'Life versus death': Ostrich farm pleads for birds' lives as cull could come any moment
“This is life versus death,” an emotional Pasitney told Rebel News reporter Drea Humphrey. “This is healthy animals that are going to go in dumpsters,” she continued, as a potential cull order could be executed at any moment.
Rebel News reporter Drea Humphrey is embedded at Universal Ostrich Farms in rural British Columbia, where a cull of 400 birds could occur at any moment.
With protesters on site, RCMP officers have been visiting the farm ahead of the cull, which is anticipated to be carried out by contractors hired by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
The tension between the farm and CFIA is a source of great government overreach, with the birds being deemed in need of culling by the CFIA following an outbreak of avian flu — which led to two of the birds' deaths — despite the flock being healthy and symptom free for 250 days.
Supporters of the farm have reported a large number of RCMP vehicles in the area of remote Edgewood, B.C. after a visit by a lone officer made a visit to the farm and spoke to its representative, Katie Pasitney.
“To kill innocent animals for no reason is ludicrous,” said one supporter at the farm who spoke to Drea. “These animals haven't been tested, there's nothing to say they're ill, and the government needs to stop overreaching into farmers' pockets.”
The ostriches' plight has even drawn the attention from the United States, with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. urging the CFIA to cancel the cull given the birds' eggs being used for antibody research.
There have also been offerings from the U.S. to transport the birds to properties there.
The CFIA has potentially contracted Nucor Environmental Services to dispose of the bodies, treating the prehistoric birds' carcasses as though they were biohazards.
Rebel News reached out to the company for comment, asking whether it was aware the farmers and their legal team had pushed for a Supreme Court hearing on the issue.
After enduring nine months of the ongoing ordeal, “these animals are healthy,” insisted Katie Pasitney to Rebel News. “Do the right thing,” Pasitney pleaded to Nucor.
A statement on the company's website asserted “contrary to online reports,” it had “not been onsite” and would “not be onsite conducting any work” at the farm.
“This is life versus death,” an emotional Pasitney told Rebel News. “This is healthy animals that are going to go in dumpsters,” she continued.
“This is wrong, and we need to rise up, we need to stand up Canada. This is right — we are fighting for right. We are fighting for life, not speculation. We are fighting for the science and life over speculation. Please stand with us, the world is watching.”
COMMENTS
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Bruce Atchison commented 2025-09-22 17:38:18 -0400Why should we care? Because if the CFIA gets away with this outrage, they’ll go after livestock and pets they deem to be dangerous. Even wildlife could be in peril since animals carry rabies and other diseases. The more power people have, the more they want. So it’s in OUR best interest to oppose such overreaches.
