WEBVTT - Dealing with feral pests 101 with Rhett Robinson 0:00:06.390 --> 0:00:09.480 This is Seeds for Success, a show where we have 0:00:09.480 --> 0:00:12.450 a good yarn about ag life with producers who are 0:00:12.450 --> 0:00:14.790 having a go. On the show, you will hear from 0:00:14.790 --> 0:00:17.670 farmers in New South Wales who are out there battling 0:00:17.670 --> 0:00:20.939 the elements, making tough calls and getting the job done. 0:00:21.900 --> 0:00:24.060 You'll get a laugh out of some of their stories 0:00:24.239 --> 0:00:26.340 and also pick up some know- how along the way. 0:00:27.000 --> 0:00:34.320 I'm your host, Neroli Brennan. Today, we're sitting down with 0:00:34.320 --> 0:00:38.519 Rhett Robinson. Rhett, along with his father, run their family 0:00:38.520 --> 0:00:44.130 farm, Arana, a 500- acre property between Gulgong and Dunedoo. On 0:00:44.130 --> 0:00:48.390 the block, the Robinsons typically produce Sam sheep and cattle 0:00:48.690 --> 0:00:52.949 utilizing a native pasture base. As you'll hear, when Rhett's 0:00:53.100 --> 0:00:56.220 not on the farm, he works for Local Land Services 0:00:56.430 --> 0:00:59.700 as a senior biosecurity officer, which he has done for 0:00:59.700 --> 0:01:04.380 the last 22 years. Over his impressive career in pest 0:01:04.380 --> 0:01:08.850 animal management, Rhett has seen the rise and fall of 0:01:08.850 --> 0:01:13.050 various pests. In this episode, Rhett shares with us all 0:01:13.050 --> 0:01:15.420 the tips and tricks he's picked up along the way, 0:01:15.720 --> 0:01:19.200 including a number of solutions to help combat the impact 0:01:19.200 --> 0:01:25.080 of rabbits, pigs, wild dogs, and foxes. Local Land Services 0:01:25.080 --> 0:01:28.860 cropping advisor, Tim Bartimote sat down with Rhett over a 0:01:28.860 --> 0:01:32.699 cuppa to have this chat in our Dubbo LLS office. 0:01:36.209 --> 0:01:39.810 Well, welcome back to the podcast, listeners. Today, I'm joined by 0:01:39.870 --> 0:01:43.380 Rhett Robinson, who actually works for LLS, but he's also 0:01:43.650 --> 0:01:46.200 a local producer with his family. How are you going 0:01:46.200 --> 0:01:46.679 today, Rhett? 0:01:46.890 --> 0:01:47.760 Yeah, good, thanks Tim. How are you going? 0:01:48.360 --> 0:01:51.390 Yeah, not too bad. Can you tell us a bit about your family 0:01:51.390 --> 0:01:52.350 farm, please? 0:01:52.770 --> 0:01:55.950 Yeah, it's like an old family farm. It first started 0:01:56.340 --> 0:01:58.920 back in the selection days with my great- great- great- 0:01:58.920 --> 0:02:02.400 grandfather. So yeah, been there a fair while. It's between 0:02:02.670 --> 0:02:06.930 in the Tallawong area, which is between Gulgong and Dunedoo. About halfway. Yeah, 0:02:06.930 --> 0:02:09.600 been there a while. Typical family farm, it's gone up and 0:02:09.600 --> 0:02:12.360 down throughout the generation. So yeah, it is not very big at 0:02:12.360 --> 0:02:15.030 the moment, but it's only 500 acres. But yes, it's 0:02:15.030 --> 0:02:18.389 a nice 500 acres and love getting over there and it means 0:02:18.389 --> 0:02:20.880 a lot to me, like the old family graveyard's on the 0:02:20.880 --> 0:02:23.340 place and all that stuff. So yeah, I like to feel 0:02:23.460 --> 0:02:25.769 pretty connected to the place really, well, I do feel connected 0:02:25.770 --> 0:02:26.370 to place. Yeah. 0:02:26.370 --> 0:02:27.001 What do you produce on that block? 0:02:27.001 --> 0:02:33.299 Yeah, it's way back in the early days there was a lot more emphasis 0:02:33.300 --> 0:02:35.850 on wheat back in my great- grandfather's and grandfather's day 0:02:35.850 --> 0:02:39.180 and typical farms in that area, it's more livestock based 0:02:39.180 --> 0:02:43.230 now. So yeah, sheep and cattle have been what we've been doing, but 0:02:43.740 --> 0:02:46.230 we actually got foot rot a couple of years ago 0:02:46.230 --> 0:02:48.960 and had the de- stock, so we've just been doing 0:02:48.960 --> 0:02:51.990 some adjustment stuff in the meantime until we get back 0:02:51.990 --> 0:02:52.739 to restocking. 