Landholders and residents surrounding the Goonoo state forest in the state’s central west are amongst the first to benefit from a new bait product to control foxes.

The Central West Livestock Health and Pest Authority is working with the Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre (IA CRC) to trial the effectiveness of a new poison bait that has an antidote for accidentally poisoned dogs.

IA CRC trial manager, Simon Humphrys, said the poison is a chemical called para-aminopropriophenone or PAPP that had been selected to address animal welfare issues.

“Essentially, when foxes consume PAPP they’ll go to sleep and wont wakeup,” Dr Humphrys said.

“There’s also an antidote for PAPP. If a pet or working dog takes a bait, a veterinarian can rapidly reverse the effect of the chemical with a relatively simple treatment,” he said.

The ultimate goal is to make an antidote tablet available to dog owners so that they can treat their animals. In the short-term, owners should contact their vet immediately if they suspect their dog has eaten a bait. Local vets in Dubbo, Gilgandra, Narromine and Cobbora have been consulted about the recommended treatment using the antidote.

“We’re working with locals to develop safe and effective protocols for pest management. Registration of the new bait product relies on the results of the trial,” Dr Humphrys said.

Foxes threaten agriculture, the environment and biodiversity if they are not managed effectively. The cunning culprits are estimated to cause losses of over $200 million a year to Australia’s sheep and cattle industries alone.

Dr Humphrys said the trial design and choice of bait will target foxes and reduce the likelihood of native fauna taking baits.

“We contacted landholders and had notices in the local media before the baiting started. There were also warning signs at entrances and perimeters to the properties within the trial site,” said Dr Humphrys.

Local community meetings were also held to make sure all people with an interest had the opportunity to discuss the design of the trial and the nature of the new bait.

Media Contact: Bruce Reynolds 0428 613 181

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