Quote:
Originally Posted by Eric
What's the problem with badgers? Is it a disease thing; or are they just a pest? And how is the cull gonna take place? Will wildlife officers do the culling?
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About 6% of them carry bovine TB. As they wander about they spread infection to deer, horses, dogs etc but particularly cattle.
The taxpayer paid out £100 million in compensation to farmers in 2012 and that didn't fully compensate them.
You can't vaccinate the cows, the vaccine makes them show positive for TB even if they haven't got it. Anyway, the EU says no so that's it.
If tested positive the cow has to be destroyed.
At the moment badger TB is only in the SW of England so they hope a cull will contain it there and hopefully eliminate it.
The Government will use gamekeepers, police marksmen and licensed rifle owners(who are already called in to cull deer).
So far culling wildlife and cattle has been the only way any country has successfully eliminated
bovine TB.
Sorry, DtheP, didn't see your post. I think the science is proved but badgers are so cute it's got emotional. If it was rats no one would bother.