September 29, 2025 - • Threatened arrest for using drones to check on the birds. • Fed the ostriches their own CFIA feed instead of the family’s feed, even though they were ordered not to. • Refused to let the family test the feed they were giving the ostriches.

2 weeks ago - If approached, they often run away, but sometimes ostriches can be very aggressive when threatened, especially if cornered, and may also attack if they feel the need to defend their territories or offspring. Similar behaviour is noted in captive or domesticated common ostriches, which retain ...

March 25, 2026 - No onsite testing of survivors was allowed — their own policy threatened farmers with up to $200,000 fines per animal or six months in jail for attempting to test or treat. The agency even struck the family’s expert reports from judicial review.

April 15, 2026 - They also relentlessly harassed and threatened anyone they perceived as pro-cull, including publishing the home addresses and personal information of CFIA inspectors and their families. A 72-year-old neighbour, Lois Wood, was attacked by an ostrich supporter she caught mid-attempted arson, who punched her and poured gasoline on her.

September 30, 2025 - • Threatened arrest for using drones to check on the birds. • Fed the ostriches their own CFIA feed instead of the family’s feed, even though they were ordered not to. • Refused to let the family test the feed they were giving the ostriches.

November 7, 2025 - They were threatened with penalties if they conducted independent testing, and CFIA declined to perform further confirmatory tests. • Not a Food Operation: The ostriches were not being raised for consumption and had been kept for research ...

Thanks to their strong legs, ostriches can reach immense speeds and deliver dangerous kicks when they feel threatened. Like most wildlife in Africa, it’s essential to keep a safe distance and not provoke them.

January 31, 2026 - Unfortunately, you need to be able ... Many of the farm’s supporters have questioned why the CFIA refused to test the birds that survived the initial H5N1 outbreak, which killed 69 ostriches....

February 11, 2026 - At the same time the CFIA will not let the farmers pay for the tests themselves, saying they will charge them $250,000 per ostrich and put them in jail for 6 months. The federal agency and the RCMP have seized and occupied the farm since September ...

November 8, 2025 - "It's a cultural problem that exists in many government departments," said May. The agency's decision to proceed with the ostrich cull without retesting the birds, to the "obvious distress" of thousands of Canadians, was "reckless [and] imprudent."

Farm-raised ostriches are also harvested for eggs, supple leather, and gourmet meat that is lower in cholesterol than beef. ​ At one time, most of Africa was home to the ostrich. Today, although not threatened, the ostrich requires strict protection and farming to conserve the remaining populations.

Wild populations of the common ostrich have declined but, in general, the species is not considered threatened. One subspecies, the Arabian ostrich, became extinct in the 1960’s; another, the North African ostrich, is critically endangered.

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December 3, 2025 - Ostrich: the largest and heaviest living bird. Kingdom: | Animalia Phylum: | Chordata Class: | Aves Order: | Struthioniformes Family: | Struthionidae

CFIA rejected their argument that the surviving ostriches were immune to H5N1, and, for safety reasons, would not allow testing of the birds for the virus.

May 28, 2025 - The appeal argues that the Federal Court "made multiple reversible errors" when it upheld the agency's decision to cull the ostrich herd earlier this month. It claims the court "took an unduly narrow" view of the agency's mandate under the Health of Animals Act, wrongly concluded that expert reports were unnecessary, failed to fully consider the consequences of the cull decision, and did not properly determine if the agency's denial of further testing of the animals was reasonable.

November 1, 2017 - Ostriches graze alongside other large herbivores such as zebra and antelope. The Maryland Zoo has three female ostriches and you can see them, yes, grazing alongside the zebra and rhinos in the African Watering Hole habitat! Ostriches live in nomadic groups of 50 or more birds (although usually more like 10 in a group), with a dominant male, dominant female, and other females in the harem.

December 11, 2024 - After they leave the nest, the ... When threatened, the male will attempt to distract the predator with a display of loud noises and an outstretched neck, while the females and chicks attempt to find cover....

November 15, 2025 - Both Espersen and her partner became infected by bird flu but insisted they didn’t notice any symptoms. Meanwhile, the family had brought their case to court and won a stay of execution until they finished their appeal. The farm called on the CFIA to revisit them and test the other animals. This sounded reasonable, but the agency insisted it wasn’t coming back given the threats on the phone and by email from the ostrich defenders and the supposed dangers posed by the birds themselves (they can weigh up to 300lb and run at speeds of more than 40mph).

The ostrich can be found in dry grasslands, shrublands and savannahs in sub-tropical and tropical habitats. ... The global population size has not been determined, but the species is reported to be frequent to abundant throughout most of its range.