0:02:53.010 --> 0:02:56.910 Yeah, right. So is it more focused on native pastures, improved? 0:02:57.240 --> 0:02:59.940 Yeah, native pastures with the sub- clover on the base, 0:02:59.970 --> 0:03:03.150 probably more sheep focused. We had Sam's ewes at the 0:03:03.150 --> 0:03:06.870 time and yeah, they're great old ewes, big strong things and 0:03:06.900 --> 0:03:09.660 have great lambs and yeah, very fertile too. 0:03:09.660 --> 0:03:12.180 So you obviously work full- time at LLS as well, 0:03:12.180 --> 0:03:14.700 but how do you manage? You just run out there on 0:03:14.700 --> 0:03:15.060 the weekends? 0:03:15.389 --> 0:03:18.510 Yeah, I'm over there most weekends, it's unusual for me 0:03:18.510 --> 0:03:20.880 to not be there on the weekend. Dad's getting quite 0:03:20.880 --> 0:03:23.160 old now and needs a bit of a help along 0:03:23.160 --> 0:03:25.530 the way, so I love going out there anyway. He 0:03:25.530 --> 0:03:28.260 doesn't have to ask me twice, doesn't have to ask 0:03:28.260 --> 0:03:28.650 me at all. 0:03:29.490 --> 0:03:30.150 You just turn up. 0:03:30.150 --> 0:03:30.660 Just turn up 0:03:30.900 --> 0:03:32.370 Unannounced. Oh, you're back again, Rhett. 0:03:33.030 --> 0:03:33.810 What are we doing today? 0:03:35.520 --> 0:03:36.900 So you said it's been in the family quite a 0:03:36.900 --> 0:03:37.980 while. Do you know exactly how long? 0:03:38.220 --> 0:03:40.350 Yeah, from family stories, I think it was about in 1860s, 0:03:41.010 --> 0:03:45.810 1866 I think it was. But before then, my great- great- 0:03:45.810 --> 0:03:49.410 great grandfather was an overseer for one of the local 0:03:49.410 --> 0:03:52.590 squatters, the Rouses, is my understanding. So he was looking 0:03:52.590 --> 0:03:55.080 after their stock in that locality for a number of 0:03:55.080 --> 0:03:58.770 years before he took up the selection block. Actually, when 0:03:58.770 --> 0:04:01.380 grandmother died, me and my wife bought that block, which 0:04:01.380 --> 0:04:04.170 was left to me aunties and the rest of it 0:04:04.170 --> 0:04:06.180 was left to dad. So that was great to get 0:04:06.180 --> 0:04:08.520 that, because that's where the family graveyard is on that 0:04:08.520 --> 0:04:09.991 selection block down along the creek and it's good. 0:04:09.991 --> 0:04:11.670 So quite a lot of history there. 0:04:11.880 --> 0:04:12.150 A lot of history. 0:04:12.810 --> 0:04:14.400 And so can you walk us through a bit more 0:04:14.400 --> 0:04:15.480 about what the country's like? 0:04:15.540 --> 0:04:17.969 Well, we've got two creeks which intersperse the place or 0:04:18.060 --> 0:04:20.520 divide the place go through the middle of the place. So it's 0:04:20.520 --> 0:04:23.730 mostly yellow box creek flats. There is some granite country 0:04:23.910 --> 0:04:25.890 out the other side, what we call the second creek, 0:04:26.160 --> 0:04:30.630 which is good grazing country. So nice mix of yellow 0:04:30.630 --> 0:04:33.479 box and that granite country. Good sheep country, real good 0:04:33.480 --> 0:04:34.020 sheep country. 0:04:34.140 --> 0:04:37.380 So what's your approach now having dealt with foot rot? What's 0:04:37.380 --> 0:04:38.970 your approach now in terms of restocking? 0:04:39.060 --> 0:04:42.120 Well, dad's slowed up a fair bit. He just wants to go a bit easier. So 0:04:44.790 --> 0:04:47.580 yeah, what he wants to do is just have adjustment stock for 0:04:47.580 --> 0:04:49.589 the next while, but when it's my turn later on down 0:04:49.589 --> 0:04:52.200 the track, we'll get back into the sheep, for sure. I 0:04:52.200 --> 0:04:52.770 love me sheep. 0:04:52.830 --> 0:04:55.109 What do you love about them? Because I don't understand it. 0:04:55.110 --> 0:05:00.540 How could you not love sheep? I've got a list 0:05:01.860 --> 0:05:04.170 maybe I don't do as much sheep work as other 0:05:04.170 --> 0:05:07.169 people, so I enjoy it while I do it and then 0:05:07.170 --> 0:05:11.070 it stops before it wears itself out. The enjoyment wears 0:05:11.070 --> 0:05:13.860 out. But yeah, I've always loved sheep from a young 0:05:13.860 --> 0:05:16.080 kid and I think, yeah, we've always had sheep and 0:05:16.080 --> 0:05:18.599 I know my great- grandfather was a big sheep man, 0:05:18.600 --> 0:05:21.120 so he liked the sheep. So it's in the blood, 0:05:21.120 --> 0:05:23.969 I suppose, just from an early age. It's the thing 0:05:23.970 --> 0:05:26.520 I took a liking to and yeah, never stopped liking. 