In what might be described as a Canadian mini-Waco, a long-stewing confrontation between the intergenerational owners of a small ostrich farm in British Columbia and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has come to an ignominious end.
The impetus for the months-long standoff was a sweeping kill order for every ostrich on the farm after government agents received a “tip” from an “anonymous source,” used that as the pretext to get onto the property, and nabbed two allegedly positive bird flu tests from carcasses (not live birds) nearly a year ago.
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Requests by the farm-owning family for further testing to confirm or rule out the presence of bird flu were stonewalled by the government. They have repeatedly claimed their entire flock was healthy and disease-free.
The authorities announced on November 6, after the Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal, that it would be moving forward with “complete depopulation and disposal measures.”
In the press release, the state also threatened any protesters or observers, going as far as shutting down the airspace around the farm to prevent the capture of images from the killing.
Via Government of Canada (emphasis added):
The Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed Universal Ostrich Farms’ application for leave to appeal the August 21, 2025 decision of the Federal Court of Appeal. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will be moving forward to complete depopulation and disposal measures as authorized by the Health of Animals Act and guided by the stamping out policy for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)…
As the farm remains under CFIA control, individuals are reminded that subsection 35(1) of the Health of Animals Act makes it an offence to obstruct or hinder an analyst, inspector or officer who is performing duties or functions under this Act or the regulations. Any such actions may result in enforcement measures or prosecution. Section 65 of the Health of Animals Act describes the legal consequences of a contravention of the Act.
Transport Canada has published a notice pursuant to Section 5.1 of the Aeronautics Act that the airspace above the ostrich farm location is restricted. The restriction includes Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) (drones) and aircraft. Offences under the Aeronautics Act may result in administrative monetary penalties, fines or imprisonment…
Our disease response aims to protect both public and animal health*, as well as minimize impacts on the $6.8 billion domestic poultry industry, and the Canadian economy. This supports Canadian families and poultry farmers whose livelihoods depend on maintaining international market access for $1.75 billion in exports.
*To protect animal health, you understand, one must kill healthy birds with no signs of illness as a prophylactic measure.
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The government has now confirmed all of the ostriches were gunned down in the dead of night, although visual confirmation was impossible because of the obstacles erected by the authorities.
You’ll be shocked to learn which side of the issue the liberal and loving legacy media comes down on; it smeared the people trying to protect the animals and a staple family business in British Columbia as “anti-vaccine, anti-government activists and the conspiratorial right.”
Via MSNBC (emphasis added):
Such was the end of the saga: What could have been a routine disease response at a small farm had become a cause célèbre for anti-vaccine, anti-government activists and the conspiratorial right. For the hundreds of pilgrims who had come to the farm in so many months — and the thousands more who joined the livestreams — the birds were more than large-eyed livestock; they were symbols of a government that had overreached during the pandemic, with mandates and quarantines, and was going further still. The episode underscores a legacy of the pandemic in the West: eroded trust in government agencies and rising vaccine hesitancy, and how partisan politics have complicated public health.
Where’s PETA?
