Badger cull
Sept 30, 2011 18:32:02 GMT
Post by cheerypeabrain on Sept 30, 2011 18:32:02 GMT
It's a very emotive issue here, how do other countries deal with bovine TB?
www.tbfreeengland.co.uk/?gclid=CPnE7_7JxasCFWMntAodST2_1Q
A decision has been made to cull the badger population here to prevent the spread of bovine TB. The argument against is given quite eloquently by the Badger Trust...
...We remain totally opposed to any badger cull, including the two proposed pilot trials of ―controlled shooting‖, in the light of the available scientific evidence. The Defra proposals, particularly the pilot trials, are based not on peer reviewed science but on a number of unjustified, speculative assumptions. For this reason they will not deliver a meaningful reduction in bovine TB and may exacerbate the perturbation effect. Therefore we urge Defra to reconsider its proposed policy of licensing farmers to cull badgers.
Instead, we urge Defra to consider a badger control policy based on vaccination of badgers using the currently licensed injectable vaccine and we further call on it to urgently complete the development and licensing of an oral bait vaccine. Such a move is likely to obtain universal public support and is widely accepted as the only sustainable long-term solution to deal with TB in badgers. As evidence of our belief in this alternative solution, several Badger Trust members have successfully completed the Fera training course to vaccinate badgers. Badger Trust also aims to carry out a trial vaccination programme. We are currently negotiating with a small number of landowners, including farmers, to carry out vaccination of badgers on their land. This will supplement the vaccination programmes being carried out by the National Trust in Devon and the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. We also urge Defra to complete the development and licensing of a cattle vaccine and to negotiate with the European Commission and the Member States as a matter of urgency to amend EU legislation to allow vaccination of cattle. There is wide acceptance that a vaccination policy should go a long way towards eradicating TB in both cattle and badgers and is the only sustainable long term solution.
extract from a pdf document :
www.badgertrust.org.uk/_Attachments/Resources/589_S4.pdf
My BiL is a farmer and I have some stand up shouty arguments with him about fox hunting, shooting rabbits etc, but even he doesn't see the point of killing the badgers (and he has them on his land causing no problems...but then he doesn't have livestock)
We are a small country, if it were bigger the problem might not arise...I'm totally against the cull me because I think that there are other ways of dealing with the problem without the widespread slaughter. Mind you I am also totally anti-hunting...so understand that my views may be in the minority.
www.tbfreeengland.co.uk/?gclid=CPnE7_7JxasCFWMntAodST2_1Q
A decision has been made to cull the badger population here to prevent the spread of bovine TB. The argument against is given quite eloquently by the Badger Trust...
...We remain totally opposed to any badger cull, including the two proposed pilot trials of ―controlled shooting‖, in the light of the available scientific evidence. The Defra proposals, particularly the pilot trials, are based not on peer reviewed science but on a number of unjustified, speculative assumptions. For this reason they will not deliver a meaningful reduction in bovine TB and may exacerbate the perturbation effect. Therefore we urge Defra to reconsider its proposed policy of licensing farmers to cull badgers.
Instead, we urge Defra to consider a badger control policy based on vaccination of badgers using the currently licensed injectable vaccine and we further call on it to urgently complete the development and licensing of an oral bait vaccine. Such a move is likely to obtain universal public support and is widely accepted as the only sustainable long-term solution to deal with TB in badgers. As evidence of our belief in this alternative solution, several Badger Trust members have successfully completed the Fera training course to vaccinate badgers. Badger Trust also aims to carry out a trial vaccination programme. We are currently negotiating with a small number of landowners, including farmers, to carry out vaccination of badgers on their land. This will supplement the vaccination programmes being carried out by the National Trust in Devon and the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. We also urge Defra to complete the development and licensing of a cattle vaccine and to negotiate with the European Commission and the Member States as a matter of urgency to amend EU legislation to allow vaccination of cattle. There is wide acceptance that a vaccination policy should go a long way towards eradicating TB in both cattle and badgers and is the only sustainable long term solution.
extract from a pdf document :
www.badgertrust.org.uk/_Attachments/Resources/589_S4.pdf
My BiL is a farmer and I have some stand up shouty arguments with him about fox hunting, shooting rabbits etc, but even he doesn't see the point of killing the badgers (and he has them on his land causing no problems...but then he doesn't have livestock)
We are a small country, if it were bigger the problem might not arise...I'm totally against the cull me because I think that there are other ways of dealing with the problem without the widespread slaughter. Mind you I am also totally anti-hunting...so understand that my views may be in the minority.