Hi all,

I used to do a lot of hunting of wild goats and pigs SW of Blaney in NSW. Unfortunately the property was sold without our knowledge (we could have bought it ) so I haven't been out there for years. Although we went out there in dry years, we never really went out there in frought years.
I was just wondering how much more damage, or have you noticed more, because of the drought.
I remember seeing acres upon acres of turned over soil (all beautiful fertille riverbank stuff) by mobs of wild pigs, that would subsequently be washed into the river that ran through the property. The presence of goats also meant that there was nothing growing below my shoulder level (close to six foot).
So how do you deal with these ferals? I'd be interested to know.

:cheers: Will

Blue Mountains Photography

Hi bigwilly

I can't speak on any personal experiences of damage by feral pigs or goats as this area of Aus is to cleared to support anything other than foxes.
Poisoning with 1080 in this regard is at present the preferred control but I am not convinced as yet that this is the right way to go because of doubts I have that other forms of wildlife are being taken out as well.

However, in that light & with other feral animals I would like to see an approach of directly targeting control by shooting.
I believe the Shooters Assoc could well be called apon to provide experienced & capable people to do this.

I have long thought that the National Parks & Wildlife Service could be taking an active role in this area by augmenting a program that under their guidance & control the Shooters Assoc are invited to carry out this necessary work in our National Parks. I would imagine they would be only to happy to pay for the privelege.

Everyone should be happy !

I am not a member of the NSW Shooters Assoc

Happy trails

Pigs should be shot, they are horrible savage things. There's a plague of them around the ACT too, people around Pialligo have seen them! (over the river from Fyshwick). I was surprised not to see any around here (Carwoola), but the other day we found the jawbone of one hanging on the fence, complete with all teeth, and those horrible curly tusk things. It is HUGE.
And I saw one on the King's hwy coming into Qbn, propped up on its stomach, must have been hit by a truck and some joker arranged it. It was bloody big too.
I see holes dug, but assume it's rabbits, as pigs tend to plough up the ground. Ground here is very hard so they'd have their work cut out.

G'day Goody
Yeah I'm not a fan of either 1080 or NPWS. After a heap of 1080 was used on this property, suddenly there were a lot less wedgies flying around and a whole lot more lying around.
NPWS have never been fond of us hunters/shooters. We thought they may have had some brains and followed Victoria and the US, allowing hunters to hunt in the NP after paying a fee. But noooo they are a bunch of bureaucratic little nazis who won't let anyone use "their" land.
And we all know what happens when Parks get behind a machine gun to erradicate pests. Probably about 200 cases of animal cruelty per flight.
I don't know how accurate this is, but it did come from a Parks employee, apparently after the fires down in Kosziusco, they thought that'd be a prime time to bomb up pigs from a chopper. Anyway they flew around shooting at pig shaped animals. Just before leaving the area they found somewhere to land to check the pigs, and they turned out to mostly be wombats. As usual it was covered up by those at the top and never talked of again, officially that is.

Hi Ant,
Geez pigs are getting into the burbs of Canberra? That is pretty serious as these things could easily bite through a childs body just about and an adults leg, never mind the damage the tusks do (I've seen what they do to themselves and I wouldn't want to experience it)
Have you heard about the Samabar Elk up in the Brindabellas? They moved up through the Snowies out of Victoria quite a few years ago. But as usual hunters are banned from there.

By the way Goody, looks like I might be moving down to Junee in July for 6 months for work.

:cheers: Will

Blue Mountains Photography

Hi all,
as you say Bigwilly, here in victoria the DSE have allowed some sporting shooters association members access to hunt feral animals in some National Parks. I understand that this is still on a trial basis and I haven't heard how successful this has been.
I have hunted feral pigs up on the Darling River, and I would have to say that if given several good seasons to breed up they can cause some damage, but given the recent conditions numbers are well down. (At least where I go.) Hunting of wild goats on any station property is now a big no-no as Heather could well confirm. The other problem is gaining access to shoot on many properties can be extremly difficult, mainly due to yahoos who have been before you and also mentioned in some cases public liability.

Cheers :cheers:

Skip

Hi Skip
How true your words are.
We do allow some people on here to shoot feral animals.
But NEVER EVER our wild goats as they are our pay cheque at the moment.
Where do you go hunting on the Darling???

Hey Will this place is for sale if you are interested in a country retreat
Heather :cheers:

Hi WW,
Little place called Tilpa which has one of the best pubs around. I belive it is not that far away from you? More and more though, our vists are becoming fishing trips rather than shooting trips. Not that there is much water in the river at the moment. Still it is always good to get away for a bit.
:cheers:

Skip

Hi guys,
I've been down the Vic alps a few times after Sambar (never got one though). I can understand how you would be going after the goats for money. Do you guys (well Heather) have any pigs on your place? I know the chillers used to nuy them off hunters dead.
How much are you selling for Heather?

:cheers: Will

Blue Mountains Photography

Hi Skip
Tilpa is just up the road from us,couple of hrs drive.I think if you check out the walls on the Pub you will find my signature on there somewhere
It is a great pub & we go over there fishing a bit but as you say not to much water there atm.

Will we do have pigs & they are the only animal that I don't mind being hunted,nasty things.

