CRIMES AGAINST BADGERS
BADGER PERSECUTION
SADLY, Badger persecution takes many forms:
- including digging out a badger sett,
- baiting the badger above ground with dogs,
- interferring with/blocking a badger sett,
- shooting, lamping, gassing, snaring and poisioning badgers
Be it intentional or accidental, badger setts can be destroyed as a result of dyke clearing, forestry work, housing development, farming operations such as ploughing and harvesting crops and also road construction.
So despite badgers and their setts being protected under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, they still face great persecution and that is why badgers need our help.
Would you know what this is? Would you give it a second glance? Our extensive training will teach you what to look for. This is a back-filled hole - a badger dig where the soil taken out has been put back into the hole so no-one is any wiser.
Look at the image above. To the untrained eye it just looks like some sort of filled in square hole. The reality is, this hole was dug about 2 metres from an active badger sett entrance hole. It is a "crowning down" hole which has been "backfilled"
The badger has been backed into the "stop end" of the tunnel with the use of a terrier, usually a Patterdale, or some other "earth" dog, and the special collar the dog was wearing has sent up a signal to the "men" waiting above. The men have dug down, dragged both the terrier and badger out, then "backfilled" the hole. No-one is any the wiser. Job done.
The image (top right) shows a crowning down hole prior to it being backfilled. In this particular case they didn't have the time to backfill because they had to scarper as police cars closed in.
Backfilled badger dig - untidy backfill but hardly anything to see
HERE IS AN EXTRACT FROM THE USPCA (Northern Ireland) BADGER BAITING REPORT AND PREPARED BY SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS OFFICERS WITH YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
"The Dogs
Breeds and Breeding
Individuals engaged in badger baiting keep and use a variety of breeds of dog. In addition, dogs are specifically cross bred for this purpose. The cross breeding often takes place to increase strength, stamina, speed and/or levels of aggression or ‘gameness’. In essence dogs are being engineered for use in baiting and other forms of hunting.
The type or breed of dog will vary depending on their intended role. Small terriers such as Patterdales, Lakelands and sometimes Jack Russells are sent underground into a badger sett to locate a badger and hold it at bay. Other popular terrier breeds include Wheaten, Bedlington and Glen of Imaal. Other larger dogs, including Lurchers and Bull Lurchers are often used to fight with and kill the badger.
On many occasions, these dogs are bred by individuals who are actively involved in baiting. These dogs are bought, sold and swapped by various means, often on public and private Facebook groups. As an example, an individual may swap a Terrier for a Lurcher. Other dogs are procured from abroad. Such dogs are imported, and even exported in an attempt to breed even more aggressive dogs. This increases public safety risks regarding the people, including children who may come into contact with such dogs
Examples of cross bred dogs most frequently seen in Northern Ireland (specifically for badger baiting and the hunting of other animals) include Bull-Lurchers, Wheaten/Pitbull and Patterdale/Jagd Terriers.
Bull Lurchers are often bred with the hope of producing a cross that has a sighthound’s (Greyhound, Saluki, Whippet etc) speed and a bully’s (American Pitbull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, Bulldogs etc) stamina, in order to use them for baiting and/or hunting. There are dozens of possible bull lurcher mixes. It should be noted that owning a Pitbull terrier is illegal in Northern Ireland.
Many of the individuals known to USPCA have several dogs, sometimes ten or more. The various breeds will have different roles in the persecution of badgers, foxes or other prey."
So this report by the USPCA (Ulster Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) very much aligns with our own experience of badger baiters and the dogs which they use. (With the exception of the Glen of Imaal breed which we have no experience of). So let's take a closer look at these two categories of dogs (and remember the dogs suffer appalling injuries too)
A crowning down hole where the perpetrators had to scarper and had no time to backfill this hole in order to hide their disgusting crime
A stocky, well built, broken coated terrier. This terrier is well loved and well cared for. Others aren't so lucky and when used for badger baiting, can suffer horrendous "de-gloving" injuries to their bottom jaw.
TERRIERS - THE FIRST CATEGORY OF DOG
Most commonly used in our area of Yorkshire are Patterdales and Lakeland terriers (Lakey's). These are known as "earth dogs".
Stocky, smooth or rough, wiry coated, these dogs have the hearts of lions and will fight to the death. Wearing a special locator collar which transmits a signal to those standing above, the terrier is entered into a badger sett where it will yap and harrass the badger, forcing her back along the tunnel until the stop end is reached and the badger cannot retreat any further. The badger will then whip round and challenge the terrier. So face to face, the terrier must stand his ground and hold the badger at bay whilst the men above ground dig down to remove the badger and the dog. This is known as "crowning down" and it could be several metres away from where the terrier was originally entered into the hole. (See crowning down hole image above)
Coming head to head with a badger, the terrier can sustain severe injuries some of which can prove to be fatal. For the badger, there is no escape as she is thrown to the second category of dog waiting above ground. These are the larger, very powerful dogs described both by the USPCA report and below.
