Why Universal Ostrich Farms Birds Must Not Have Died in Vain

The 314 ostriches massacred at Universal Ostrich Farms on November 6, 2025 were more than tragic casualties of government overreach. They were victims of a fundamentally flawed policy that's been failing Canadian farmers for over 20 years - and their deaths prove exactly why this approach doesn't work.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency's "Stamping Out" policy for highly pathogenic avian influenza sounds decisive. Kill every exposed bird, eradicate the disease, return to disease-free status. Simple, right?

Except it's not working. The numbers prove it. And worse - it's actually making the problem worse by destroying the very thing that could stop these outbreaks: natural immunity.

The Numbers Don't Lie: Stamping Out Is Failing

The CFIA has maintained a stamping out policy for highly pathogenic avian influenza for over 20 years. Canada experienced its first detection of highly pathogenic avian flu in 2004, when only a dozen farms were affected.

For two decades, the CFIA has used this same approach: kill every exposed bird, eradicate the disease, return to disease-free status.

But since the current H5N1 strain emerged in late 2021 and the CFIA launched its most aggressive stamping out campaign ever in 2022, avian flu hasn't been eradicated. It's exploded.

The devastating statistics:

• Over 17 million domestic birds have been killed or died across Canada since 2004
• British Columbia alone: 11+ million birds affected - the hardest hit province despite the most aggressive culling
• Ontario: 1.25 million birds across at least 64 premises since March 2022
• 546 premises infected nationwide since March 2022
• 66 premises currently infected as of late 2025

Compare this to 2014, Canada's first highly pathogenic avian flu detection, when only a dozen farms were affected. Compare it to 2004, when Canada's stamping out approach supposedly worked to contain outbreaks.

The trend over 20+ years is unmistakable: The policy isn't working. And the current crisis proves it has completely failed.

In 2022, close to 270 farms and production facilities were hit. That was supposed to be the crisis that stamping out would solve.

Instead, outbreaks continue year after year. British Columbia has 28 premises currently listed as infected. Multiple farms hit in Ontario just this week. New cases appearing regularly across provinces.

One infectious disease veterinarian put it plainly: "Typically with highly pathogenic avian flu, you get an introduction and you eradicate the affected birds and it just disappears back into nature. But since late 2021... it hasn't gone away."

After more than 20 years of the stamping out policy, and the most aggressive implementation in Canadian history from 2022-2025, avian flu is now endemic in North American bird populations.

The policy failed. Spectacularly. And it's been failing farmers for over two decades.

The Fatal Flaw: Destroying Natural Immunity

Here's what the CFIA doesn't want you to understand:

When you kill every bird that survives an outbreak, you're not just destroying "exposed" animals. You're destroying the only birds that have proven they can survive the virus. You're eliminating natural immunity from the population.

At Universal Ostrich Farms:

• 69 birds died during the December 2024 outbreak
• Around 400 birds survived
• Those survivors remained healthy for months
• They had developed natural immunity
• They could have been studied for antibodies
• Their eggs contained valuable immune factors

Instead of studying what made those birds different, what allowed them to survive when others didn't, the CFIA killed them all.

Now think about this on a national scale. Over 17 million birds killed. How many of those were survivors? How many had developed resistance? How many could have passed that resistance to their offspring?

We'll never know. The CFIA made sure of that.

Basic Biology: How Natural Immunity Actually Works

This isn't complicated science. This is livestock management 101.

When a disease moves through a population:

1. Some animals are highly susceptible and die
2. Some animals have moderate resistance and get sick but survive
3. Some animals have strong resistance and show minimal symptoms
4. The survivors develop antibodies
5. Those survivors pass resistance to offspring
6. The next generation is stronger

This is how animal populations have survived diseases for millions of years. This is herd immunity.

But the CFIA's stamping out policy doesn't allow this natural process to occur. Instead:

1. Disease enters a flock
2. Some birds die, some survive
3. The CFIA kills ALL remaining birds - sick and healthy
4. The property is "depopulated"
5. Eventually, new birds are brought in
6. Those new birds have ZERO immunity
7. They're just as vulnerable as the original flock
8. The cycle repeats

You're starting from ground zero every single time.

It's the definition of insanity - doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

What the Science Says

Even the CFIA's own experts admit there are problems.

