Canada to cull hundreds of ostriches after supreme court rejects appeal

Canada’s food inspection agency is preparing to carry out a mass cull of hundreds of ostriches at a British Columbia farm after the country’s top court declined to block the controversial operation.

On November 6, the Supreme Court of Canada said it would not hear an appeal from Universal Ostrich Farms, near the town of Edgewood, clearing the way for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to proceed with what it calls a “complete depopulation” of the flock. The decision follows months of legal and political battles that have drawn international attention and fierce protests, the Guardian writes. 

The CFIA first ordered the destruction of nearly 400 ostriches in May, citing fears of an H5N1 avian influenza outbreak. Officials seized control of the farm earlier this week after 69 birds died from a flu-like illness. Although the court briefly paused the cull on November 5 while weighing the farm’s appeal, its latest ruling removed all legal obstacles to the killings.

The case has become a flashpoint far beyond Canada’s borders. Senior figures in the Trump administration have condemned the cull as government overreach.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reportedly lobbied Canadian officials to halt the operation, while Mehmet Oz, the former television host and now head of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, offered to relocate the birds to his ranch in Florida. Billionaire John Catsimatidis also pleaded with Ottawa to reverse the decision.

The controversy has sparked protests at the farm, where demonstrators have gathered for weeks, sharing live streams and expressing anger online. Many commenters have linked the ostrich cull to broader distrust of government and public health measures.

The issue has also spilled into Canadian politics. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has criticized the government’s handling of the situation, saying it was “mismanaged from the very beginning,” though he has avoided taking a clear position on the cull itself.

The Canadian government has defended the CFIA’s decision, saying the “stamping out” policy is consistent with international guidance from the World Health Organization to prevent the spread of avian flu to other animals, poultry operations, or humans.

Animal advocacy groups and the farm’s owners, however, have called for further testing, arguing that the surviving birds appear healthy. The owners claim the flock has developed partial herd immunity since the last recorded death on January 15, 2025.

Farm spokesperson Katie Pasitney condemned the decision in sharp terms.

“They are prehistoric animals that have survived millions of years, but they won’t survive the Canadian Food Inspection Agency,” she said. Co-owner Dave Bilinski added: “I’m afraid there’s – in my opinion – there’s no justice left.”

A federal court previously ruled that keeping the ostriches alive could endanger Canada’s poultry industry and public health. The CFIA has not said when the cull will begin.

According to a 2016 CFIA operations manual obtained through freedom of information laws, ostriches can be euthanized by several methods, including lethal injection, gassing, or neck breaking. Shooting is permitted only “as a last resort” if a skilled marksman is available.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision, Canadian Press reported that CFIA agents began installing floodlights and equipment around a large hay-bale enclosure at the rear of the ostrich pen, signaling preparations for the imminent cull.

By Sabina Mammadli