Save the Ostriches, Save Yourself
A family farm faces the long arm of Big Pharma
In yet another example of massive governmental overreach and intrusion into our private lives, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has issued a cull order to the Universal Ostrich Farms located in Edgewood, BC, near the Arrow Lakes. The herd numbers some 480 ostriches and represents a 35-year investment for the family that owns it. The ostensible reason for the cull is the detection of avian flu. I reproduce here my letter to federal MP Mel Arnold in the hopes that thousands of Canadians will flood his office with protests over this potential destruction of animal lives and a family’s livelihood. There will be a peaceful demonstration at the farm at 9:30 a.m. February 1st, the day scheduled for the cull. You can email MP Arnold at: mel.arnold@parl.gc.ca
From a scientific perspective, CFIA’s claim that avian flu is “highly pathogenic” is as hollow and unscientific as the Canadian government’s claims of Covid-19 lethality during the “pandemic.” In my letter to MP Arnold I relate the basic facts regarding the actual Infection Fatality Rate (IFR), which is so miniscule as to be considered a very mild virus for all but the most elderly and immune compromised. Yet the science was perverted to convince the public that our lives were in grave danger.
Dr. Jessica Rose and Dr. Meryl Nass have both written extensively about the deliberate and unscientific fearmongering about avian flu in their Substack channels. Dr. Rose has a Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Mathematics and a Master’s degree in Immunology from Memorial University of Newfoundland, a Ph.D in Computational Biology from Bar Ilan University, two Post-Doctoral degrees in Molecular Biology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and in Biochemistry from the Technion Institute of Technology. She has proven fiercely dedicated to technical assessments of the science behind both Covid-19 and avian flu, exposing the fallacies of public health messaging regarding these viruses.
Dr. Nass was the first physician researcher to prove a connection between Gulf War Syndrome and the anthrax vaccine given to US troops. She has been absolutely tireless in exposing the lies and fake science behind the Covid-19 “pandemic.” For her dedication to public health and safety she was de-licensed by her medical board in Maine. I strongly encourage you to seek out Drs. Rose and Nass and follow their work on Substack—they are among the true heroes exposing the lies of the military-pharmaceutical complex. (“Unacceptable Jessica” and “Meryl’s CHAOS Newsletter”)
I also reproduce here an excerpt from the front-page story in the January 30, 2025 Valley Voice, our region’s newspaper of record, written by editor Jan McMurray. Today is distribution day for the newspaper, so Jan and publisher Dan Nicholson are busy with that, and the online version of the article has not yet been posted. NOTE that only two birds out of well over 400 have tested positive for avian flu, and many have already recovered from a mild bout with the flu.
Katie Pasitney, eldest daughter of the farm co-owner Karen Esperson, has been interviewed extensively, including by well-known podcaster Viva Frei. (Link here.) She has also been interviewed here.
Valley Voice article excerpt: “Cull date nears for Edgewood ostrich farm”
Universal Ostrich Farms owners and supporters are doing everything they can to prevent the cull of all 400+ ostriches on the Edgewood farm.
The cull was ordered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), with a deadline of February 1, due to the positive testing of two of the birds for avian flu on December 30.
“This is a potentially catastrophic tragedy for my family, and a huge potential loss of valuable science that could help mitigate the migratory flight risk and spread of avian flu,” says Alison Turnbull, niece of farm co-owner Karen Esperson, on the farm’s GoFundMe page.
The farm has hired a lawyer, and had raised more than $15,000 for legal fees as of press time, January 27, through the GoFundMe campaign. This week, the lawyer plans to try to reach an agreement with CFIA that would allow the farm to keep up the quarantine and have the birds tested, reports Katie Pasitney, eldest daughter of the farm co-owner Karen Esperson. The lawyer also has plans to get in front of a federal judge for an injunction.
Pasitney says they are very confident the ostriches have achieved herd immunity. The farm has been on quarantine since December 31 and there have been no deaths since mid-January, she said.