Dr. Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt, a University of Montreal professor of veterinary medicine, told Radio-Canada that "any ostriches on the farm that were infected with avian flu but survived probably have some protection from the virus."

Dr. Scott Weese, an infectious disease veterinarian, stated that the hundreds of ostriches killed at Universal Ostrich Farms "probably weren't infected" at the time of the cull.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote to the CFIA specifically requesting they spare the Universal Ostrich flock for research purposes, noting the birds offered "the potential to study both antibody levels and cellular immunity to help further our scientific understanding of the virus and the immune physiologic response."

The CFIA's response? They called the research value "unsubstantiated" and killed the birds anyway.

Why Does the CFIA Refuse to Consider Alternatives?

The stated reasons for stamping out are:

1. Protect human and animal health
2. Prevent virus mutation
3. Maintain access to international markets
4. Protect Canada's $6.8 billion poultry industry

Let's examine each one:

1. Human Health Protection

Bird flu poses minimal risk to humans. Since 1997, H5N1 has killed just over 500 people worldwide - across nearly 30 years. Regular seasonal flu kills 250,000-600,000 people per year.

At Universal Ostrich Farms, people worked around supposedly "infected" birds for months. The CFIA walked among them without protective equipment. If this was truly a deadly human health threat, the response would look very different.

2. Prevent Virus Mutation

This is the fear-mongering argument: "The virus could mutate in surviving birds and become more dangerous!"

But viruses can mutate anywhere - in wild birds, in commercial flocks that get infected despite biosecurity, in the environment. The virus is already endemic in wild waterfowl populations across North America.

Killing domestic birds that survived infection doesn't stop mutation. It just ensures you have no resistant domestic population when the next outbreak hits.

3. International Markets

This is the real reason. Trading partners want assurance that Canadian poultry is "disease-free."

But here's the problem: We're NOT disease-free. We have hundreds of infected premises. Outbreaks continue despite years of aggressive culling. The international market argument rings hollow when you're destroying millions of birds year after year and the disease keeps spreading.

At some point, trading partners will lose confidence not because we allowed natural immunity to develop, but because our stamping out policy clearly isn't working.

4. Protect the Poultry Industry

The CFIA claims stamping out protects the $6.8 billion domestic poultry industry.

How is an industry "protected" when 17+ million birds have been killed in three years? When farms continue to be infected despite massive culling operations? When small farms are driven to bankruptcy?

The current approach protects industrial factory farming - hermetically sealed barns with thousands of genetically identical birds with zero natural immunity. That's the business model stamping out preserves.

It doesn't protect farmers. It doesn't protect independent producers. It certainly doesn't protect animal welfare.

The Real Agenda: Follow the Money

Let's talk about what stamping out actually accomplishes:

It eliminates natural immunity that competes with pharmaceutical solutions.

Think about it:

• Birds with natural immunity don't need vaccines
• Farms with resistant flocks don't need pharmaceutical interventions
• Antibodies from surviving birds can't be patented by drug companies
• Natural resistance can't generate ongoing revenue streams

But if you wipe out every flock that develops natural immunity, you ensure:

• Every new flock is vulnerable
• Farmers depend on pharmaceutical interventions
• Vaccine development becomes the only "solution"
• Drug companies profit from every outbreak

Universal Ostrich Farms wasn't just about ostriches. Those birds' eggs were being used for therapeutic research. Their antibodies had value. They represented an alternative to the pharmaceutical model.

The CFIA made sure that alternative was eliminated.

The Pattern Across Canada: Terrorizing Farmers for Decades

Universal Ostrich Farms isn't an isolated case. The CFIA has been doing this for over 20 years - since at least 2004 when Canada first adopted the stamping out policy for highly pathogenic avian influenza.

For more than two decades, farmers have reported the same pattern of abuse and overreach. The Facebook post that brought Universal Ostrich Farms to international attention stated it clearly: "The CFIA has been terrorizing farmers for decades."

And the sources confirm it. Canada has "historically maintained" this policy. It's been the CFIA's standard operating procedure for over 20 years.

