HISTORY OF ANIMAL DAMAGE CONTROL

The earliest written reference to Animal Damage Control (ADC) is found in the Bible where we read how David took back livestock from lion and bear. This dates back about 4 000 years. All countries that produce livestock still have the same conflict although the kinds of animal causing the damage may differ. There are enough similarities, tough, to make it worth our while to study the damage control efforts in these countries and gleen all the usable information to help us better our own efforts. There is a wealth of information that accumilated through a few centuaries of modern reseach that provides a solid base from which to work without having to re-invent the wheel.

In the South African context our written history dates back to Jan van Riebeeck who instituted a bounty system for the killing of damage causing animals by 1656. This lasted, in the Cape province, untill 1957 - a full 300 years. Because money was paid from government coffers, there is record of this activity that provides valuable guidelines for our current efforts.

Since the turn of the previous centuary till the end of bounty payment an average about 20 000 jackal per annum were killed in the Cape province. This did not stop the damage or effected the total jackal population in any significant way. The Americans has a similar situation with their coyote. Between 1937 and 1970 an estimated number of 12 000 000 (yes - 12 million) coyote was killed in the 15 western states alone, during which time the coyoe was actually extending their distribution range. In Australia tons of 1080  are used annually till this day, in the form of bait sown over vast tracts of the country from aeroplanes. The effort is towards reducing depredation on sheep by dingos and exotic foxes. Again this has proven not to provide any long-term solution.

Through research, mainly on the coyote in America the reasons for this resilience in the wild dogs of the world has been unraveled and we have an clear understanding of reasons for the failure of those efforts. (This is further explored under Important Concepts) We therefore need to move on and come up with better solutions - as are done in other countries.