Sheehan's 4WD. Right, the emu in the distance after it cuts the farmer off.
Wendy Sheehan was travelling between 30km and 40km on a rural Queensland road when she was suddenly cut off. Source: Wendy Sheehan

A cattle farmer has inadvertently captured the hilarious moment she was cut off on an isolated rural road — but it wasn’t by another disgruntled driver.

Wendy Sheehan, a photographer who runs a 264,000-acre property in western Queensland alongside her husband, told Yahoo News Australia she was going about her day earlier this month when a “cheeky little guy” gave her quite a fright.

The grazier, who documents her adventures online, was “attempting” to record herself talking about the dense mulga trees lining either side of the road when the discussion took a sudden detour. Footage shows an “erratic” emu pop out of the right corner and bolt in front of her 4WD as she travels between 30km and 40km.

“Look out! You unit,” Ms Sheehan exclaims as the native bird speeds up and sporadically swerves ahead. “Watch out for the wildlife,” she laughs.

There was “no sign” of the emu “at all until he popped up through the bushes beside me”, the farmer told Yahoo, explaining that while she has obviously had run-ins with the animals before, none had ever cut it quite this close.

The “ambush” — and Ms Sheehan’s shocked response — has amused thousands of Aussies after being posted on her Facebook. Many admitted they enjoyed it so much they rewatched the clip “a number of times, each time laughing”.

The emu in front of the 4WD after cutting Wendy off. Source: Wendy Sheehan
There was 'no sign' of the emu 'at all', the farmer said. Source: Wendy Sheehan

“Makes me think of roadrunner cartoons! Must give you a bit of a surprise, even though you're probably half expecting something like that,” one person commented.

“Talk about a photo bomb,” another said, while someone else applauded Ms Sheehan’s restraint and lack of “big swear words”.

Given the emu’s impressive pace, the grazier joked that she should have asked him to join her for the Royal Flying Doctor Service Oceans to Outback fundraiser, which she’s participating in for the third year in a row.

Wendy Sheehan kneeling next to a sheep on her property.
Wendy is currently raising money for the RFDS. Source: Wendy Sheehan

So far she’s walked 64km and raised more than $4,000 for the medical air service that her family has depended on for decades. “It’s just such a marvellous organisation,” Ms Sheehan said.

“They don’t just do medical retrievals and emergency flights, they also run clinics in remote regions… people can go and have a checkup and get vaccinations, referrals and prescriptions.”

Learn more about RFDS.

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