Who is Emmanuel the emu's owner Taylor Blake?

Emmanuel the emu has rapidly become an internet sensation, taking TikTok feeds by storm – thanks to his owner Taylor Blake.

Blake, who owns Knuckle Bump Farms in South Florida, frequently shares videos of the animals with her 2.4m followers on the platform.

On Saturday, Blake revealed that many of the farm’s birds had contracted the deadly avian flu and that all but two had died. "Hi friends. I’ve tried countless times to write this post, but it’s been extremely difficult for me," she wrote. "We had a massive tragedy strike the farm, and I have been doing my best to wrap my head around it."

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It has now been revealed that beloved Emmanuel has also fallen sick with avian flu after Blake shared: "We lost 50+ birds in 3 days. I am still trying to wrap my head around it. We thought we were out of the woods when Emmanuel unexpectedly went down this past Wednesday.."

Avian flu, or bird flu, is a disease affecting birds across many species. The UK has faced 190 cases across the country since late October 2021, 30 of which were confirmed since the beginning of this month.

The US is also facing a near-record number of US chickens and turkeys dying in this year's avian flu outbreak.

As concerns grow for Emmanuel the emu, Blake's alleged controversial past has also sparked many side-eyes on social media.

Who is Taylor Blake?

Blake rose to fame as a farmer at Knuckle Bump Farms in South Florida and has since racked up over 46 million likes across her TikTok videos. Many of her uploads are dedicated to Emmanuel photobombing her posts and interacting with other species on the farm.

Her popularity has also landed her appearances on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.

Blake has also been accused of posting controversial remarks online in the past, as Twitter user @popelizbet pointed out.

"The Emmanuel the Emu woman is the same racist white woman who tried to blow up doing Good Ally videos as a Karen character a couple [of] years ago," they tweeted, referring to an alleged 2019 Twitter thread where Blake seemingly encouraged oppressed people to express love to their oppressors.

One person replied, "People of color shouldn't have to give love to their oppressors in order to live safely. Talking to a racist might go well for you personally, but it could be dangerous for POC."

However, some people are claiming the examples are from a different user. "hiitaylorblake is not the same as hitaylorblake," one pointed out.

Indy100 reached out to Taylor Blake for comment.

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