The owner of a Canadian ostrich farm where 314 birds were slaughtered claims the massacre was meant to silence groundbreaking research into life-saving therapeutics.
Katie Pasitney, who co-owns Universal Ostrich Farms in British Columbia with her mother Karen Espersen, told Daily Mail that officials used avian flu as a pretext to destroy their flock, which she claimed was healthy when they were killed Thursday night.
According to Pasitney, the farm was developing antibody treatments from ostrich egg yolks that showed promise against major viruses, including COVID-19 and H1N1.
The antibodies, produced naturally by the giant birds, had reportedly been proven in labs to neutralize 99.9 percent of coronavirus particles and were being developed into nasal sprays and face masks.
‘They didn’t want our therapeutic bodies out,’ Pasitney told Daily Mail. ‘We went to the government looking for funding, and not long after that, we suddenly had an influenza outbreak.’ Daily Mail asked Canadian authorities to respond to Pasitney’s allegations, but received no response.
The controversy began in December, when the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) received an anonymous report of ostrich deaths at the farm. Tests confirmed two birds carried H5N1, a highly contagious strain of bird flu, and within weeks, the agency ordered the entire flock killed.
The farm owners had hoped to avert the cull through additional testing, but Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal in June refused to allow it, blocking their final attempt to save the birds.
Images shared by a local media crew captured the gruesome aftermath, hundreds of ostriches lying lifeless under tarps, some reportedly beheaded after a firing-squad-style execution.
Shocking images of the slaughter on the Canadian farm some of the birds were beheaded
Authorities ordered the cull after dozens of birds died earlier in the year due to bird flu. The farm, however, announced no cases
Pasitney described the scene as ‘a war zone,’ saying the birds, some over 35 years old and known by name, were placed inside a pen and executed.
‘They could’ve quarantined, tested, monitored, but they chose slaughter,’ she said.
‘There was no testing or protocol checks. This is all a theatrical display for punishment.’
It all began when roughly 69 ostriches died from December through mid-January, all due to bird flu.
While Pasitney insists the cull was unnecessary and targeted the flock because of their medical research, the CFIA maintains that its actions followed standard protocols for controlling highly pathogenic avian influenza.
The agency says depopulation, quarantine and biosecurity measures are routine for infected premises, and that all birds were euthanized humanely according to international animal health guidelines.
Officials also note that compensation is offered for each bird, and that such measures are intended to protect public health, prevent the spread of disease, and safeguard Canada’s poultry industry.
‘Given that the flock has had multiple laboratory-confirmed cases of H5N1 and the ongoing serious risks for animal and human health and trade, the CFIA is carrying out response activities at the infected premises,’ CFIA said in a statement
Katie Pasitney (right), who co-owns Universal Ostrich Farms in British Columbia with her mother Karen Espersen (left), told Daily Mail that officials used avian flu as a pretext to destroy their flock, which she said was healthy when they were killed Thursday night
Authorities were spotted in hazmat suits after the cull, covering the bodies with tarps
‘The CFIA takes the responsibility to protect the health of animals and Canadians extremely seriously as we conduct these necessary disease control measures to protect public health and minimize the economic impact on Canada’s poultry industry.’
Daily Mail contacted CFIA on Friday for comment and has yet to receive a response.
Espersen, along with partner Dave Bilinski, had been working with a laboratory in eastern Canada to develop antibody therapeutics derived from ostrich egg yolks.
Ostriches, the largest birds on the planet, possess an exceptionally strong immune system and can generate antibodies to viruses, including COVID-19, within weeks of exposure.
‘Working with a lab back east, we inoculated our hens with the dead COVID-19 virus,’ Espersen explained to North Shore News in 2021. ‘The hen produces antibodies in two weeks, and two weeks after that, she puts them into her eggs.’
The team later began developing a nasal spray capable of neutralizing the virus, including the Delta variant, and envisioned a product ‘everyone could keep in their pocket or medicine cabinet.’
Their work mirrored efforts overseas, where Japanese researchers at Kyoto Prefectural University and Ostrich Pharma USA had already used similar antibodies in masks, nasal drops and even candies.
Clinical trials in Osaka were testing ostrich antibody nasal drops to prevent hospital-acquired COVID-19 infections.
Espersen said the Universal Ostrich Farms farm dedicated all its laying hens to the program, describing it as ‘a natural, sustainable way to help the world.’
Many of the ostriches had been at the farm for 35 years, each one had a name
The ostriches were placed in the pen hours before the cull. Independent journalist flew drones overhead to capture the gruesome scene
Lab testing revealed the infection was a new strain of bird flu not seen anywhere else in Canada. It included a genetic mix known as D1.3, previously linked to a human infection in an Ohio poultry worker.
In January, Espersen said that despite losing 10 percent of the flock, the birds appeared to have developed herd immunity.
The farm later won a temporary legal victory, stopping the government from killing their ostriches.
Justice Michael Battista said that allowing the cull before fully reviewing the evidence would expose the applicant to irreparable harm, meaning the deaths of the ostriches would be permanent and could not be undone later, even if the farm later won in court.
Hundreds of ostriches were wrangled inside a pen on the farm on Thursday and killed hours later
Universal Ostrich Farms then reported that approximately 100 days had passed in April since an ostrich on its farm had died or been ill from a respiratory infection.
The farm lost its last appeal in August. Canadian authorities have maintained that the cull was necessary to prevent further spread of the virus, which poses a serious threat to both wild and domestic bird populations.
At 6 pm local time on November 6, Pasitney said she heard hundreds of gunshots ringing out near the pen where authorities had corralled the birds.
‘They are all gone. They were unnecessarily killed… they didn’t need to die,’ Pasitney said.
