Badger cull plan slammed by DWT (From Thisisdorset)
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Badger cull plan slammed by DWT
8:24am Friday 1st March 2013 in Latest
Badger cull plan slammed by DWT
A POSSIBLE badger cull in Dorset has been condemned by Dorset Wildlife Trust which is urging the government to put more effort into an effective vaccine for bovine TB (bTB).
Environment secretary Owen Paterson has announced the county is a reserve pilot cull area, in case of problems with either of the proposed culls in Gloucestershire or Somerset.
“We have a great deal of sympathy for farmers who lose stock as a result of bTB and are acutely aware of the problems this disease causes in Dorset,” said Simon Cripps, chief executive of the trust.
“However a badger cull is not the answer and is likely to make the problem worse by spreading the disease on to farms previously unaffected.”
The proposed cull area is being kept secret. The trust will not allow badger culling on its nature reserves and is currently planning to vaccinate the animals.
Comments(6)
Wesoblind
says...
8:04am Sat 2 Mar 13
catfan
says...
11:47am Sat 2 Mar 13
This is all about money - it will cost farmers to vaccinate so they don't want to do it. Scientists and animal experts do not consider killing the badgers a solution. We should demonstrate and object - it must NOT go ahead.
catfan
says...
11:47am Sat 2 Mar 13
This is all about money - it will cost farmers to vaccinate so they don't want to do it. Scientists and animal experts do not consider killing the badgers a solution. We should demonstrate and object - it must NOT go ahead.
Ringstead
says...
11:08pm Sat 2 Mar 13
At the moment the badger population is suffering from this widespread and debilitating disease from which the badgers die a slow and lingering death. Increasingly rigorous cattle testing regimes and movement regimes are not working alone.These are the facts. A badger cull is an unwelcome but essential next step. If Dorset Wildlife Trust are not prepared to accept the tough and unpalatable truth I will certainly withdraw my membership and encourage the many farmers who are also their members to do likewise.
miniminime
says...
7:32am Tue 5 Mar 13
Ringstead wrote:You do what you must do ... But ... Leave the badgers alone, the are gentle giants!
There is no prospect of a cattle vaccine before 2023; a badger vaccine cannot be effective in a population where the disease has become so widespread. Certainly it is likely the disease spreads both ways between cattle and badgers - it needs to be controlled in both carriers.
At the moment the badger population is suffering from this widespread and debilitating disease from which the badgers die a slow and lingering death. Increasingly rigorous cattle testing regimes and movement regimes are not working alone.These are the facts. A badger cull is an unwelcome but essential next step. If Dorset Wildlife Trust are not prepared to accept the tough and unpalatable truth I will certainly withdraw my membership and encourage the many farmers who are also their members to do likewise.
EGHH says...
4:34pm Fri 1 Mar 13
There is no threat to human health from infected cattle.
Some websites choose to publish unsubstantiated animal to human transmission figures but they provide no evidence to substantiate their claims. In fact it is extremely rare to contract bovine TB from contact with farm animals or products from farm animals.
The Food Standards Agency confirm meat is safe; 'Where a carcass shows evidence of localised TB, the lesions are cut out and the rest of the carcass is passed as fit for human consumption.'
In fact the carcasses of infected cattle are even sold back into the food chain after slaughter by DEFRA in an attempt to recover some of their costs.
So why a cull? I suspect it is more of a way to impress EU officials than any other reason.