Heather :cheers:

I know this post has been quiet for a while ,and to admit it, the last time i had any thing to do with ferals was late last year on a small property down near glenlyon dam (Texas) unfortunately the property in question has been sold recently but the only decent green pasture on the place is down on the creek flats below the dam overflow, and it must have been acting as a magnet for every pig within miles..the creek banks were torn up and the shallows were muddied from wallows..and then there was the fence damage and I'm sure the pigs were not the only culprit (there was a cast antler tangled in the wire).
we got a fair few pigs on that last trip and also 3 feral cats and a fox...meen to say...in dry times where all the wildlife(and ferals-introduced predators) are concentrated in a small area the damage can be much worse then normal to river banks and creek shallows.

OH I thought this thread was about ferals(as in B&S) and the damage they do!!! Far bit of native grass was churned up at the local B&S on the weekend!

those ferals..lol....nuffin like a HQ Holden Ute with a bulldozer blade for a front bumper and more lights and aerials then a road train for ripping up a cricket oval.. ...that scotch out of the drenching gun tasted funny...

A lot of guys here trap pigs in specially made heavy duty traps . Most traps are made from 4-5 mm/60mm mesh . The size of the cage depends on the sizes of pigs , but mostly 1m high, 1.2m wide by 2m long . 5 of the 6 sides are closed , the remaining side has a trapgate that swings into the trap and is stopped by mesh turned in . A catch is connected to a piece of string that runs across the cage that the pig will trip when he/she goes in after the bait .

Some pigs go for feedlot grain , some after vege scraps , some after rotten fruit . Free feed them for 4-5 days to allow them to get used to the trap and going inside , set the trapgate , a sensative latch on the trap gate works well , might take a little finesse .

The most pigs we`ve caught in a trap like this is 7 , a 60 kg sow with 6 5-10kg piglets . Dispatch them as necessary , or can be sold/given to hunters who have licences to kill for the export trade .

We've been working with some landholders in the Capertee Valley on exterminating pests (mainly wild dogs and pigs) and most have given up on traps. The first couple of times they worked great, bagging 3-5 pigs, but the rest soon wised up and some traps have sat idle for months at a time.

You also have to watch what you do with the pigs after you've caught them. At least in NSW you do as it is an offence to transport live wild pigs. So any pigs destined for the chillers have to be dead.

The wild dogs are really bad atm. Just about every farmer we spoke to in the Valley had to destock sheep because of losses due to wild dogs.

One farmer lost over 150 lambs in a week to a pack of dogs and half his ewes. Unsurprisingly it looks as though the dogs rest up in the nearby National Park and move out over the farms during the night. :rolleyes:

:cheers: Will

I heard on the radio yesterday that NSW DPI had released a specialised pig bait that contained 1080 that somehow doesn't attract other animals. Good news there.

I was involved with two shooting eradication programs in WA that was arranged between a Federal Dept and CALM. The first was to shoot feral cats/foxes/dogs out of a tortise (rare and endangered and only found in one swamp in the world - it was in the Swan Valley) reserve as it was finished being fenced, cat proofed etc.

The second was for the removal of feral goats,donkeys and camels from an area in the far north of WA.

Both times it was done without any fuss, no publicity and no damage to anything apart from what was supposed to be shot. The damage in the Tortose enclosure that a single cat could have been fatal if not controlled by shooting.

The second one could have been done by rounding up and trapping the animals but would have taken months, cost a zillion dollars and not being totally successful.

Removal of ferals, be they horses, pigs, goats, domestic ducks and geese donkeys camels needs to be done on a regular basis. In a methodical manner, humanley and to budget.

The difference in pasture/native bushland where ferals have been remnoved and kept out is nothing short of spectacular with the regrowth of native grasses, trees and fauna.

You're not wrong Wobbly. The life abounds in areas with limited impact from ferals. In other places you'd swear the local council had been out slashing every hillside such was the total removal of all vegetation.

:cheers: Will

Over south of Carnavon they have been allowing feral goats to breed an build up their numbers,boy the country is chewed from just about tree tops to the ground.Just in certain areas .We use muster goats out on the stations i worked,some years we would be sending out up to around 20,000 out on trucks.CALM have started 1080 baiting out on crown land now as before they wouldnt let baits be dropped out there an the Dingos were breeding out there an then coming on to the stations in big numbers.They have a new bait with 1080 in it now,looks like a little white sausage.Totally useless,dogs dont seem to like them at all.Makes it hard when you have neighbours who dont beleive that a Dingo can pull down a calf and wont bait.

That's exactly right. Any effort will be thwarted unless it a holistic one. That's the fight we're having at the moment; we're running a pest management program in the Capertee Valley to deal with foxes, dogs and pigs (and roo culling on a few properties).

Anyway to date we have removed about 200 pigs but they just keep on coming in from the adjacent National Park. Of course Park's response is they're moving in from the farmland :rolleyes:

:cheers: Will

That would be the typical answer from a Gov department BW,they like to think they are doing everything right and we are all wrong.My mum does more baiting than anyone in the district,its a all year baiting program with her place,but the neighbours hardly do a thing an wait for the Gov aerial baiting program .Mum trys to stay on top of things by baiting all year.Then you have the prospectors who bring their town dogs out when theres signs every where saying "No Dogs" and then they get all upset when the dog gets lost or worse Dies from a bait..Then the mongrels that do survive breed with the Dingo .My mum went down to one of her windmills the other day an found 7 big boomers dead due to a mighty big dog having fun in one night.