0:05:26.700 --> 0:05:30.330 So focusing on wool or meat sheep or combo? 0:05:30.390 --> 0:05:32.610 Yeah, combo, whether we get back into Sam's or not, 0:05:32.610 --> 0:05:35.070 it's another thing, it's a bit hard to get good 0:05:35.070 --> 0:05:37.860 quality Sam rams in New South Wales now. Maybe we'll 0:05:37.920 --> 0:05:41.370 have a think at a time whether we'll do Merinos and maybe 0:05:41.580 --> 0:05:44.580 join a portion of them to a meat breed, maybe 0:05:44.970 --> 0:05:46.169 Suffolks or something like that, maybe. 0:05:46.380 --> 0:05:49.050 In terms of, so 500 acres did you say in totality? 0:05:49.230 --> 0:05:52.560 Is there opportunity to expand in that space or is 0:05:52.560 --> 0:05:54.960 it tightly held, a lot of the eastern country? 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:59.250 Oh yeah, it's pretty tightly held, but I suppose over my lifetime, I've seen 0:06:01.290 --> 0:06:03.510 a few places have been sold, but it's few and 0:06:03.510 --> 0:06:06.359 far between. It's a long time in between properties getting 0:06:06.360 --> 0:06:10.620 sold. So some of my neighbours, they had been there for a little long as what we have nearly. 0:06:10.620 --> 0:06:14.190 So it is pretty tightly held and quite dear too. 0:06:15.420 --> 0:06:16.260 What's it like? What would you say an acre kind of? 0:06:16.260 --> 0:06:21.900 Oh, there's a place down at Birriwa sold, oh, I think they 0:06:21.990 --> 0:06:24.750 bought for 4, 000 an acre. Yeah, which is a lot. 0:06:25.589 --> 0:06:26.339 For our part of the world. 0:06:26.339 --> 0:06:31.260 Yeah, yeah. So anyway, I'm just fortunate, I count myself so lucky that 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:33.900 I've got that to go back to when I retire 0:06:33.900 --> 0:06:36.390 and yeah, I'm really looking forward to going back. 0:06:36.480 --> 0:06:38.279 Has it passed on to your girls as well? 0:06:38.339 --> 0:06:40.529 The two youngest ones, they're pretty keen, which is good 0:06:40.529 --> 0:06:44.279 to see, but I was pretty worried with them growing 0:06:44.279 --> 0:06:47.969 up in Dubbo, whether they'd feel the same way about it 0:06:48.029 --> 0:06:50.760 that I feel, not growing up on there, but they 0:06:50.760 --> 0:06:53.070 seem pretty keen, so I hope that continues. 0:06:53.550 --> 0:06:54.719 Watch this space, see what happens. 0:06:54.750 --> 0:06:55.320 Yeah, that's it. 0:06:55.710 --> 0:06:58.169 Rhett, you've been a staple I guess in Local Land 0:06:58.170 --> 0:07:01.080 Services since it started, but you've also obviously been part 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:04.200 of the space before that. Can you walk us through 0:07:04.529 --> 0:07:06.570 your pest management career, how it kicked off? 0:07:07.050 --> 0:07:10.950 Yeah. Well I started in 2002 with the Rural Lands 0:07:10.950 --> 0:07:13.710 Protection Board, Dubbo Rural Lands Protection Board at the time. 0:07:14.130 --> 0:07:17.100 So yeah, started back then and that turned into Livestock 0:07:17.100 --> 0:07:20.250 Health and Pest Authorities and that turned into LLS. So 0:07:20.520 --> 0:07:23.910 just basically started through that and from there, so what's 0:07:23.910 --> 0:07:26.400 that, nearly 22 years now or a bit more? 0:07:26.460 --> 0:07:28.170 What was it like back then when you started? 