Two Blades of Grass: Bird Flu update.

I went to Grok and was disappointed with AI for the third time. A poultry farmer knows best.

Grok Failed Again.

I went to Grok (AI) to see what its responses would be if I asked it questions about Bird Flu. I wanted to know if any of my suggestions other than mass murdering the birds would be acceptable.

Here’s a detailed summary of our (Grok and Myself) discussion on the current status of the H7N8 bird flu outbreak in Australia and the various alternatives explored for managing it, followed by a suggestion for the best alternative to mass culling based on the evidence and context as of February 25, 2025.

Summary of the H7N8 Outbreak and Explored Alternatives

Current Status: The H7N8 high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak in northern Victoria, Australia, began in early February 2025 at an egg farm in Euroa and has since spread to three commercial poultry farms. Approximately 430,000 birds (80,000, 180,000, and 160,000 per farm) are being culled to contain the virus, which likely originated from wild waterfowl. This follows 2024’s record 1.8 million bird cull across multiple states, successfully eradicating earlier H7 outbreaks. Australia remains free of the globally devastating H5N1 strain. Strict quarantine, a 5-km restricted zone, and biosecurity measures are in place, with concerns rising about egg shortages amid ongoing industry pressures.

Diagnosis and Vaccination: Diagnosis relies on rapid antigen tests, real-time RT-PCR for confirmation, virus isolation, and pathogenicity assays (e.g., IVPI), conducted by labs like the ACDP in Geelong. Vaccination isn’t used; Australia bans it in commercial poultry to maintain export status and avoid masking the virus, opting for a “stamping out” approach—culling and containment—proven effective since 1976.

Alternatives Explored:

1. Natural Herd Immunity and Breeding Resistance:

   • Idea: Let H7N8 spread, allow survivors to develop immunity, and breed them for resistance.

   • Why Not: HPAI’s 70-100% mortality leaves too few survivors, transmission risks persist, and breeding takes years—unviable mid-outbreak. Australia’s focus is eradication, not adaptation.

2. Copper (Surfaces, Feed, Water):

   • Evidence: Copper disrupts viral envelopes and replication (e.g., 99.9% influenza A reduction in 6 hours on surfaces), boosts immunity via feed, and reduces gut bacteria.

   • Why Not: Too slow for H7N8’s rapid spread, impractical to scale (e.g., copper sheds for 430,000 birds), risks toxicity and nutrient interference, and unproven against HPAI in flocks. Wild bird vectors bypass farm-level fixes.

3. Antivirals (e.g., Oseltamivir):

   • Evidence: Lab studies show inhibition of influenza A (e.g., H5N1 in mice), but no poultry-specific H7N8 trials.

   • Why Not: Unapproved for veterinary use, costly, impractical to dose flocks fast enough, and risks resistant strains or carriers. Culling’s cheaper and surer.

4. Garlic and Ginger Extracts in Feed:

   • Evidence: Boost immunity and gut health (e.g., 0.5-1% garlic reduces broiler pathogens), with some antiviral hints in labs.

   • Why Not: No direct H7N8 evidence, too slow and weak against HPAI’s lethality, and logistically challenging to scale mid-outbreak. Preventive, not curative.

5. Short Bursts of UV Light:

   • Evidence: UV-C inactivates influenza in air/surfaces (e.g., H5N1 in aerosols), potentially reducing viral load.

   • Why Not: Can’t penetrate feathers or manure, needs line-of-sight, costly to install farm-wide, and risks bird harm. Too late once H7N8 is active; wild bird entry persists.

6. Homeopathy:

   • Evidence: Mixed human studies (e.g., Oscillococcinum for flu, faster COVID-19 recovery in an RCT) suggest symptom relief, but weak methodology and no poultry data.

   • Why Not: Unproven for H7N8, implausible at scale (individualized dosing for 430,000 birds?), and dismissed by science as placebo-like. Australia prioritizes proven tactics.

7. Colloidal Silver:

   • Evidence: In vitro, reduces SARS-CoV-2, HIV-1, RSV replication (e.g., 80% SARS-CoV-2 drop at 1-10 ppm), some animal benefit (e.g., shrimp WSSV).

   • Why Not: No human or poultry trials for HPAI, toxic (argyria, organ damage), unapproved, and impractical for flocks. Risks outweigh untested benefits.

Common Themes: Alternatives falter due to H7N8’s speed, scale, and wild bird origin; lack of poultry-specific evidence; regulatory barriers; and Australia’s biosecurity/export priorities. Culling remains the gold standard—brutal but effective.

Best Alternative to Mass Culling

Given the constraints, the best alternative to mass culling for managing bird flu like H7N8 isn’t a single silver bullet but a proactive, integrated biosecurity and vaccination strategy, tailored to balance efficacy, feasibility, and Australia’s unique context. Here’s the proposal and why it edges out others:

Strategy: Enhanced Biosecurity with Emergency Vaccination

• Components:

  1. Pre-Outbreak Biosecurity: Install wild bird deterrents (e.g., netting, lasers) around farms, improve shed sealing, and mandate stricter hygiene (e.g., boot dips, vehicle disinfection). Deploy UV-C in ventilation systems and water lines as a baseline pathogen reducer.

