Thread: TB In Hawkes Bay

Massive? In 1994 there were 1,700 infected cattle & deer herds. Today there are about 30.

https://www.ospri.co.nz/tb-and-pest-...-herd-numbers/

If you are talking TB in feral deer OSPRI doesn't regard deer as being a major in the TB cycle any more and they don't have the budget to target them anyway.

In fact deer and pigs can be a useful sentinel to monitor if there is TB in possums. Possums are the out and out problem in the spread of TB and thats where OSPRI''s focus is. If they reduce the possum to a certain point TB can not be maintained in the population and TB will be eradicated. That is their goal.

There is a big OSPRI possum poisoning program kicking off soon in the lower NI and it will go on for at least 3 years or longer. Tararuas, Rimutakas and Haurangis. 100% deer repellent with the new repellent that gets mixed in when the baits are made.

Other areas should lobby OSPRI for repellent. They view it now as part of gaining the social licence so the probability of them using it is the highest its ever been. If you don't think it works, go and have a look at the deer population in the Haurangis where its been used for the last few years.