Dogs on the goldfeilds

Hi Everyone
Thought I would bring up te subject of Dogs on the goldfields. Anyone planning on taking their best mate with them this year please be aware of the dangers of 1080 bait. This bait is being put down in the bush by the tonne, on the side of the tracks around dams and on the old camp sites. The Dingo and pets gone feral are a huge problem and some thing has to be done, but we have seen what 1080 does to your pet and its not nice to watch a dog howl and scream in pain.
So please, if you are taking your dogs with you, be careful and keep them on a leash or in your car. We take our two every year and wont let them out of our sight.
Hope everyone has a great year on the gold and we hope you find heaps.
Mono and Nan

WOOF WOOF

Just keep in mind when 1080 baiting has been carried out there is usually signage giving this warning but not always.
The baits should be shallow buried ,but in remote areas they are aerial dropped to quickly cover large areas and this keeps the costs down.
Just being careful and keeping a close eye on your dog whilst out in baited areas will only give you a false sence of protection for your pet.
A bait on the surface is a small cube that blends in to the ground litter and you wouldn't see it and it takes only a second for your dog to sniff it out and consume it , short of using an enclosed muzzle there is not much you can do.
I have been involved in baiting for foxes and have been responsible in carrying out this in controlled areas as a last resort only and the last thing I would like people on here to do is underestimate the risks to their dogs and the fact there is little you can do to prevent your dog from picking up a bait except not to take your pet there or have it muzzled.
Baits are designed to be very attractive , easily sniffed out and tasty but lethal.

Mark

Yeah as much as I would love to take my dog out with me, I am not going to...... its just to much drama watching out for them all day, and it takes your mind off detecting, and makes for a lousy day feeling uncomfortable worrying all the time.
I would never forgive myself if I lost one of our dogs....baits are very nasty things, I too was involved in baiting foxes years ago, and its not a pretty thing.

Hi Mark
I agree with you but there are station owners out there that dont put up signs while they are placing baits, there are signs but these are a pemanant fixture, so you dont know if baiting has been done at that time or a year before. We detect in some areas every year and the signage in these spots have been there since Noah was a boy.
We are on the road all the time so we cant leave our dogs any where, and yes, its a worry, but thats the price we pay as pet owners.
We just want people to be aware, there are new comers every year and this thread is mainly for them that are not in the know.

Happy Beeping guy's

To take him safely out bush, muzzles come in different sizes, buy a plastic or metal cage muzzle to fit properly over your dogs mouth. I bought a plastic one once, stays cooler in the direct hot sun than metal. He then cannot eat that 1080 bait and it may save his life, but can still drink with the muzzle on in deep enough water(unless you are scared he may have nosed some 1080 bait with the end of the muzzle and then dips the muzzle in the water, in that case then take it off to drink water). There is good air flow through the cage to keep him cool.

Just make sure you put the muzzle on very securely strapped to a Codura Nylon or Polyester mesh collar(cooler and breathes on his skin better than a solid collar) around his neck so it does not come off, and also give him lots of good drinking water all day long.

Then your best friend can come along detecting.

Good Idea Beep
I have seen too many tragedies in WA.The aerial baits that have been dropped long ago and are not at full strength.A dog can die a long painfull death.If you are not prepared to hit little FruFru over the head with a pick Muzzle him or dont take him.Its that simple.
Cheers Dig

Good day.
I have had a lot to do with Baiting & I believe if you love your dog you would never take them anywhere where baits could have been put & I've seen dogs killed when baits have been put on the next door property & birds carry them & land in large trees next to a dam & they drop the bait as birds have to eat about three or four baits to have an effect. so be extra careful letting your dog out near a dam or a rest area on the highway as this is where dingoes go to scavenge.
Cheers Greg.

Brad and I were recently talking to a local Station owner who mentioned that a new Bait was being trialed at the moment that comes with an antidote. It apparently causes a much more peaceful death to the animal, as it simply goes to sleep. I'm not sure how accurately I have described this and I appologise if I have not relayed this information correctly. It would bring a great deal of peace of mind to dog owners, that if your best mate accidentally eats one of these baits that help would be close at hand.
I don't think that anyone would intentionally put their dog in harms way. Many of us spend extended times out in the bush and its just not viable to leave them behind. So lets hope that this new bait is developed and put into place sooner rather than later.
Dozers mum Shell.

monoandnan wrote:Hi Mark
I agree with you but there are station owners out there that dont put up signs while they are placing baits, there are signs but these are a pemanant fixture, so you dont know if baiting has been done at that time or a year before. We detect in some areas every year and the signage in these spots have been there since Noah was a boy.
We are on the road all the time so we cant leave our dogs any where, and yes, its a worry, but thats the price we pay as pet owners.
We just want people to be aware, there are new comers every year and this thread is mainly for them that are not in the know.

Happy Beeping guy's

theese days pete most station owners/lease holders wont permoit them anyway
cheers mate mark.

I was hunting with a mate in the mountains and we had a crack at a rabbit and 5 mins later a 4wd comes from no where, and these hunters ask us what where we shooting at and we said a rabbit and they go are you sure a bit panicked and i says yeah, then they said theve lost 2 hunting dogs and they have to go home, im like wtf, and there like if you see them they will come to you and they have tags, and theve just gone and gone home just like that, we didnt see them ill tell anyone theres some big dogs out east of melbourne, once when camping with my gf i went for a walk with a scoped .22 just after some rain and me walking one way and a big dog walking the other we saw each other at the same time and both stopped me with a round chambered and him just staring [at this point im thinking where the f is a semi auto] anyway i think we just stood looking at each other and then he backed off a bit then i moved fast back to camp to get the 12ga in case it came back, and it followed me back it was looking from a distance and had a mate as well dunno where he was before, they are up there thats for sure and not small sausage dogs either, one of these dogs could have killed me a .22 would have bounced off there muscles if i even managed to hit one if it jumped me from 10-15 metres with a bolt action because id get off one round then it would be using the rifle as a club to save my bacon, ive also seen the work they do on native wallabies, so yeah ive been nice and havnt shot one yet but remember to leash them because if they run after some animal they may not find the camp again and then some one will shoot it eventually, i have not done so so far but i should because the impact on natives is why im allowed to own firearms to control pest animals.

Hi all
after reading the above, I'm in 2 minds about taking my Lab. He eats anything and if baits are still used throughout the 'Gold fields'in WA it really scares me. I'm doing 3 weeks next June over there. Would it be mean to muzzle him for my 6 - 8 hour prospecting each day and then remove it when I return to camp where he would be on a lead? I want him more for the company as the wife is staying home! I am interested in those that have taken their dog with them and their thoughts. If there is an antidote available can it be purchased by average person?
cheers

Hi
No antidote and a horable death
Labs are pigs and eat anything so Muzzle great idear.
Regards Neale

When searching for personal GPS units I found a lot of products for dogs in the form of GPS collars that usually came in pairs...points out the pointers, sniffs out the sniffers, retrieves the retriever...etc

Just more peace of mind when taking man's best friend...

GT