Pay attention!

[jus_young]

Well after living in the same place for the last 8 years or so, I had a little lesson last night in just how little I know about the wildlife that exists in the immediate vicinity of my house. I now of foxes that live around here as I often see them walking up and down the road at night. These are not your true urban foxes as we live on the edge of town surrounded by woodland and fields but it is still a relatively built up area so I suppose the foxes are just using all the resources around them. We also regularly see the buzzards flying around as they nest in the woods as well as peregrines that nest nearby. But last night whilst stepping outside for my last cigarette of the night I spotted what I initially thought was a large cat. No exmoor beasties I'm afraid but was suprised to recognise it as a badger as it came closer. It was just walking up the road towards some allotments which join onto the woods. I have never seen them before or come across any tracks so I think a little investigation is in order and see just what else is out there.

Just goes to show really that you don't need to go far to enjoy the wildlife, you just need to pay attention to whats around you.

[Woodwose]

Enjoy them while you can. The south west is one of the “hotspot” areas for the governments proposed cull.

[jus_young]

I do a fair bit of work on farms these days so understand the farmers desire to get this under control but I'm on the fence with this one. Just seems too easy to blame one animal for the spread of TB when so many other animals are walking around.

Ok, on reflection I have hopped off the fence and don't agree with the cull, maybe the solution is to kill everything in sight and be done with it once and for all!

[Edwin]

Can't see how the cull can work anyway. I have several old setts in my wood and If I had one in use I certainly wouldn't tell anybody likely to tell the cullers, multiply this by the number of odd bits of woodland to get an idea of the scale of the challenge to any cull.
The point about other animals is very valid when you think how many deer there are around, are these tested ever for TB?

[Edwin]

Just checked, the British Deer Society has this http://www.bds.org.uk/response_to_defra.html which implies that deer could be a problem.

[jus_young]

Its no secret that deer are carriers but as they are more nomadic deer are harder to cull in large numbers. This means its easier to focus on badgers. The other problem is the cattle themselves. They are moved from farm to farm as they are sold on and this spreads TB aswell!

[Edwin]

<Its no secret that deer are carriers but as they are more nomadic deer are harder to cull in large numbers. This means its easier to focus on badgers.>

That is like the story of the policeman helping to look for a lost ring. Eventually he asked the man who had lost it if he was sure it was around where they were looking, "Oh no, it was dropped down in that street but there is more light here under the lampost."

[Realearner]

Edwin I love that analogy bet the government use that idea.

[happybonzo]

It's a bad business this proposed cull in the South West.
I know of one small farm where they never had an incidence of Bovine TB despite having one of the largest Badger setts in Devon. They looked after their cows pretty well but did not over medicate them. All around this little farm are what would be better described as "Agri businesses" They all reported cases of Bovine TB but the little farm had none
I'm not sure what point I'm trying to make here but I do feel, personally, that this cull business has been badly thought out.

[BushcraftCambsUk]

About the cull. It is just my humble oppinion but hasnt the world been here for billions of years even if it has only been here for 40,000 that is still a shed load longer than any of us will be here so to think WE know what is best is not only Stupid but deeply arrogant. Nature has a way of culling what and when it needs to so unless you have a family of 8 badgers living at the foot of your bed and biting your toes of i say leave them alone.