The Standard Playbook:

1. Receive report of sick/dead birds (often from anonymous tips, not farmer reports)
2. Swarm the property like a SWAT team
3. Test minimal number of birds
4. Declare entire premises "infected"
5. Order immediate destruction of ALL birds
6. Threaten crushing fines ($200,000 per bird in the ostrich case) for non-compliance
7. Refuse to allow independent testing
8. Slaughter thousands of healthy animals
9. Test dead animals (maybe)
10. Often find no disease, or minimal infection
11. Offer minimal compensation: "Oops, sorry"
12. Move on to the next farm

There are no consequences for the CFIA when they're wrong. No accountability when healthy animals are killed. No penalties when they violate court orders.

They operate with unchecked power, backed by armed RCMP, with full judicial support.

Why This Matters for Every Canadian

This isn't just about birds. This is about:

Government agencies operating above the law - The CFIA violated a Supreme Court stay order and faced zero consequences

Destruction of independent farming - Small farms can't survive the financial devastation of culling

Elimination of natural solutions - Biological resistance is destroyed in favor of pharmaceutical dependency

Loss of food security - 17 million birds killed while we claim to be "protecting" the food supply

Erosion of property rights - Agencies can seize your property, kill your animals, harvest biological material, all without accountability

Setting precedent for future "emergencies" - The pandemic showed us how quickly "public health" justifies totalitarian action

If they can do this to farmers over bird flu, they can do it to anyone over anything declared an "emergency."

What Actually Works: Learning from Universal Ostrich Farms

Those 400 ostriches that survived the December 2024 outbreak showed us exactly what works:

Natural immunity protected them - They remained healthy for months after the outbreak

Herd immunity developed - The surviving flock was resistant to reinfection

The disease didn't spread - Despite supporters' claims of poor biosecurity, no other farms in the area were infected from this source

The virus didn't mutate into a human threat - Despite months of exposure, no dangerous mutations occurred

Antibodies had research value - Scientists wanted to study them; the U.S. government offered to partner in research

That flock was a natural firewall against future outbreaks. Instead of studying them, learning from them, breeding from them, the CFIA shot them in a kill pen in the middle of the night.

Alternative Approaches That Could Actually Work

Other countries are exploring options Canada refuses to consider:

1. Selective Culling

• Only destroy severely infected birds
• Isolate and monitor survivors
• Test for immunity before making destruction decisions

2. Vaccination Programs

• The CFIA finally formed a task force in 2023 to "study" vaccination - after years of outbreaks
• Other countries already use targeted vaccination
• Could protect vulnerable birds while allowing natural immunity to develop in others

3. Immunity-Based Breeding

• Identify naturally resistant birds
• Study what makes them resistant
• Breed for those traits
• Build inherently stronger flocks

4. Research Exemptions

• Allow scientifically valuable flocks to be studied
• Partner with universities and research institutions
• Learn from survivors instead of destroying them
• Develop better treatments based on natural immunity

5. Biosecurity Support Instead of Punishment

• Help farmers implement better containment
• Provide resources for improved housing
• Support small farms in protecting their flocks
• Incentivize immunity development

But the CFIA refuses to consider any of these alternatives. Why? Because they would reduce pharmaceutical dependency and threaten the current power structure.

The Unchecked Power Problem

Here's what makes the CFIA particularly dangerous:

They have the power to:

• Declare any premises "infected" based on minimal testing
• Order immediate destruction of all animals
• Seize control of private property
• Operate with full RCMP backing
• Ignore court orders (as they did at Universal Ostrich Farms)
• Refuse accountability for their actions
• Threaten crushing financial penalties
• Harvest biological material without disclosure

They have NO obligation to:

• Allow independent verification
• Provide transparent bird counts
• Disclose where seized biological material goes
• Face consequences when they're wrong
• Prove the necessity of their actions
• Consider alternatives
• Provide adequate compensation
• Answer to the public

The head of the CFIA is one of the most powerful and untouchable positions in Canada. They operate with the backing of Big Pharma and the industrial meat industry. They can destroy lives and livelihoods with no oversight.

When the RCMP becomes the enforcement arm of regulatory agencies rather than upholders of law, when judges block evidence and refuse to hear cases, when agencies can operate in contempt of Supreme Court orders - that's not disease control. That's totalitarianism.

