CFIA says cull over, all ostriches shot dead at B.C. farm by ‘professional marksman’

By Canadian Press on November 7, 2025.

EDGEWOOD, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA — The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says it has shot dead all ostriches at a British Columbia farm, fulfilling a cull order over an avian flu outbreak.

It says a “professional marksman” was used as the “most appropriate and humane option” to complete the cull at the farm at Edgewood, B.C.

A holding pen that was filled with ostriches on Thursday now appears still and empty of live birds, and no ostriches can be seen anywhere else on the property.

Instead, the pen is filled with long blue tarpaulins covering objects on the ground that are also shrouded with black sheeting.

The shooting started around 6 p.m. Thursday and went on for hours, after the Supreme Court of Canada ruled earlier in the day that it would not hear the farmers’ final appeal against the cull.

The CFIA, which numbered the flock at between 300 to 330 birds, says the shootings were completed under veterinary supervision.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2025.

Brenna Owen, The Canadian Press

11
-10