0:07:28.380 --> 0:07:33.660 Oh, it was really good. It's good now too. Don't 0:07:33.660 --> 0:07:38.880 worry. Yeah. But yeah, they were all (inaudible) , for me, they were a great organisation, 0:07:39.300 --> 0:07:42.030 really grow a lead with the board at the time, we 0:07:42.030 --> 0:07:44.340 had a great board to work with in Dubbo. All the 0:07:44.340 --> 0:07:49.230 directors were fantastic. But time's changed and it's different now, 0:07:49.260 --> 0:07:51.990 but there are good things now that we didn't have back 0:07:51.990 --> 0:07:55.230 then as well. So with the pest levy money that 0:07:55.230 --> 0:07:57.750 we have come back to Local Land Services now, which 0:07:57.750 --> 0:08:01.350 we're using. So actually probably busier now in the pest animal 0:08:01.350 --> 0:08:03.870 front than we've ever been really just with the opportunities 0:08:03.870 --> 0:08:05.220 that we've had through LLS. 0:08:05.250 --> 0:08:07.710 So what was your focus back then? What pests were... The same 0:08:07.710 --> 0:08:08.760 stuff as today or? 0:08:08.850 --> 0:08:12.300 No, it has changed. Back then it was rabbits when 0:08:12.300 --> 0:08:14.820 I first started and foxes were probably the main thing. 0:08:15.150 --> 0:08:17.610 Pigs weren't the issue, anywhere near the issue is what 0:08:17.610 --> 0:08:20.190 they are now for sure. We did a lot more 0:08:20.190 --> 0:08:22.619 rabbit work back in those days. Every summer we'd be 0:08:22.620 --> 0:08:26.400 doing rabbit jobs here, there and everywhere. Whereas now if I do one 0:08:26.400 --> 0:08:29.280 or two a year, that's something. So that side of things 0:08:29.580 --> 0:08:32.309 has eased off. The foxes have continued on and we've 0:08:32.309 --> 0:08:35.280 kept our programs going up. Lisa Thomas, at the time, and 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:39.150 myself started back in the early 2000s and all those programs are 0:08:39.150 --> 0:08:42.209 still ongoing now, even with the organisational changes, which is 0:08:42.210 --> 0:08:46.140 good. So continue working on those. Wild dogs have crept 0:08:46.140 --> 0:08:49.230 into the area over the last 10 to 15 years. 0:08:49.290 --> 0:08:51.960 So whereas when I started, wild dogs weren't even on 0:08:51.960 --> 0:08:55.350 the radar in the Central West, so that side of things 0:08:55.350 --> 0:08:58.890 change and as everybody knows, pig numbers have really exploded. 0:08:58.950 --> 0:09:02.189 It's funny, after the early 2000s drought, when that ended, 0:09:02.580 --> 0:09:05.069 people were saying then, " I've had pigs turn up," I've 0:09:05.070 --> 0:09:08.040 never had pigs and want to do a bit of baiting and control 0:09:08.040 --> 0:09:11.070 work. The same thing happened after this last drought. Pig 0:09:11.070 --> 0:09:13.679 numbers have just spread and gone into areas where they 0:09:13.679 --> 0:09:16.260 haven't been before and increased in numbers as well. So 0:09:16.559 --> 0:09:19.260 pigs have definitely increased a heap compared to when I 0:09:19.260 --> 0:09:19.920 first started. 0:09:20.130 --> 0:09:22.230 That's interesting. So I guess to kind of paint this 0:09:22.230 --> 0:09:25.440 big picture, from your 22 years of experiences working in 0:09:25.440 --> 0:09:27.750 pest management, what is the need, do you reckon? What 0:09:27.809 --> 0:09:32.459 importance does your role bring to the farming community or 0:09:32.460 --> 0:09:33.840 the greater community do you think? 0:09:33.929 --> 0:09:37.020 Well, I suppose if you looked at the wild dog front, if 0:09:37.020 --> 0:09:39.510 we don't keep on top of the wild dog problem 0:09:39.510 --> 0:09:42.000 and if it goes the way it has gone in 0:09:42.000 --> 0:09:44.309 other areas to some of the stories that you hear, 0:09:44.370 --> 0:09:47.520 what's happened there, if the same thing happened here in 0:09:47.520 --> 0:09:52.440 Central West in such a strong sheep country, enterprise region, 0:09:52.740 --> 0:09:55.260 it'd be devastating for me. Well, dogs are probably the 0:09:55.260 --> 0:09:58.319 one thing that can be a nail in the coffin 0:09:58.380 --> 0:10:02.010 of sheep enterprises and that's the last thing that I'd like to see, not only 0:10:02.010 --> 0:10:04.679 for farms but for the local community as well with Fletcher's 0:10:04.679 --> 0:10:07.920 here. If the sheep industry decreased here, it's going to 0:10:07.920 --> 0:10:11.520 make it harder for the whole rural economy. So I 0:10:11.520 --> 0:10:14.280 think it's really important that we try to support the 0:10:14.280 --> 0:10:15.179 industry that we're in. 0:10:15.270 --> 0:10:18.929 So your role provides a coordinated approach to dealing with 0:10:18.929 --> 0:10:21.660 pest management, as opposed to a couple of neighbours working 0:10:21.660 --> 0:10:23.790 together. You're trying to look at it region wide, how 0:10:23.790 --> 0:10:25.260 do we tackle these issues? 