Early in September, members of the rural and farming community gathered en-masse at the council building at 33 Highett Street, Mansfield.
The parking lot outside council more closely resembled the Saturday at the Deni Ute Muster than a regular Wednesday at Mansfield Shire Council.
Just inside chambers, council hosted key stakeholders in a behind closed doors discussion focused on the ongoing issue of the wild dogs living in the Mansfield Shire bush, predating on livestock on shire farms.
In facilitating the conversation, council has responded to calls for a coordinated response to mounting livestock losses and increased canid activity on private land from voices within the local farming community, from VFF Vice President Peter Starr and from the National Wild Dog Management Coordinator Greg Mifsud.
The meeting brought together representatives from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, Parks Victoria, the federal government, Up2Us Landcare, Mansfield Shire Council and the local farming community.
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Mayor Cr Steve Rabie said council set up the meeting to connect those in the community affected by the situation and the relevant authorities.
“We recognise that feral animal management is an issue for some of our residents and ratepayers, especially those with sheep, goats or other small animals,” he said.
“Though the management of feral animals is not a council responsibility, we’ve listened to concerns from our ratepayers and stepped in to help get the conversation going.
“Council will also facilitate a second meeting, and our aim is that after that the relevant authorities and local community stakeholders will be in a good position to continue working together.”
At the first meeting, the attendees discussed the impacts of livestock predation before exploring practical solutions.
Outcomes from the meeting include improved data collection, providing more direct support for farmers and more ‘on the ground’ resources to manage the problem.
Importantly, community members are being asked to report sightings and evidence of canids through the FeralScan application.
Greg Mifsud, the National Wild Dog Management Coordinator at the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions, believes there is a need for more comprehensive levels of data that will come through more consistent reporting practices.
The accurate, timely and consistent reporting of sightings and attacks on livestock is key to building a comprehensive understanding of the situation and to making a compelling argument to Spring Street and other relevant authorities that assistance is necessary on farms and rural dwellings.
Without the data, it is difficult to make the case that there has been an increase in livestock predation and canid activity on private land in Mansfield Shire as is the prevailing belief.
Landowners are being urged to take advantage of existing app FeralScan to report incidents or sightings.
“This evidence will come in very handy for the responsible authorities to start managing the risk to agriculture,” Cr Rabie said.
“I think it’ll soon be clearly demonstrated that more ‘on the ground’ resources are required.
“Council will continue to advocate for more resources if necessary to get on top of the problem of feral animals, and our position will be much stronger with hard evidence.”
Jenny Delaforce, along with 12 other Mt Samaria area sheep farmers, submitted an open letter to the Mansfield Courier in June.
The letter expressed the group’s frustration at what they called a worsening wild dog situation.
On September 10, Jenny was one of a number of members of the farming community who were invited to the meeting.
Afterwards, she described the conversation as a really good nuts-and-bolts discussion about what needs to be done.
“We’re encouraging our whole community to be more proactive in recording dog attacks and sightings."
She encourgaed the use of FeralScan to alert neighbours and nearby properties when there are dogs in the area.
Greg Mifsud, who flew from New South Wales to attend the meeting, applauded Mansfield Shire Council for stepping forward to facilitate the conversation between the rural community and the relevant authorities.
“Mansfield Shire Council is the first Local Government in Victoria to step in with the intention of helping landholders deal with the ongoing issue of wild dogs and livestock predation.
“While councils aren’t responsible for feral and pest management control in Victoria as they are elsewhere in the country, they do have a responsibility to represent their people.
“In this respect, Mansfield Shire Council and Mayor Rabie have really stepped up for the farming community.”