Sleek, built for speed lurcher, possibly a greyhound crossed with a Saluki, often used in the illegal "sport" of hare coursing with many dogs being left behind and cruelly abandoned. The fortunate ones, like this dog, are carefully and professionally trapped, handed over to a dog rescue to be rehomed and given the love, care and affection they deserve.
LURCHER TYPE DOGS - THE SECOND CATEGORY
A lurcher is not a breed it is a type, typically these are a sight hound, a "running dog", such as a greyhound, crossed with another breed, typically a working breed, a collie, Irish Wolfhound, Saluki or Scottish Deerhound for example. What the sighthound is crossed with dictates the size of the lurcher.
As explained in the USPCA badger baiting report, the lurcher, already built for speed and stamina, is next crossed with a bull breed which results in the power and strength and known as the bull cross lurcher. A formidable combination.
So, once the badger has been dragged from the sett, she is thrown to the ground where she is chased and attacked by these larger dogs. On a one to one basis, the badger may have a chance, especially a sow, who is fighting to protect her cubs. This is why the months of January and February are dangerous times for a pregnant or lactating sow. But a badger is never up against one dog. Several dogs, including the little terriers, will attack her, pulling her apart, playing tug of war, shaking her like a rag dog and ripping at her until she finally sucumbs to her injuries. Sometimes the badger is put out of her misery by a bullet to the head with a 12 bore.
Watching the sickening and barbaric videos taken by these criminals on mobile phones, seized by the police and shown to delegates at Badger Conferences is truly stomach churning and to hear the sounds a badger makes when fighting for her life will haunt you forever.
It's quite sickening to think that human beings can derive some kind of pleasure out of watching this. But sadly they do and in a field or a woodland near you, it could be happening right now!!
Why do they do it? They may well answer "for the blood lust"
WHY MONITORING BADGER SETTS IS SO IMPORTANT
By monitoring setts we are helping to protect it. By keeping accurate and up to date records and taking images and videos, we are helping to protect that sett.
Finding a dug badger sett is very distressing and at first it may not register what has happened.
If you find a sett which has been dug, contact the police and ring it in on 101 to get a crime incident number and state that it is a wildlife crime. It can also be reported to the Badger Trust. It is important to report it because without these statistics, it's a case of "Crime's against badgers?? What crimes - none have been reported."
FOX HUNTING NOW KNOWN AS TRAIL HUNTING
IS IT ILLEGAL FOR A FOX HUNT TO BLOCK A BADGER SETT?
YES ! it most definitely is !
Prior to the Hunting Act 2004 coming into force a conditional exemption in Section 8 of the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 did allow fox hunts to earth stop and block badger setts in order to prevent a fox escaping and going to ground down the badger sett. This was known as "soft blocking" sometimes done with bales of straw or other material.
This exemption was withdrawn when the Hunting Act 2004 came into force.
Both badgers and their setts are now protected by law.
FINDING A DUG SETT
If you stumble upon a dig in progress, ring 999 immediately. Giving a what3words location to the police will help. Whatever you do, don't put yourself in danger or confront them in any way. Write down or take images of any vehicles and the registration numbers. Write down as much as you can about the men, ages, what they are wearing, how many dogs, breed of dogs. Finding a dig in progess is distressing and your mind will undoubtedly panic, but we have found this tip helps and even moreso if you can't get a signal to call up what3words or Google maps!
For each sett you monitor, start a new note on your phone. Give it the title of the Sett, eg
ABBOTT'S WOOD SETT IF ATTACKED - infomation to give to the Police Switchboard
The "what3words" location is:-
tree.field.dyke (just as an example)
It's in the village of XXXX, close to the old mine workings, take the single track road, near three white cottages leading on to Green Lane. Sett is in woodland on the right side - 20 metres up on the south side of the dyke.
To prevent the diggers escaping, block off Green Lane and Red Road. Their only other escape route is to leg it across the fields.
So if you were to panic, and it happens to all of us, by having this note on your phone, you can just read it out calmly to the police, repeating any information as necessary.
DUG SETT DISCOVERED IN JANUARY 2024 ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF GOOLE
A remote, well hidden location, perfect for badger diggers !
We discovered this sett on the outskirts of Goole, dug extensively in January 2024. The Humberside Rural task force were called and attended quite quickly.
THE SAME SETT IN JULY 2024
Weed killer has been thrown over this sett and all the foliage has turned yellow.
But notice how the dug and backfilled holes have now sunk in by around 4 inches since it was found dug in January.
Six months after we found this sett extensively dug, the backfilled holes have now sunk. It would be easy for anyone walking by without badger awareness knowledge not to give this sunken earth a second glance. Sadly we have seen it many many times.
© Copyright. All rights reserved.
We need your consent to load the translations
We use a third-party service to translate the website content that may collect data about your activity. Please review the details in the privacy policy and accept the service to view the translations.