Community
26 September, 2023
Fox baiting program to start
PET owners are urged to familiarise themselves with prohibited areas as the Warrnambool City Council prepares for its spring fox baiting program.
The program will run from September 26 until October 24.
Bait will be laid along Pickering Point, in vegetation behind the skate park, in areas of Lake Pertobe and west of Thunder Point.
A detailed map is available on council’s website while hard copies were also mailed to residents in the vicinity of the baited areas (and are also available at the Civic Centre in Liebig Street).
Warrnambool City Council director city infrastructure David Leahy said baiting was a proven method of reducing fox numbers.
“We have been undertaking fox baiting in spring for a few years now, and this year was the first time we introduced a second baiting program in May,” he said.
“Each fox can carry out a huge amount of damage to native birds and animals on its own, and while foxes will always be a threat to native wildlife in this part of Australia, every fox we can remove from the environment is a very good thing.
“Bait will be buried to make it attractive to foraging carnivores like foxes, while protecting birds, and each piece will be mapped using GPS so that our staff can remove all of the unused bait at the end of the program.”
According to Mr Leahy, the bait used is called PAPP, which is considered more humane than the most common alternative, which is 1080.
The other advantage of PAPP is the risk of secondary poisoning, that is, a bird or animal foraging on the carcass of a dead fox and getting poisoned itself, is practically non-existent.
“The other key advantage of PAPP is that there is an antidote that can be administered if a non-target animal such as a pet cat or dog eats any bait,” he said.
“Pets are banned from all baited areas, but if you believe that your pet may have been in a baited area and is showing signs of lethargy, loss of limb function, blue discolouration of the tongue and gums, or any other uncharacteristic activity, it needs to be taken to a vet immediately as the window to effectively deliver the antidote is only about 60 minutes.”
In Warrnambool, the following vets carry the necessary antidote:
The Vet Group Wollaston, 59 Mortlake Road Warrnambool.
Phone 5561 6911.
The Warrnambool Veterinary Clinic, at 514 Raglan Parade.
Phone 5559 0222 Residents who find fox carcasses on their property can contact council on 5559 4800 to have them removed.
