British Columbia’s co-owned by Karen Espersen and partner, Dave Bilinski, received a $10,000 penalty for the GA. Yet they did not report a serious emerging epidemic of disease in their flock. The decision, made by a federal tribunal, highlighted the negligence of the farm owners in adhering to federal regulations regarding animal health reporting.
At the time, this particular farm held more than 400 ostriches, and by December 2024 they started to show some pretty serious symptoms. Reports indicated the birds were exhibiting signs of watery eyes and white nodules on the back of their mouths. In addition, they were coughing up white chunks. Additional indicators of distress were depression and listlessness. Over a three-week period, nearly half their flock perished from the same illness. On December 30, 2024, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) swabbed two recently deceased ostriches. In a dramatic move, the government magnified the danger tenfold.
By December 31, those test results confirmed the presence of a novel virus, spurring an urgent response from public health authorities. That is, the farm was given just 41 minutes from when it received its positive test results to start culling all remaining ostriches on the property. A team of marksmen executed the slaughter in difficult conditions, as the operation occurred during heavy rain on November 6.
The weather had become very adverse about three weeks prior to the initial clinical signs in the flock. Bilinski explained they weren’t thinking of avian influenza right away. Even better, the symptoms exactly aligned with an infection named for a bacteria “pseudomonas,” which had ravaged their birds in 2020. He noted that the farm made efforts to contact two veterinarians before calling to bring one out. So, of course, both of them were out of town at that time.
Tribunal chair Emily Crocco found unequivocally that the farm had been negligent. They neglected to trigger a report on this outbreak as needed by federal law. The tribunal made an informed and considered review of the evidence. They found that the owners neglected their duty to timely and adequately respond to contain the disease.
“It is a fact that there was a failure to report,” – Emily Crocco
Dr. Erica Robertson’s notes from the tribunal highlighted Bilinski’s acknowledgment of the weather’s impact on their ability to assess the situation properly. She called the conditions that preceded the outbreak “atrocious”. She also highlighted the farm’s failure to communicate effectively and substandard reporting procedures.
Before the culling was to take place, the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear an appeal from this decision. This decision bolsters the tribunal’s powers in ensuring compliance and enforcement of animal health regulations.