What Needs to Change Immediately

1. End the blanket stamping out policy

• Move to selective, science-based culling
• Allow natural immunity to develop
• Stop destroying healthy survivors

2. Mandatory independent verification

• Third-party testing before any cull orders
• Transparent bird counts and health assessments
• Public oversight of CFIA operations

3. Research exemptions

• Protect flocks with scientific value
• Study natural immunity
• Learn from survivors

4. Accountability for the CFIA

• Financial penalties when healthy animals are killed
• Criminal charges for contempt of court
• Oversight board with farmer representation
• Transparency in all operations

5. Support for farmers, not threats

• Adequate compensation for losses
• Resources for improved biosecurity
• Technical support for immunity development
• Protection from financial ruin

6. Transparent biological material handling

• Full disclosure of where seized eggs/samples go
• Ban on pharmaceutical harvesting under guise of biosecurity
• Public accounting of all biological assets removed from farms

Honoring the Universal Ostrich Farms Birds

Those 314 ostriches (or however many there actually were - the CFIA still won't provide transparent numbers) died for nothing if we don't learn from their deaths.

They showed us that natural immunity works. That survivors can thrive. That herds can develop resistance. That there's an alternative to endless culling.

The CFIA made sure we couldn't study them, couldn't learn from them, couldn't breed from them. They shot them in a kill pen over several hours, many suffering through the night, finished off with more shots in the morning.

Then they removed the bodies in unmarked trucks with covered license plates, spread contaminated material across fields, left the site open to wild birds, and called it "biosecurity."

The cruelty was the point. The message was clear: Dare to resist our protocols, and we'll destroy everything you love while the country watches helplessly.

But they miscalculated. Those birds didn't die in vain if we ensure their deaths spark the change that's desperately needed.

What You Can Do

Educate yourself:

• Understand the stamping out policy and its failures
• Follow the statistics - outbreaks are increasing, not decreasing
• Question the official narrative

Support affected farmers:

• Universal Ostrich Farms and others fighting CFIA overreach
• Share their stories
• Demand accountability

Demand change:

• Contact your MP about CFIA accountability
• Call for policy reform
• Support alternative approaches to disease management

Spread awareness:

• Share information about natural immunity
• Challenge the pharmaceutical-dependency model
• Question agencies with unchecked power

Prepare for the future:

• This isn't just about birds
• The precedent applies to any "emergency"
• Understand your rights before the next crisis

The Bottom Line

After three years and 17+ million birds killed, the CFIA's stamping out policy has:

✗ Failed to eradicate avian flu ✗ Failed to stop outbreaks from increasing ✗ Failed to protect the poultry industry ✗ Failed to maintain disease-free status ✗ Failed to prevent the virus from becoming endemic

Meanwhile, it has succeeded in:

✓ Destroying natural immunity ✓ Eliminating biological resistance from domestic flocks ✓ Ensuring perpetual vulnerability to future outbreaks ✓ Protecting pharmaceutical interests ✓ Terrorizing independent farmers ✓ Demonstrating that regulatory agencies operate above the law

This is not disease control. This is disease perpetuation by design.

Every farm culled, every healthy bird killed, every naturally immune flock destroyed makes the next outbreak worse. We're starting from ground zero every single time, with increasingly vulnerable populations and an endemic virus that's not going away.

The Universal Ostrich Farms massacre proved the CFIA will violate court orders, ignore science, refuse accountability, and use overwhelming state violence to maintain their failed policy.

Those birds deserved better. Canadian farmers deserve better. And every citizen should be terrified of what happens when agencies have this much unchecked power.

The stamping out policy must end. Not eventually. Now.

Because three years and 17 million dead birds prove it doesn't work. And every farm destroyed, every immune flock eliminated, every natural solution extinguished makes the next outbreak inevitable.

We need to learn from Universal Ostrich Farms. We need to study natural immunity. We need to build resilient flocks, not perpetually vulnerable ones.

And we need to hold the CFIA accountable before they destroy the next farm, the next flock, the next family's livelihood - all in service of a policy that has failed by every measurable standard.

Those 314 ostriches died proving that natural immunity works. Let's make sure their deaths weren't in vain.

The fight for accountability continues. Katie Pasitney and the Universal Ostrich Farms team have vowed to keep fighting for change. Support them. Share their story. Demand answers.

Because if we don't stop the CFIA now, your farm, your livelihood, your property could be next.