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Sniffer Dogs Unleashed In Fox Fight


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http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-09/sniffer-dogs-unleashed-in-fox-fight/4363144

Sniffer dogs unleashed in fox fight

By Frances Adcock

Posted Fri Nov 9, 2012 12:38pm AEDT

A southern Queensland conservation group says it has had overwhelming success using trained sniffer dogs to find fox dens along the Bundaberg coastline.

Red foxes are a problem for the region's native bird and turtle population and two specialised dogs have been used to track dens over the past fortnight.

Burnett Mary Regional Group spokesman Sue Sargent says the dogs hunted out more than 40 dens between Moore Park Beach and Bargara.

"They actually then fumigated 30 of those, so ultimately the 30 that were fumigated were ones that were a very high likelihood that there was foxes actually in the dens at the time," she said.

"The dens are fumigated with a carbon monoxide mixture, so ultimately the foxes just go to sleep."

The initiative was a joint operation between Bundaberg Regional Council, the Burnett Mary Group and Queensland Parks and Wildlife.

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Guest Wildthing

Foxes are a living being just like domestic dogs. They are in this country because humans did not have the knowledge to leave them in the old country. To kill them because they are viewed as vermin by whatever means disgusts me. Carbon monoxide poisoning is cruel.

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Foxes are a living being just like domestic dogs. They are in this country because humans did not have the knowledge to leave them in the old country. To kill them because they are viewed as vermin by whatever means disgusts me. Carbon monoxide poisoning is cruel.

well perhaps you should come on out to where we are and see how cruel it is to see baby lambs and their Mums with their entrails eaten out - poultry with their heads eaten off ,milking cows with their udders eaten out , rams with their nuts eaten out where for every lamb standing in a paddock there is one dead one beside it - lessor of two evils and killing them quickly and humanely is the only way to keep their numbers down to a half manageable level.

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Foxes are a living being just like domestic dogs. They are in this country because humans did not have the knowledge to leave them in the old country. To kill them because they are viewed as vermin by whatever means disgusts me. Carbon monoxide poisoning is cruel.

Foxes are not natural to this country and their presence is leading to animals that are native to this country being killed and ousted from their homes and habitat. Foxes are vermin and if nothing is done they will eventually eradicate some very unique wildlife that are endemic only to Australia. Rationale tells us that the best way to stop many species becoming extinct and many farmers losing their livelihood is to kill the perpetrator. Why should this generation have to put up with the shit that another generation introduced?

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Guest Wildthing

I have been on this earth for a hell of a long time and have seen a hell of a lot of damage done by humans and animals alike. I do know what Foxes, wild dogs, camel, buffalo, wild pigs and all the other introduced species do to the farm animals people are making a living from. I have lived all over this country and in the UK. It is cruel what they do to other species of animals, but no where near as cruel as humans to all species of animals. All these animals will still be around when humans have been eradicated from this earth. I am well aware of a vet who breeds merinos but does not go out and check on the flock when they are lambing to deal with lambs that have been rejected by their mothers and must therefore allow the local wild dogs and/or foxes to kill the lambs. That is not something I find acceptable. Just because I currently am listed as living in the ACT does not mean I have lived in cities all my life. People should not make assumptions.

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I have been on this earth for a hell of a long time and have seen a hell of a lot of damage done by humans and animals alike. I do know what Foxes, wild dogs, camel, buffalo, wild pigs and all the other introduced species do to the farm animals people are making a living from. I have lived all over this country and in the UK. It is cruel what they do to other species of animals, but no where near as cruel as humans to all species of animals. All these animals will still be around when humans have been eradicated from this earth. I am well aware of a vet who breeds merinos but does not go out and check on the flock when they are lambing to deal with lambs that have been rejected by their mothers and must therefore allow the local wild dogs and/or foxes to kill the lambs. That is not something I find acceptable. Just because I currently am listed as living in the ACT does not mean I have lived in cities all my life. People should not make assumptions.

Foxes dont just do damage to farm animals people are making a living off. Perhaps if were your animals whIch you consider to be your familiy and feel responsible for keeping safe and well you wouldnt be so O.K. about the cute little foxes left alone to breed and become killing machines. .

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For anyone who wants a bit of history on why this is so important. A significant loggerhead marine turtle population nests at Mon Repos and surrounds. Not long ago (in the 1980's) the prediction was that within 20 years this population would not exist. Nesting numbers were crashing each year. This was not only devestating for the species but also for the many hundreds of people dedicating their lives to these animals. Many many nights were spent trying solve the riddle and turn the decline around.

Why were they in critical need? In the 1960's the Qld National Parks made a decision to keep island nesting colonies protected and let developers etc have the mainland beaches. The foxes destroyed over 95% of hatches in the 60s and 70s. But it was thought that it was ok as the island nests were fine. But Dr Colin LImpus discovered that the hotter light island sands produced more males and the cooler mainland sand produced more females. So National Parks made the most expensive land purchase in the day - Mon Repos beach and started a dedicated fox eradication program.