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:28.950 Yeah, definitely. So that larger scale stuff, trying to pull 0:10:28.950 --> 0:10:32.670 people together to work together in groups and do coordinated 0:10:32.790 --> 0:10:35.010 programs so we can have bigger impact on what we 0:10:35.010 --> 0:10:38.490 do. So really probably my job as much as anything 0:10:38.490 --> 0:10:41.189 is about working with people and pulling people together and 0:10:41.429 --> 0:10:44.670 getting everybody trying to pushing the same direction as much 0:10:44.670 --> 0:10:45.150 as we can. 0:10:45.210 --> 0:10:48.000 So what does a typical week look like in the 0:10:48.000 --> 0:10:49.080 life of Rhett Robinson? 0:10:49.410 --> 0:10:52.740 Well, just at the moment we're organising fox- baiting programs 0:10:52.740 --> 0:10:55.980 and dogs as well. But all those baiting groups that 0:10:55.980 --> 0:10:58.949 we work with, we have added the Dubbo office. We 0:10:58.950 --> 0:11:03.450 have 25 landholder groups based on localities in the area that 0:11:03.450 --> 0:11:06.630 we work with just to coordinate control. So in the 0:11:06.630 --> 0:11:08.760 early days we were focused on the foxes, but we're pretty 0:11:08.760 --> 0:11:11.340 much focused on any pest now with those groups. So 0:11:11.640 --> 0:11:15.569 whatever's worrying them. So to the east of Dubbo, certainly dogs are in that 0:11:15.570 --> 0:11:18.840 mix and pigs as well across all the groups pretty much. 0:11:19.200 --> 0:11:23.309 So we are just organising those programs now, but those meetings, so 0:11:23.550 --> 0:11:27.000 where we get landholders together, we have landholder coordinators that get 0:11:27.000 --> 0:11:29.880 bait orders, so we make them up and take them out. 0:11:29.880 --> 0:11:32.400 So everybody's doing their control programs all at the same 0:11:32.460 --> 0:11:35.579 time so that they have the biggest impact. And we 0:11:35.580 --> 0:11:40.290 try to do those meetings with foxes and dogs where it's 0:11:40.290 --> 0:11:42.870 going to have... Where we do the autumn round, the 0:11:43.440 --> 0:11:47.670 group baiting to really target foxes as an example during 0:11:47.670 --> 0:11:50.939 that dispersal period. So target them then and also follow 0:11:50.940 --> 0:11:56.220 that up in late winter to target them during their breeding time. So target those times when they're 0:11:56.220 --> 0:11:59.760 most vulnerable to really keep overall numbers low. And with foxes 0:12:00.330 --> 0:12:03.150 as an example, just to continue it on, we did 0:12:03.150 --> 0:12:06.059 some spotlight counts a few years ago now, but the same thing 0:12:06.059 --> 0:12:09.449 would hold, where we compared where groups where they bait 0:12:09.449 --> 0:12:13.230 them in the autumn and winter and did spotlight counts 0:12:13.290 --> 0:12:17.579 transects. So you do a 10 kilometre transect and you do a count and we 0:12:17.580 --> 0:12:21.809 compared that to an area where they don't do coordinated baiting, and 0:12:22.410 --> 0:12:25.860 the numbers of foxes were 80%... Well, it's more than 80% 0:12:25.860 --> 0:12:28.860 lower throughout the year where you're doing fox baiting twice 0:12:28.860 --> 0:12:32.370 a year. So it's pretty impressive if you can pull 0:12:32.370 --> 0:12:35.429 people together, do the timing correctly, you can have pretty 0:12:35.429 --> 0:12:39.570 good results. And that flows on to increasing people's lambing percentages. Yeah, 0:12:39.570 --> 0:12:42.720 there was the Vertebrate Pest Research unit with the DPI, looked at 0:12:42.720 --> 0:12:46.078 group baiting in one of their research programs, and I 0:12:46.078 --> 0:12:49.530 think people in group baiting programs were making up to 20% 0:12:49.530 --> 0:12:52.260 more lambs than people that weren't part of those in 0:12:52.260 --> 0:12:55.710 other areas. So it definitely makes a difference, it produces hip-pocket, 0:12:55.710 --> 0:12:59.429 those programs, which I find very satisfying. 