Go Back   Pet forum for dogs cats and humans - Pets.ca > Discussion Groups - mainly cats and dogs > Off topic forum

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old May 24th, 2004, 05:41 PM
melanie's Avatar
melanie melanie is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,824
kangaroos getting killed- no one cares

ok so it is about animals but not pets so i put it here. i just want to vent my anger at the killing of kangaroos, and truly, hardly anyone cares. knagaroos are viewed by most as a pest, like a rat or mouse, apparently they eat all in sight (yeah right), are oh so dangerous and need to be killed.
-so firstly- here in the land of oz you can get a kill quota, you go to local council and they give you a licence to kill a certain number on your land. yeah, like anyone actually counts what they kill. they also target the big red male kangaroos as they are big, eat lots and good breeders, see the theory is if you kill the biggies then you will onyl have populations breeding small greys, *******s. the big reds are slowly disapearing and they are destroying the genetic diversity of the species, ahhhhh.
-the other day whilst watching a car rally on tv held in canberra, the in car camera was on and you see the front of car and road, 2 big kangaroos came out of the bush in unisenseabout 1 meter apart, the car comes up and- bang- the kangaroos were both wiped out live on tv. the commentator said' the big worry is that front end, bla blah blah'. the kangaroos did not get one mention, not a single word, it wasnt even registerd that they were killed. this is a family show in the day, how could they do that, even if it was a simple comment about the danger to animals in rally racing, just made me absolutly furious, the kangaroos meant absolutly nothing to these people, well there goes my support.
-in south australia at the moment the drought is really bad, no wter anywhere. so the animals are dying of thirst. mass numbers of kangaroos have been so thirsty they gather around train tracks and lick the dew of the rails in the morning. well the train just ploughs through them. yep, on average 50-100 kangaroos are hit daily, this has been going on for 2 years now and no one has done anything to discourage the roos, i could give you at least 10 differerent measures that would definatly move the roos away, oh but it is too much to ask the humans to spare a little water for the animals that actually live here, we divert it for ourselves and leave nothing ofr them. im sorry but i am now furious about this. kangaroos are such a necessary part of our ecosystem and the humans are just screwing it all, apparently they are just too much of a problem, the kangaroos still have not learnt any manners and become domesticated so therefore they starve.
so now i feel better and will go and give someone in government a hard time for the roos. poor roos, one day maybe we will make them stop, at least i will sure as hell try.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old May 24th, 2004, 07:27 PM
Chany's Avatar
Chany Chany is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Canada
Posts: 447
You go girl!!! Is the kangaroo population in danger?
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old May 24th, 2004, 07:46 PM
Luba's Avatar
Luba Luba is offline
Sadie's Chefomatic
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Ontario Canada
Posts: 7,303
Sounds absolutely dreadful!

I'm sure there is an organization you can join that is advocating for these poor lil guys?
__________________
Cats only have nine lives because they stole them from dogs!Teehee
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old May 24th, 2004, 08:38 PM
melanie's Avatar
melanie melanie is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,824
most kangaroo species populations are not in danger, number wise. but there genetic diversity is severely threatened by idiots who shot the big ones or dont know what species they are shooting, there are some species of wallaby (similar family to roos) who are threatened and look sort of similar to the greys but not that similare one coud mistake them. the big red male kangaroos have really dropped in numberes in the last 10 years due to farmers and hunters deliberatly targeting them. some are as big as a grown man and are truly magestic creatures.
luba there are people who do care for the roos but who would listen, most people dont care about kangaroos, they can become pests to some areas and good luck convincing the australian general society and farmers to conserve them and use better farming practices, it is easier and cheaper to just shoot them. but they have in past threatened big kulls in areas and have been stopped by a few protesters, i have considered chaining myself to many a gate in the past at kull sites. we will see i suppose, but in years to come the big reds will become one of those legends that only old people remember just like many of our snake species.
oh well, just keep trying i suppose, its funny but people will believe a psychic and change their lives over a palm reading yet think any form of conservationist is a complete fruit loop, strange isnt it? but yiou never know what will happen in the world, more humans may just become really nice one day, well i just hope....
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old May 24th, 2004, 09:12 PM
Luba's Avatar
Luba Luba is offline
Sadie's Chefomatic
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Ontario Canada
Posts: 7,303
Question for you Mel

Are they becoming pests because of what we deem here as urban sprawl.
In other words, housing developments closer to the roos' habitat?

This is a very sad situation. Maybe the roos' will ban together like the elephants did recently (forget the country this hap in)...but a poacher killed one of the elephants and the entire herd (if thats what they're called) of elephants started war against the poachers.

Now THAT is something that deserves credit, way to go elephants!!

