The UK government's chief scientist has advised ministers that badgers should be killed to prevent the spread of TB among cattle.
Sir David King says culling could be effective in areas that are contained, for example, by the sea or motorways.
His report follows a previous study that said culling badgers would be ineffective.
Read the rest of the article on the BBC website:
You just don't geddit do you? After your sheep belching 'facts' Schiller why on Earth would anyone believe or trust you?
It's obvious you Antipodeans and others have no notion of badgers in North America.
Why argue with people who consider facts to be lowly pedestrian objects? Egads.
So about every seventh badger is infected by TB but so are 20 other species as well. So do we want to eradicate most animals as they MIGHT spread diseases and are potential carriers of diseases???
Of course NOT, especially when it has been proven that a badger cull only will make it worse.
It seems like the UK Scientific Advisor has caved in for pressure to do SOMETHING, and unfortunately he has choosen a solution that is scientifically unsound.
American badgers must either be a different breed or they must just be typically American. British badgers are shy creatures that do not attack humans - the idea of a badger climbing up into a tractor cab to attack the driver is plain ridiculous! I doubt very much if these 'critters' do that in America either - this sounds like an urban myth, with the emphasis on urban.
However, almost everyone agrees that badgers spread bovine TB in the UK, but the main disagreement is what we should do about it. Ignoring or denying the problem won't make it go away, but any cull short of almost complete eradication is likely to make it worse. The prospect of an effective vaccine for cattle still seems a long way off. Even if cattle movements were completely stopped, this would not prevent contact between cattle and badgers on individual farms, nor the spread of TB via badgers from one farm to another.
By killing all cattle who react to the TB test we are probably increasing the genetic susceptibilty to the disease in our 'national herd'.
The only way to solve the problem (of transmission between badgers and cattle) seems to be to prevent all contact between them. Keeping cattle indoors all the time, or at least in yards, and feeding them on cut grass - as they do in countries like Japan where available grassland is in short supply - would be one possible answer, and would incidentally lead to more efficient use of grassland. However, excluding cattle from grassland would be disastrous for the ecology of some of our most valuable grassland habitats.
So what is the answer... someone?
Badgers are found on most continents throughout the world. The honey badger, or ratel, uses a bird called a honey guide to direct it to sweet treats. They have a reputation for being aggressive, especially when confronted (funny that). I saw some kept in disgusting conditions in a zoo in Haifa. They are remarkably intelligent animals, being able to problem-solve and rudimentary tool use in order to travel and forage efficiently. Here is what one researcher wrote about the current threats to honey badgers:-
‘The honey badger has been heavily persecuted in some parts of southern and eastern Africa. This is largely because of the badger's habit of raiding bee hives, but also because of predation on poultry and other livestock. Thousands of honey badgers have been trapped and poisoned as a result.
As part of his study, Keith Begg looked at trapping methods used by three beekeepers. He found that:
"Traps were seldom checked at intervals shorter than one week. As a result, trapped individuals were rarely discovered alive, having died from a combination of blood loss, bee venom, exhaustion and associated trauma."
Keith also found that badgers would chew off and eat limbs caught in traps.
The results of Keith Begg's survey suggest that the killing of honey badgers by beekeepers poses a substantial threat to the conservation of the species. The methods of killing also represent an unacceptable welfare problem.’
Schiller wrote:
>They kill anything that moves, and mostly leave it to rot.
He was oddly enough talking about badgers.
Schiller wrote:
> And I suppose you would like to see farmers pulled from their tractors and ripped apart by these beasts?
I saw no evidence that this is what Libby wanted to ‘see’. Are you misrepresenting contributors again Schiller? Are you lying again to suit your cause?
Schiller wrote:
>Since you equate human life on a par with vicious animals that kill for fun, put yourself on the list, too.
Ditto to my comment above.
Badger species include Eurasian, American, honey, hog, ferret and stink badgers (although these are now considered to be more closely related to skunks). Many are threatened or endangered throughout their ranges, including in North America.
In a time not too long ago ignorance and religion (and a few other factors) had the general populace of the ‘civilised’ world believe the Earth was flat. Those who disbelieved were killed. This type of ignorant dumb-ass thinking and desire for mindless killing has continued on throughout the world, and sadly we see two examples of it here.
Schiller wrote:
>We don't need 'em.
The UK government chief scientist is trying to look like he is doing something/anything in the face of livestock disease hysteria - by the time the long-term consequences of such an action come around, he will be comfortably retired. As for the other, he has here adequately shown himself to abide by the same principles he so venomously accuses others of possessing – violence, misinformation, hatred of life, selfishness. The construction of an 'extermination list' by Schiller Thurkettle is too ironic to be true. Odd and very sad.
Schiller,
You have no evidence the animal "killed for fun", which is anthropomorphising an aimal you clearly have no idea about. Humans kill for "fun" Schiller - children, men, women, all religions and races have been recorded as doing so, whether it be of different species or their own.
Your comment makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, which is what many here have come to expect. If you wanted to run a war Schiller, you would be on a par with a "vicious animal that killed for fun." Your catch cry would be "ignorance is truth". War or no war Schiller, you would not be "anointing" me anything. If war, violence and total annihilation is your answer to anything that stands in your way of a good time, I'd say it says a lot more about you than me or badgers.
Schiller, a quite harmless badger is living in my neighbourhood. What do they eat? Both plants and small game but as well wasp's and wasp's nests.
They do have a bad reputation mostly among rural people and hunters because they think the badger is a competitor for small game.
" My " badger is living in an old foxe's hole with many tunnels and entrances.
They have powerful teeth and jaws so any handling of badgers needs a grasper and a strong grip of its hind quarters.
Libby,
Since you equate human life on a par with vicious animals that kill for fun, put yourself on the list, too.
If I wanted to run a war, I'd anoint you the Minister of Truth.