“Killing them now doesn’t make sense,” Pasitney said. “This is a perfect opportunity for CFIA to test the healthy animals, but they’ve told us we are not allowed to treat or test the quarantined animals, and we are subject to a $200,000 fine and six months in jail if we do! Why are they not working with us? Why can’t we run more tests?”
McMurray reports that “the story has received huge media attention,” with supporters coming from as far afield as Kelowna, Lake Country, Salmon Arm, Lumby, and Cherryville.
. . . . Article excerpt continues . . . .
Over the last few years, Universal Ostrich Farms has been focusing on antibody research and development with Dr. Yasuhiro Tsukamoto at a university in Kyoto, Japan, and Dr. Stu Greenberg out of Boston. Ostriches are hardy animals with strong immune systems, and high-quality antibodies can be extracted from their eggs.
“These birds live until they are 75—most of them on our farm have 30 more years to live,” said Pasitney. “They are doing good for the world. They have antibodies that could provide solutions to viruses like COVID-19. Whatever happens on our farm, the world is watching.”
Click here to view the full article when it is posted.
My Letter to MP Mel Arnold
Dear Mr. Arnold. I am among the many citizens in the Arrow and Slocan Lakes region who are protesting the culling of the ostrich herd in Edgewood mandated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on February 1st. It simply makes no sense given what we actually know about avian flu.
In fact, despite the CFIA claiming avian flu is “highly pathogenic,” the vast majority of this ostrich herd has already recovered, having developed natural antibodies to the virus. In the CFIA cull order what we're really seeing is the long arm of the pharmaceutical industry, which is trying to convince public health agencies of the lethality of avian flu simply in order to sell billions of dollars worth of avian flu vaccines. And in terms of avian-human crossover, incidents of this are vanishingly rare. So far there has only been one confirmed case in the US.
However, just as was the case with COVID-19, government agencies and the media are consistently misreporting the actual dangers. Study after study now shows that the average Infection Fatality Rate (NOT Case Fatality Rate, which was used to hyper-inflate Covid deaths) was 0.03% or less, with the incidence rising with age to the highest IFR category in the 80-plus age range of about 0.5%. So much for “follow the science.” The federal government has admitted in court that its coronavirus task force did not in fact follow the science, and Ph.D statistician Dr. Regina Watteel, in her book Fisman's Fraud, proved that the “science” that was used in a University of Toronto study led by David Fisman to justify lockdowns was not only erroneous but actually fraudulent.
I include this information about the pandemic to provide you with the amply proven precedent for federal agencies to misrepresent the science in favour of corporate interests. Some years ago, the late Dr. Chiv Chopra, a career scientist with Health Canada, exposed the fact that he was pressured to alter his research in order to help potentially toxic products get licensed. This was about two decades ago, and he chronicles the pervasive corruption at Health Canada in his self-published memoir, Corrupt to the Core. Dr. Chopra’s colleague, Dr. Thierry Vrain, has spoken across Canada about how Health Canada ignored his scientific work in order to continue licensing glyphosate, now a proven carcinogen.
Mr. Arnold, I urge you to exert whatever pressure you are capable of to prevent a tragedy at the Edgewood ostrich farm. Already they have been important to our study of antibodies, with several universities producing data from these animals that will be useful to research in human immunology.
Our regulatory agencies and police should not be used against businesspeople and taxpayers as corporate enforcers.
UPDATE: Great news! A “stay of execution” of the ostriches has arrived thanks to a ruling by Canadian Supreme Court Justice Michael Battista, who “said that the Feb. 1 deadline for the birds to be killed should be suspended until after a hearing on the original order from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) can be reviewed by the courts.” Source: CBC News.
Letter written and sent. Thanks for your article. Posted and will restack.
Where I live we've been raising $ and have a lawyer to save our ferry. We're all fighting for our lives in one way or another.