Onlookers ‘distraught’ as BC ostrich cull seemingly underway

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The only thing louder than the gunshots ringing out in a rural area near Englewood, B.C., were the sounds of the screaming of people horrified by the ostrich cull they were seemingly witnessing.

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“I heard more than 100 shots,” said Ottawa-based independent journalist Chris Dacey, who was on the scene. “They put floodlights facing out, kicked everybody out of the area, but everybody on the highway could hear those shots.”

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Not even 12 hours after the Supreme Court of Canada decided they would not hear the appeal of farmers to save at least 350 ostriches, gunfire was coming from the birds’ pen, which has been described as a “kill box” that they were pushed into earlier in the day by workers in hazmat suits from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

‘Wild scene’ shocked onlookers

“It’s a wild scene,” said Chris Dacey. “People are so upset. They are distraught.”

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Neither the RCMP nor the CFIA were confirming anything despite the CFIA acknowledging it had received a request for a comment. But the looks on the cops’ faces told the story. This was one dark scene.

“It was hard to tell who was doing the shooting, but they sounded like rifle shots,” said Dacey.

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The whole argument on whether these ostriches are carrying avian flu or had developed herd immunity becomes irrelevant once they are culled.

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Tests need to be done

Offers to have them tested were rejected. They will need to be tested now and those results will need to be shared with the public to determine if it was necessary to kill this flock.

They certainly did not look like they were sick.

Karen Espersen, co-owner of Universal Ostrich Farms Inc., told the Toronto Sun this month that in her opinion her birds were not ill in any way and there was no need to destroy them.

She told the RCMP holding the line this while the cull was seemingly being carried out.

“Those are healthy birds,” she told them. “You are murderers.”

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She is adamant there were better ways of approaching this including learning from the birds. Major business players offered to pay to have the birds tested or even removed to another location where they would not cull them.

The Liberal government did not agree with this. They will have lots to answer for when the sun comes up. Not just for the callousness of this cull. But for the unwillingness to look for alternatives.

Harsh resolution to dispute

It reminds me of the harshness and rigidness of the pandemic where there was no middle ground offered when there was plenty of middle ground available.

The harshness and coldness of the government was not matched here by people who loved these birds and wanted them kept for research.

For more than a month, Dacey has been documenting special bins being brought in, platforms built on top of bales of hay over the culling zone and special vehicles on site. He said everybody knew once the Supreme Court decided the birds had no more legal moves, they would be killed.

After more than 100 gunshots, he said, everybody there was bracing themselves for more. He fears there will be no more ostriches alive by the end of the evening.

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