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Farmers To Tackle Wild Dog Issues

Farmers from Ensay and Omeo have banded together to form two local Wild Dog Action Groups (WDAG) to help farming communities manage the problem of wild dogs in their districts

By Department of Primary Industries - 11th September 2009 - Back to News

Department of Primary Industries’ Community Engagement Officer, Vaughn Kingston said these are proactive farmers with a collective history of community involvement, building wild dog fences and shooting; and supporting government baiting and trapping programs.

"This is an ongoing and difficult problem to resolve as wild dogs opportunistically attack what they see as a ‘ready made’ food supply distressing many farmers physically and financially," Mr Kingston said.

"In some instances, these impacts have been a catalyst for an increasing trend towards cattle farming in lieu of sheep, which in turn has led to more reports of attacks on calves.

"The WDAG farmers have personally experienced losses and clearly understand the problem of wild dogs shared by other landholders.

"They’re also aware of many economic, seasonal, environmental, changing animal behaviours and competition factors that may influence dog movement and attacks, particularly after fire or drought.

"These farmers are keen to find solutions for overcoming some of the physical barriers many landholders experience when trying to put strategies in place to prevent wild dog attacks.

"For example, difficult terrain makes it harder to build effective dog proof fences; understanding which type of fencing works best for a given business enterprise; damage caused by other wildlife; and what to do if your neighbour happens to be an absentee landowner.

"Another problem might be a landholder may have done the requisite training for Agricultural Chemical Users Permit (ACUP), but lacks knowledge on the best way to lay 1080 baits on farm or as part of an intensive baiting strategy across a geographic area."

Both Omeo and Ensay WDAG groups have been pooling ideas for their respective localities.

Ideas include offering local knowledge and improving communication; potential ways to support wild dog controllers with baiting and trapping; the use of companion animals; access to fencing funding, and special training days and seminars for affected landholders.

The WDAG was established through the Gippsland Wild Dog Management Group, a representative body of private landholders and public land managers, and the project is funded through the Australian Government’s ‘Caring for our Country’ initiative.

For more information, please contact Brian Dowley on 5152 0476 or Jenny O’Sullivan on 0427 086 087.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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