My extended family have all lived on the land at some point. My closest uncle is an active farmer, and I know all too well the issue of wild dogs. Wild dog or not, as soon as a dog walks onto a farmer's property, the farmer is allowed to destroy the animal. When I spoke to Steve Woodhall from the National Parks and Wildlife, we discussed the issue of dog baiting. I don’t see it an issue at all, however a lot of people see it as cruel and inhumane – the baited meat takes an agonising hour to kill the dog after it has consumed the bait. In control programs, up to 16 tonnes of meat laced with 1080 poison is placed in areas where it is most likely to be found by wild dogs and not other native animals.
I find this the easiest way to bring these dogs under control – wild dogs, domestic dogs roaming the land and hybrids (dingo x domestic dog) destroy countless head of sheep and calves, and while a farmer may only lose a few head from their stock, these numbers add up to thousands a year. Steve Woodhall said that with dog baiting comes an increase in pests such as kangaroos – however, it is the risk a farmer is most likely willing to take, culling the dogs in favour to save a few cattle, and opting for culling the kangaroos in their own time.
I don’t see it as an issue, and I think the majority of people that do, need to spend time with a battling farmer, and consider the fact that these animals are the sole income for most farmers and it is not fair to have these wild dogs destroying their stock.
But in the end, I have more important things to worry about. And considering I live in suburbia, wild dogs aren’t an issue. And if a wild dog does wander into my street, I am most likely to give it a home – as long as it is semi vicious and resembles a pit bull.
I find this the easiest way to bring these dogs under control – wild dogs, domestic dogs roaming the land and hybrids (dingo x domestic dog) destroy countless head of sheep and calves, and while a farmer may only lose a few head from their stock, these numbers add up to thousands a year. Steve Woodhall said that with dog baiting comes an increase in pests such as kangaroos – however, it is the risk a farmer is most likely willing to take, culling the dogs in favour to save a few cattle, and opting for culling the kangaroos in their own time.
I don’t see it as an issue, and I think the majority of people that do, need to spend time with a battling farmer, and consider the fact that these animals are the sole income for most farmers and it is not fair to have these wild dogs destroying their stock.
But in the end, I have more important things to worry about. And considering I live in suburbia, wild dogs aren’t an issue. And if a wild dog does wander into my street, I am most likely to give it a home – as long as it is semi vicious and resembles a pit bull.
Photo of restrained pit bull terrier by Tatiana Sapateiro used under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 licence. Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pit_bull_restrained.jpg
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