16.09.13
Badger cull
Source: Mrs M
I live in a part of the country that is swarming with badgers. They invade our gardens and steal our fruits and vegetables. They will also take a chicken.
But the worst thing about badgers is that they have decimated the hedgehog population. Unless you have heard a badger killing a hedgehog, you will have little idea of the agony. They will eat it from the soft underbelly, during which time the hedgehog is screaming and continues to do so for some time. In the morning you may well find just the prickles on the lawn. Our garden was a haven for hedgehogs – since the rise in the badger population I have not seen one for some years.
The badger has no natural enemy, I would think not, it is a very powerful animal; so much so that foxes and cats pay them great respect.
The hedgehog is now a rare animal and will be extinct in no time if badger numbers continue to grow at such a rate. In the countryside they are becoming as big a problem as the fox. It least I can put up a fence to keep the foxes out – the same does not apply to Mr Brock.
See here for details of the Irish situation.
Re: TB badger culls start in Somerset