0:13:00.000 --> 0:13:02.910 I bet. To know that you're contributing to an impact 0:13:03.150 --> 0:13:04.110 on a regional scale. 0:13:04.170 --> 0:13:04.439 Yeah. 0:13:04.440 --> 0:13:08.010 Because it sounds very strategic. You're obviously working out from 0:13:08.010 --> 0:13:11.700 the pest animal perspective, their mating habits and their life 0:13:11.700 --> 0:13:15.720 cycle, that sort of stuff, and particularly targeting key timings 0:13:16.230 --> 0:13:18.240 to achieve widespread control. 0:13:18.300 --> 0:13:18.420 For sure. 0:13:18.420 --> 0:13:20.400 Well I know you're one of the most popular guys 0:13:20.400 --> 0:13:21.929 in this office in terms of customers coming in. 0:13:21.929 --> 0:13:23.221 People coming through. 0:13:23.221 --> 0:13:25.500 " Is Rhett here? Can I talk to Rhett?" 0:13:26.730 --> 0:13:28.650 Yeah, always love to see him. It's always good. 0:13:29.040 --> 0:13:30.809 So we'll get down to the nitty- gritty, Rhett, of 0:13:30.809 --> 0:13:35.069 how do we approach control and some of these major pests. Well, 0:13:35.070 --> 0:13:37.650 I've heard stories anyway that in every fox's den, mate, 0:13:37.650 --> 0:13:40.620 there's the most wanted sign of you because you've been 0:13:40.620 --> 0:13:43.890 involved in a lot of controlling these various animals. So 0:13:43.890 --> 0:13:46.890 let's get into it and pick out from your expertise. 0:13:47.550 --> 0:13:49.200 Pigs. That's probably- 0:13:49.200 --> 0:13:49.771 Pigs, yeah, the big issue. 0:13:49.771 --> 0:13:54.540 How do we approach pigs or how do you approach pigs 0:13:54.540 --> 0:13:57.780 and what do you have for any producers who are listening? 0:13:58.200 --> 0:14:01.979 Well, I suppose there's different levels to approach pigs. So there's the 0:14:01.980 --> 0:14:05.520 broader strategic levels which we probably could cover and also 0:14:05.790 --> 0:14:08.850 what you can do on your own properties, which contributes 0:14:08.850 --> 0:14:12.000 to that. So I suppose on a broad level before 0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:15.240 getting down to property to property type stuff, individual property 0:14:15.240 --> 0:14:17.940 type stuff, look, if you've got pigs on your property, 0:14:18.210 --> 0:14:21.480 really should be trying to start working in with neighbours 0:14:21.480 --> 0:14:24.780 and it makes a huge difference to knocking pigs down. 0:14:24.780 --> 0:14:28.260 So you really need to be removing 70% of pigs 0:14:28.530 --> 0:14:31.350 in an area just to maintain them because they breed 0:14:31.350 --> 0:14:34.650 so quick. So you've got to remove a heap each 0:14:34.650 --> 0:14:39.060 year or a minimum of 70%. So to do that 0:14:39.060 --> 0:14:41.760 you need to really work in with your neighbours, which 0:14:41.760 --> 0:14:44.010 will, if they're taking care of some of the pigs 0:14:44.010 --> 0:14:46.890 and you share the workload basically and you stop that 0:14:46.890 --> 0:14:50.370 immigration. So if you poison pigs on your place and 0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:53.250 two or three places down the track, those pigs could 0:14:53.250 --> 0:14:55.950 swing back around on you and immigrate again. So if 0:14:55.950 --> 0:14:58.350 you can do that is one of the key things to 0:14:58.350 --> 0:15:03.000 do. Really stick with the effective controls, which baiting is 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:05.941 the most effective way to reduce pig numbers. So yeah, once again- 0:15:05.941 --> 0:15:07.979 So not shooting at it? 0:15:08.070 --> 0:15:13.770 No, no. I'll come to that. Aerial shooting plays a part. 0:15:14.130 --> 0:15:16.470 It can play a useful part of it, but it's 0:15:16.470 --> 0:15:19.590 not the answer to feral pig control in my experience 0:15:19.800 --> 0:15:25.470 with the shooting that we've been doing around Dubbo, really you need to be doing other controls around it. 0:15:25.560 --> 0:15:27.240 So it's literally not the silver bullet. 