Strategic animal welfare issues: ethical and animal welfare issues arising from the killing of wildlife for disease control and environmental reasons
Ethical and animal welfare concerns about the destruction of free-living wildlife for disease control and environmental reasons have historically received little attention from animal welfare scientists, legislators or the public. Nevertheless, all vertebrates can experience pain and distress, regardless of whether they are unwanted pests or not. A wide range of methods is used to […]
Animal welfare and pest control: meeting both conservation and animal welfare goals
Vertebrate pest control is an area where conservation and animal welfare goals can be in direct conflict. Is it possible to meet goals in both areas in one pest control operation? Vertebrate pests, including unwanted or overabundant wildlife, are controlled for many reasons related to protecting the health, safety and comfort of humans, animals and […]
Evaluation of the tranquilliser trap device (TTD) for improving the humaneness of dingo trapping
Predation of sheep and cattle by the dingo (Canis lupus dingo) is implicated in significant stock losses throughout much of mainland Australia. Leg-hold traps are commonly used for dingo control and ways are sought to improve the humaneness of these devices. We evaluated the performance of the tranquilliser trap device (TTD) attached to Victor Soft-Catch® […]
Is sodium fluoroacetate (1080) a humane poison?
Sodium fluoroacetate (1080) is widely used for the control of vertebrate pests in Australia. While the ecological impact of 1080 baiting on non-target species has been the subject of ongoing research, the animal welfare implications of this practice have received little attention. Literature relevant to the humaneness of 1080 as a vertebrate pest control agent […]
Is sodium fluoroacetate (1080) a humane poison? The influence of mode of action, physiological effects, and target specificity
1080 (sodium fluoroacetate)-baiting programmes are an important and often the only option for reducing the impact of invasive vertebrate pests on biodiversity and agricultural production in Australia and New Zealand. These programmes are generally recognised as being target specific, and environmentally and user safe. Nevertheless, although 1080 has few recognised long-term side-effects, its potential to […]