If only all animals banded together. Elephants are amazing creatures.
__________________
Cats only have nine lives because they stole them from dogs!Teehee
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old May 25th, 2004, 08:00 AM
chico2's Avatar
chico2 chico2 is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Oakville Ontario
Posts: 26,591
Mel,what you told us about the car-race sounds like a horror-movie
Regardless if the Roos are plentyfull and not in danger of extinction,they are still animals and probably more native than most people down under.
The Roos can probably be compared to the Deer here,driving down to South Carolina every year,we see hundreds of deer dead on the side of the road..
The Roos are soo loved by the rest of the world,are representatives of your uniqe country and although I've seen hunting for roos at night in Aussie land and pick-up trucks loaded with carcasses,I have also seen(on TV)some people struggle to save a baby-cangaroo.
It's sooo very sad,I can imagine the frustration and anger you feel
Lets hope you soon get some rain!!!
__________________
"The cruelest animal is the Human animal"
3 kitties,Rocky(r.i.p my boy),Chico,Vinnie
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old May 25th, 2004, 06:07 PM
melanie's Avatar
melanie melanie is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,824
you know it luba, development of land, land clearing for agriculture and habitat destruction are the main causes, once a kangaroo may have used a water hole in a paddock, now the farmers fence off so they dont have to share water with the roos. pests because of these reasons and for nibbling on farmers crops, but there are ways of farming to avoid problems with roos yet let them live. if you have ever seen a roo fight you will know it is a very nasty episode and can easily end in death, i get pretty scared when they are cranky, they will tear your stomach open with their strong feet, but this is very rare, you mostly have to tease them to get attacked . so if the roos formed armies and started beating up humans, hmmmm...
there are wildlife careres here in oz and many a farmers wife who have saved the babies, what usually happens is the mother is killed by car or gun and the shooter doesnt know it is female (and in the car race no one checked the pouches, heartless). a few woman in wildlife care i know drive around and look for dead mums to check the pouches for babies.
i have stopped on the road and found joey in pouch, just wrap in jumper till get to town and wildlife carers. so a few people do try i suppose. yes it is our national symbol and is featured on all our coins, funny that we would just shoot a national symbol without control. look i am not saying let the populations explode, but they can naturally control their populations themselves. if necessary i will agree with some kulling, but it needs to be sustainable and done properly with respect for the bodies, humane killing and the protection of genetic diversity would be a start. and i will never attend the rally of canberra or watch again, mongrels poor roos.
i read an artical on the deer and bison (i think that is it, really big cow thing)
the other day, sadly their habitat is reduced to such a crappy number because of habitat destruction and the removal of migration corridors. the poor bison have to walk through a oil mine whihc is part of their natural route, who wants to bet the oil company will put a stop to this? habitat destruction is one of the biggest threats to animals everywhere, habitat is crucial for survval and therefore i believe much effort needs to be directed to habitat conservation. once it is gone it is gone. think globally, act locally
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old May 25th, 2004, 06:39 PM
Luba's Avatar
Luba Luba is offline
Sadie's Chefomatic
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Ontario Canada
Posts: 7,303
They just look cute and nobody wants them around...kind of like what kids were in the middle ages and even recently

Seen but not heard! So very shameful!

We as people invade natural territory used for many hundreds of years by self sufficient wildlife then complain that they're there to begin with!
__________________
Cats only have nine lives because they stole them from dogs!Teehee
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old June 8th, 2004, 09:42 AM
sammiec sammiec is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 2,315
I know this guy that moved to Canada for Australia - now, before I tell the story, I am not telling it to gross you out or peeve anyone off... but this guy just told me the story one day....He told me that they would go out in his jeep with huge flood lights on the top of it (after they had drank a couple of cases of beer) and with shotguns and an AK47 !! they would run down the roos, trap them against a fence or something.. if that didn't work they would guns the shotguns and the friggin machine gun to kill these poor animals!!! I felt completely sick to my stomach, I actually did throw up in my mouth....

I guess that's just how somepeople enjoy there Friday night....and apparently this is a regular past time....
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old June 8th, 2004, 04:57 PM
melanie's Avatar
melanie melanie is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,824
yep sounds pretty australian to me. a friend of mine had placed on the entire fence boundarys of his property ever 3meters a no shooting sign. one night he said it was like someone was shooting his house and the next morning he went up to the gate to find some freak had killed 15 kangaroos and piled them high on his front fence, he believes they did it to upset him and show that they could do what they want. most men i know stick to shooting rabbits, foxes and pigs at night under flood light. but there are plenty of red necks out there that would hunt roos still, the farmers get a kill quota in some areas, and you can imagine how those babies are hunted, oh just makes me sick. i used to go with my dad when i was a kid, i would be really quiet until dad was about to shoot then i would scream like nothing else and scare the animals away. dad stopped taking me after a while. i hate it, hunting should be done swiftly and respectfully to the animal, but that type of roo hunting does the complete opposite and they get off on traumatising the poor thing. poor roos. oh and sammy, i would have had to try hard not to throw up also. you can imagine the fights i get into at the pub with many people over this type of thing. it seems i just dont agree with most of main stream australia on most things, especially the inhumane treatment of many animals, it just really sucks
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old June 8th, 2004, 05:16 PM
glasslass's Avatar
glasslass glasslass is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Calif.
Posts: 4,684
They should be required to eat whatever they kill. That includes crows, rodents, whatever.
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old June 8th, 2004, 05:25 PM
melanie's Avatar
melanie melanie is offline
Senior Contributor
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,824
glassy, have you been talking to my husband , we agree strongly with you.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Forum Terms of Use

  • All Bulletin Board Posts are for personal/non-commercial use only.
  • Self-promotion and/or promotion in general is prohibited.
  • Debate is healthy but profane and deliberately rude posts will be deleted.
  • Posters not following the rules will be banned at the Admins' discretion.
  • Read the Full Forum Rules

Forum Details

  • Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
    Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
    vBulletin Optimisation by vB Optimise (Reduced on this page: MySQL 0%).
  • All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:12 PM.