0:15:27.270 --> 0:15:31.380 It is not a silver bullet, but I wish it was, but it's not. 0:15:31.380 --> 0:15:33.780 It's more of an integrated approach is what's required. 0:15:33.780 --> 0:15:37.440 Yeah, that's right. And with pig numbers the way they are, an integrated approach... 0:15:37.620 --> 0:15:40.890 So DPI, I've seen some research that's been done there. 0:15:40.890 --> 0:15:45.420 They're baiting at pigs with 1080 has done well, can reduce numbers 0:15:45.420 --> 0:15:49.710 by up to 90%, trapping's about 70%, and I think they 0:15:49.710 --> 0:15:52.950 put aerial shooting about that 70% as well, which maybe in the 0:15:53.010 --> 0:15:55.500 Dubbo area, I think that might be a bit optimistic 0:15:55.500 --> 0:15:59.340 from my experience. And the feedback that I'll get from producers afterwards, 0:15:59.700 --> 0:16:02.160 they're still seeing a lot of pigs. And for example, 0:16:02.160 --> 0:16:05.220 we did the shoot in an area west of Dubbo here earlier 0:16:05.220 --> 0:16:08.730 this year. They took out 400 pigs, they were concentrated along 0:16:08.730 --> 0:16:11.160 the creek lines and we followed that up with a 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:15.480 baiting program and we're still issued a ton of 1080 pig grain 0:16:15.570 --> 0:16:18.660 after the shoot, which is enough to kill about 2000 0:16:18.660 --> 0:16:21.300 pigs, to give you a bit of an idea. So it's not like 0:16:21.300 --> 0:16:24.750 they only needed two or 300 kilos, even though we did 0:16:24.750 --> 0:16:28.890 the shoot, we still had significant uptake of pig 1080 0:16:29.070 --> 0:16:31.410 grain afterwards. So just to give you a bit of 0:16:31.410 --> 0:16:31.980 an idea. 0:16:32.100 --> 0:16:36.960 So it's a significant contributor to control, aerial shooting, but it's 0:16:37.140 --> 0:16:38.850 far better if you can incorporate... 0:16:38.880 --> 0:16:42.120 Yeah, it's far better. We're going to get bang for our buck. Yeah, 0:16:42.120 --> 0:16:44.820 we need to be following up with baiting or trapping where you 0:16:44.820 --> 0:16:48.420 can't do baiting. So the main things... Also, the timing 0:16:48.420 --> 0:16:52.470 of control. Now in winter's a good time to do it. Pigs are 0:16:52.560 --> 0:16:56.490 hungry with the cold so it's easy to get them on the grain. Summertime 0:16:56.490 --> 0:16:59.070 is another good strategic time for people to be doing 0:16:59.130 --> 0:17:03.300 baiting together. They'll be normal hot summer, they'll be concentrated 0:17:03.300 --> 0:17:07.094 on water points in amongst any dams, in trees, in 0:17:07.095 --> 0:17:10.530 the scrub areas, or along those shady creeks. That's where 0:17:10.530 --> 0:17:13.919 they'll be and concentrates numbers at those points and you 0:17:13.920 --> 0:17:16.109 can really... If we targeted them then with a good 0:17:16.109 --> 0:17:20.160 baiting program you can have a significant reduction in numbers. 0:17:20.820 --> 0:17:24.990 So taking advantage of those times and probably thinking even 0:17:24.990 --> 0:17:28.169 further forward. But the next drought is probably the time 0:17:28.170 --> 0:17:30.090 when we should really be putting the boot in the 0:17:30.090 --> 0:17:34.379 pig numbers and concentrating pig control then because during a 0:17:34.380 --> 0:17:37.889 drought, piglet survivability will be low anyway and pig numbers 0:17:37.890 --> 0:17:41.790 will be naturally decreasing. But if we can be also reducing 0:17:41.790 --> 0:17:44.550 numbers as much as we can with baiting and trapping, 0:17:44.820 --> 0:17:48.359 so when we come out of the next drought, pig numbers are even lower than 0:17:48.359 --> 0:17:50.310 what they were coming out of this last