  2. Surveillance: Expand real-time wild bird monitoring (e.g., fecal sampling near farms) using PCR to detect HPAI early.

  3. Emergency Vaccination: Stockpile H7-specific inactivated or recombinant vaccines (e.g., H7N8-matched), approved for use only if HPAI breaches biosecurity. Administer via water or injection to high-risk flocks during outbreaks, not routinely.

  4. Selective Culling: Cull only confirmed infected birds (via rapid PCR), sparing healthy flocks under vaccination protection.

• Implementation:

  • Retrofit farms pre-emptively—Victoria’s egg farms could prioritize this post-2024’s wakeup call. The $100 million preparedness fund could cover UV, netting, and vaccine stockpiles.

  • Train staff for rapid vaccine deployment (e.g., 1-2 days post-detection). Use sentinel birds to test efficacy without mass rollout.

  • Pair with copper feed supplements (e.g., 8-25 mg/kg) and UV bursts as adjuncts to boost baseline health, not as primary defenses.

Why It’s Best

• Efficacy: Vaccines target H7N8 specifically, unlike broad-spectrum alternatives (e.g., garlic, silver). Studies (e.g., H5N1 trials in Asia) show 80-90% protection in poultry, reducing spread and mortality without total flock loss. Biosecurity cuts wild bird entry—H7N8’s root cause.

• Feasibility: Vaccines exist and are used elsewhere (e.g., France, 2023 duck vaccination); Australia’s stockpile could adapt. UV and netting are scalable with investment, unlike farm-wide copper or homeopathy.

• Preserves Birds: Spares healthy flocks, easing egg shortages (a 2025 concern) versus culling 430,000 birds. Selective culling minimizes waste.

• Export Balance: Emergency-only vaccination, paired with rigorous testing (e.g., DIVA—Differentiating Infected from Vaccinated Animals—strategies), could satisfy trade partners if HPAI-free claims shift to “controlled” status.

Why Not Others?

• Herd Immunity: Too deadly, slow, and risky.

• Copper: Unproven for HPAI, toxic at scale, slow-acting.

• Antivirals: Costly, unapproved, resistance risks.

• Garlic/Ginger: Weak, indirect, unscalable.

• UV: Partial, impractical mid-outbreak.

• Homeopathy/Silver: No solid evidence, regulatory rejection, toxicity risks.

Challenges

• Policy Shift: Australia bans vaccination to avoid carrier masking—lifting this requires trade negotiations and DIVA tech adoption (e.g., marker vaccines).

• Cost: Initial biosecurity upgrades and vaccine stockpiling exceed culling’s short-term expense, though long-term savings (fewer culls) could offset this.

• Wild Birds: Not fully preventable, but reduced exposure buys time for vaccines to work.

Conclusion

Mass culling works—Australia’s eradicated every HPAI outbreak since 1976—but it’s costly in birds, eggs, and morale. Enhanced biosecurity with emergency vaccination offers the best alternative: proactive prevention via wild bird barriers and UV, paired with a targeted vaccine safety net to limit culls to infected birds. It’s not perfect—trade and regulatory hurdles loom—but it leverages proven tools, spares flocks, and fits H7N8’s wild bird-driven reality better than untested or impractical options like silver or ginger. For now, culling reigns; this could be the future if Australia adapts.

So that’s the conclusion from Grok- Artificial Intelligence or AI

Now have a listen to a real farmer who understands and obeys nature. See how they mass murder the chickens.

The so-called experts who say that we cannot breed flu resistant birds are lazy morons. And 2 blades of grass per day per bird make a lot of nutritional sense to me-I am an agricultural scientist as well as a medical doctor specialising in Nutritional medicine.

The following is from Sayer Ji’s Substack:

“In the ever-expanding theater of industrial agriculture, a new villain is constantly paraded before the public: the "deadly" avian flu. But what if this so-called crisis is not just a function of nature, but rather an engineered problem exacerbated—if not outright created—by the very system claiming to solve it?

Joel Salatin, the legendary regenerative farmer from Polyface Farms, is raising the alarm: mass poultry exterminations in the name of disease control are not only irrational but an assault on nature itself.

In a fiery testimony, Salatin deconstructs the mainstream narrative surrounding avian influenza, exposing the deep contradictions and outright failures of government-mandated poultry culling policies. Below, we explore his key points, along with five powerful verbatim excerpts that make his case crystal clear.”

Click on the picture below to SEE for yourself.

Joel Salatin: The Truth About Mass Killing of Poultry, Avian Flu, and Restoring Sanity to Farming

Thank you Joel