1080 pest poison inhumane, RSPCA researcher says

Most Australian farmers regard the poison 1080 as essential in controlling pests, but a report by an RSPCA scientific officer into the use of the chemical has found it is inhumane.

Dr Miranda Sherley a scientific officer for the RSPCA, has a different view of the chemical in a report she has written for the journal of a British-based organisation called Universities Federation for Animal Welfare.

"The major finding is that despite long-held opinion, 1080's not a humane poison," she said.

Dr Sherley says previous studies had looked at the late stages of poisoning, when it is hard to tell how humane the process is.

But she says focusing on the earlier stages presents a different and painful picture of what the animal is going through.

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'Screaming with pain'

Miranda Sherley is concerned that 1080 not only poisons the animals targeted but also other creatures, including native wildlife.

Bill Little, a Queensland drover, told PM recently how some of his own working dogs had accidentally eaten the bait and been poisoned.

"I would imagine, in my working life, at least 30 dogs with 1080, sometimes three a time at one hit, you'll lose three dogs with one bait," he said.

"It's an horrific death.

"You get up in the middle of the night and ... your dog's screaming with pain and he's climbing up the wall of your van, you've got to get out in the middle of the night and shoot your best dog.

"The poison issue needs to be reviewed. I think it's high time they did some reform on it."

To see what effect 1080 has on a Dog as it dies from the poison, click the link below.

WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgOsdBTe1s8

 

Full Story http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/20/2096244.htm

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1080

The dingo and wild dog are keystone ecosystem modulators in Australia. This fact is poorly understood at present by Australians, but scientists are proving its truth daily. The practice of 1080 baiting of Australian carnivores must be curtailed immediately if Australian wildlife is ever to regain any equilibrium.1080's effects are totally negative for Australian natural systems, and extend beyond rhe target species as secondary lethal poison to raptors, reptiles, and other seriosly endangered creatures.

It also poses a danger to humans in neighbouring areas. There is no antidote.

It has been banned in every developed country in the world where carnivores exist. We request that the practice of baiting within boundaries ofNational Parks, which belong to all Australians equally, be curtailed forthwith, and for ever.We do not believe it is up to a few neighbouring sheep farmers to dictate what happens in these places. The rest of Australia has not been consulted.

Aerial baiting of dingoes and wild dogs using 1080

This is a caption of the Government statement

“After a wild dog has ingested 1080 there is a latent period of around 30 minutes to 3 hours before initial signs such as hyperexcitability, vocalisation, manic running and retching are observed. Although the precise nature and extent of suffering after ingestion of 1080 is unknown, it is likely that the animal will experience distress and possibly pain during this initial stage.”

View the full Government statement here

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Effects on wildlife of 1080 baiting

Hi my name is Tim Mullany Manager of West Coast Wildlife Park and this article is to explain my experiences and my thought on 1080 baiting in our Australian outback!

To talk to most people I have found that not a lot of people are not aware that 1080 baiting is still happening in Australia and even more so the fact that it is used more often and in larger proportions right here in western Australia than anywhere else.

1080 is believed to be a poison that has no secondary effects on other animals, but more recent research says that 1080 has serious secondary effects, and can affect many animals with just one bait!  The effects of 1080 baiting  can differ between animal species but in all cases is quite a painful and slow death!

In my personal experiences with 1080 we had a situation where we had placed 1080 on a private property to bait some foxes that were killing livestock. Two days later we found a kangaroo, and although there where no noticeable physical affects to the  roo it appeared to be boxing a tree! After watching this roo for a few minutes, it was hitting this tree so hard that its arms and knuckles started to bleed. It then started foaming at the mouth and straight away I knew that it was 1080 poisoning.  

To talk to most people I have found that not a lot of people are not aware that 1080 baiting is still happening in Australia and even more so the fact that it is used more often and in larger proportions right here in western Australia than anywhere else.

1080 is believed to be a poison that has no secondary effects on other animals, but more recent research says that 1080 has serious secondary effects, and can affect many animals with just one bait!  The effects of 1080 baiting  can differ between animal species but in all cases is quite a painful and slow death!

In my personal experiences with 1080 we had a situation where we had placed 1080 on a private property to bait some foxes that were killing livestock. Two days later we found a kangaroo, and although there where no noticeable physical affects to the  roo it appeared to be boxing a tree! After watching this roo for a few minutes, it was hitting this tree so hard that its arms and knuckles started to bleed. It then started foaming at the mouth and straight away I knew that it was 1080 poisoning. We then knew that the safest and kindest thing to do for this animal was to put it down but the way we would have had to shoot would have been towards someone house so I approached the kangaroo to try to get it to move so we could do the right thing for it! When I approached it, it went out of control and started trying to attack me and everything around it, even attacking the tree again that it was attacking in the first place. We finally got a clear shot and put the roo out of his misery!

It got me thinking of how this roo got poisoned! The 1080 was on meat and kangaroos don’t eat meat! Then I spotted it, another kangaroo near the body of the dead fox. This kangaroo appeared to be eating the vomit of the fox as when the fox is poisoned like all animals and humans the body rejects it and you start to vomit. These kangaroos not knowing, where eating the vomit of the fox and there for getting poisoned as well.

I have also had experiences of wedgetailed eagles getting poisoned after eating an animal that has been poisoned by 1080.

My question is how do they control which animals get the 1080? Is it a case of pot luck and bad luck if the wrong animal gets it? We have many carnivores animals that if they where to find a free feed of meat, which is usually where 1080 is put, would take that opportunity to eat and there for would be poisoned. Its fact even some of our native Australian wildlife is affected including endangered species such as dingoes and quolls!  

Just as crocodiles are the apex predators of the water, dingoes are the apex predator of the land and wedgetailed eagles are the apex predator of the air! If we wipe these animals out the whole eco system is going to be out of balance as they are the top of the food chain!

The effects of 1080 are permanent! Once an animal is extinct it is permanent!

Before its too late, lets stand against 1080 baiting, and help conserve our Australian wildlife so that our children, our children’s children and so on, will be able to enjoy wildlife the way we have!