But numbers were still crashing - what was happening? At the same time trawlers were killing significant numbers of adults. That was when Turtle Exclusion Devices were introduced (late 1990's)plus a voluntary closure of waters near the beach where turtles met to mate during the hatching season. Correctly set the catch rate was decreased to almost zero. BUT nesting numbers were still crashing each year. The mumbers were crunched again and research ramped up to find out why.

If you go backwards with the predictive models the years of fox predation created a hole in the population structure. The turtles take about 30 years to mature and for about 10 years (mid 60's to mid 70's) very few females made it into the water plus many adult females killed by trawlers. So as that hole worked it way up in age by the early 2000 there were few females starting to nest - foxes got them at birth.

But the news has improved - that hole is getting less important as more turtles survive the nesting experience and also few adults die. Over the last 5 years numbers have climbed and each nesting season is better than the last. There are other success stories like the rangers and volunteers who spend every night of the nesting and hatching season digging up nests that will be destroyed by high tides. The nests are laid by turtles, and if below the high water mark it is dug up and relocated in more suitable areas of the beach. In times of cyclones or big seas people can be seen fighing the elements and locating and digging up nests and relocating them. It is very difficult work in bad weather but there is rarely a need to call for volunteers - they just come.

The fox eradication continues and if one is seen it is tracked down and destroyed. Trawlers continue to use TEDs and kill almost no adults. It is renowned as one of the most successful rebuilding efforts worldwide with an endangered species.

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I smell PETA

ETA: Just because you've been on this earth for a long time doesn't mean you're right, it could just mean you've been wrong for longer. Foxes are vermin and need to be controlled.

Sadly, yeah, that was my first impression.

Pest species management doesn't automatically mean cruelty and in this case, they've worked out an incredibly humane method of dealing with a horrible problem.

God forbid anyone kills a fox but picking up peoples' pets in their little death van and destroying those animals.. oh hey, apparently that one is not just okay, it's ethically superior to rehoming.

PETA and similar groups are disgusting examples of the worst kind of hypocrisy. Animal welfare would be vastly improved if someone "saved" Ingrid Newkirk from her suffering.

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Guest Wildthing

Everyone is entitled to their individual views on everything in life. For those of you who assume I am with PETA, your assumptions are totally incorrect. I do not agree with many things that some of you may, however, it does not make one person wrong and the other right, it just means we think differently and I am all for that. It is a sad day that one cannot express ones views without critism such as I have seen on this site (in general). I do not know if any of you agree with and/or support greyhound racing or horse racing, but I do not find it acceptable. I do not find a lot of things that happen to any species of animal acceptable where humans are involved. They are my views and I will express if I seem fit to do so. I am pleased my views have caused such strong responses, but just remember not one of you is right and not one of you is wrong. Carbon monoxide poisoning - perhaps you would like to try it and see if you find it acceptable. Research shows that humans are the most destructive creatures on this planet.

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That's right, humans are the most destructive creatures on the planet. One of the ways in which we destroy the planet is to introduce foreign species in a diverse and unique ecosystem and then watch as they breed out of control and take over the land. So the humans that are trying to fix the problem have opted for controlled culling instead of shipping them all off to Fox island.

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That's right, humans are the most destructive creatures on the planet. One of the ways in which we destroy the planet is to introduce foreign species in a diverse and unique ecosystem and then watch as they breed out of control and take over the land. So the humans that are trying to fix the problem have opted for controlled culling instead of shipping them all off to Fox island.

I don't know why people are giving the poster such grief for their views. :confused:

I also hate that animals that have ended up being pests because of stupid irresponsible human & have to suffer because of it. Unfortunately, I know they have to be culled to save the native animals, but it still makes me sad, doesn't means I'm a Peta lover, I actually despise them.

The bolded part of your thread is spot on, yes we are. Who else is to blame for the huge number of extinct/or in danger of extinction animals in the world?

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Everyone is entitled to their individual views on everything in life. For those of you who assume I am with PETA, your assumptions are totally incorrect. I do not agree with many things that some of you may, however, it does not make one person wrong and the other right, it just means we think differently and I am all for that. It is a sad day that one cannot express ones views without critism such as I have seen on this site (in general). I do not know if any of you agree with and/or support greyhound racing or horse racing, but I do not find it acceptable. I do not find a lot of things that happen to any species of animal acceptable where humans are involved. They are my views and I will express if I seem fit to do so. I am pleased my views have caused such strong responses, but just remember not one of you is right and not one of you is wrong. Carbon monoxide poisoning - perhaps you would like to try it and see if you find it acceptable. Research shows that humans are the most destructive creatures on this planet.

Well said!!

I wish foxes were never introduced here but they are and while carbon monoxide poisoning may be the lesser of two evils when dealing with this problem, doesnt mean I have to like it either

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