No good deed goes unpunished.

When an emu suffered burns in the massive brushfire raging in Potrero, California this week, an animal control officer tried to help. Instead of thanking him, the bird’s owner came out with a shotgun and fired three warning shots, authorities say.

“We were not expecting somebody to come out with this much hostility,” San Diego Sheriff's Sgt. Joe Leos told ABC News.

Deputies arrested the 35-year-old man, who police say has a criminal history and is not permitted to own any guns or ammunition.

The officer the man threatened is unharmed. The condition of the emu, meanwhile, is unknown-- after its gun-toting owner fired the shots, it fled the scene.

“I think the emu just kind of ran off into the hills,” Leos said.