one. That 0:17:50.310 --> 0:17:52.290 will make a big difference in two or three years down 0:17:52.560 --> 0:17:55.290 the track. Hopefully we shouldn't have the numbers that we have now. So 0:17:56.369 --> 0:17:58.290 the next drought's going to be a key time when 0:17:58.290 --> 0:18:00.869 I think we should be really concentrating on it. I get it 0:18:00.869 --> 0:18:04.109 with farmers, they work flat out feeding stock and keeping 0:18:04.109 --> 0:18:06.510 the show going and under a lot of stress, but 0:18:06.930 --> 0:18:09.150 if we can make something good come out of the next 0:18:09.150 --> 0:18:12.180 drought, that'd be one thing we could do. If producers said, " 0:18:12.270 --> 0:18:13.109 Yeah, let's do this." 0:18:13.109 --> 0:18:14.910 Kind of like a silver lining kind of thing. 0:18:14.970 --> 0:18:16.619 Yeah, get something good out of it. 0:18:17.430 --> 0:18:21.300 Yeah, that's interesting. I think that was it, 70% you've 0:18:21.300 --> 0:18:24.389 got to knock the population down to maintain the population 0:18:24.390 --> 0:18:26.609 over the long term. That's crazy. 0:18:26.670 --> 0:18:28.770 And you've got to do that annually. The other thing too 0:18:29.490 --> 0:18:31.889 we are encouraging people to do when they're doing baiting 0:18:31.890 --> 0:18:35.190 on their own properties, getting down to the property level, is 0:18:35.550 --> 0:18:38.609 really increasing their free feeding time when they're doing a 0:18:38.609 --> 0:18:42.330 baiting program. So rather than just put grain out for two 0:18:42.330 --> 0:18:45.240 or three days and have the pigs come in and then 0:18:45.570 --> 0:18:48.240 put the bait out, if you can free feed for a longer 0:18:48.240 --> 0:18:51.959 period, what you'll find is all those other mobs that are 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:54.840 cutting through that part of your property have times to 0:18:54.840 --> 0:18:57.810 come off the neighbours or swing around and find where 0:18:57.810 --> 0:19:00.150 you are free feeding as well. So instead of poisoning 0:19:00.150 --> 0:19:02.730 one mob at a time, if you can free fee 0:19:02.730 --> 0:19:06.330 for, well the ideal time's 10 to 14 days at 0:19:06.510 --> 0:19:09.869 any given time, and you'll get multiple mobs feeding that 0:19:09.869 --> 0:19:11.430 one feeding point and so you can have a big 0:19:11.520 --> 0:19:13.680 clean out of all the mobs that are cutting through. 0:19:13.710 --> 0:19:15.480 So that will make a big difference too if we 0:19:15.480 --> 0:19:18.060 get people doing that. And also with people doing their 0:19:18.060 --> 0:19:21.750 baiting programs too, it's important to know how much the 0:19:21.750 --> 0:19:25.080 pigs are eating so we don't underdose them. So pre feeding is important 0:19:25.080 --> 0:19:28.260 for that. And also cleaning up any 1080 grain after 0:19:28.260 --> 0:19:30.930 they've done their program is really important as well. 0:19:31.320 --> 0:19:34.139 Is that the thing about the bad curry kind of idea? 0:19:34.380 --> 0:19:36.359 Yeah. After you do a baiting program, if you go 0:19:36.359 --> 0:19:38.250 and clean it up and you leave two or three 0:19:38.250 --> 0:19:41.939 kilos scattered in the baiting site there, that is hard 0:19:41.940 --> 0:19:44.369 to pick up. The pigs will pick it up, but 0:19:44.369 --> 0:19:46.500 it's enough to make them sick and make them bait 0:19:46.500 --> 0:19:49.980 shy and then we'll never get them to eat bait again. So 0:19:50.490 --> 0:19:53.280 it's really important to be particular either feeding in a 0:19:53.280 --> 0:19:56.430 trench where you can go and bury the bait so where the pigs can't 0:19:56.430 --> 0:19:59.580 get at it or feeding in some troughing like C- 0:19:59.580 --> 0:20:02.070 section or whatever so you can clean up the bait site 0:20:02.070 --> 0:20:05.730 afterwards and so we don't have another mob coming along potentially 0:20:05.730 --> 0:20:08.340 later on and cleaning up half a kilo of grain 0:20:08.340 --> 0:20:09.270 and getting sick and... 0:20:09.630 --> 0:20:12.448