Govt. Plan to Kill 2,000 Kangaroos Angers Aussies

[mikemarrs]

(June 22) -- Many Australians are hopping mad at what they call a secretive and brutal government decision to kill up to 2,000 kangaroos in the capital city of Canberra, saying the animals are a national emblem and have a right to live there.

The Australian Capital Territory has closed off eight parks and nature preserves in the city and has authorized a team of marksmen to begin shooting the kangaroos over the next six weeks. The authorities claim their grazing has endangered plant and animal species.

As the kangaroos have moved closer to the city center in recent years, seeking water in times of drought, they have even entered homes and caused havoc at twilight by jumping in front of cars, London's Daily Telegraph reports.
Grey kangaroos at the Belconnen Naval Transmission Station near Canberra
Mark Graham, AP
The Australian government's decision to kill up to 2,000 kangaroos in Canberra because they are endangering plant and animal species in the area has outraged many Australians.

On one occasion, the paper said, a kangaroo jumped through a window and landed on a couple's bed, forcing the man to wrestle the animal out of the house.

But the Australian Society for Kangaroos, which told The Canberra Times that it plans to try to stop the killings, says there is no scientific evidence that the animals are endangering the city's environment.

The society's coordinator, Nikki Sutterby, also said the government's assertion that it had ordered the killing of 1,890 kangaroos was "dramatically underestimated," because many of those killed would be females supporting their young, called joeys.

"'Kangaroos are actually a natural and important part of the Australian environment, and they have been in harmony with it for about 16 million years," she told the paper. The joeys, she added, "are clubbed to death or decapitated" once they flee from their mothers' pouches.

"It's absolutely brutal; they don't even spare a bullet," said Sutterby. "A lot of joeys will be orphaned too, because while they're still dependent they won't necessarily be in the pouch when their mums are shot."

For every female killed, two joeys will also die, she said, "pushing the death toll closer to 3,000."

In 2008, according to the Telegraph, large numbers of protesters demonstrated after 600 kangaroos were culled, catching world attention.

As a result, the society says, the local government has not issued exact dates for the culling, saying it will comment only after it has finished. To the kangaroo society, this is culling "by stealth."

Sutterby told the Canberra paper that her organization would deploy members to watch the culling and try to stop it, but declined to be specific about its plans.

"Kangaroos are our dominant native herbivores, and there is meant to be a lot of them, but human beings are really uncomfortable with that," she said, according to the Telegraph.


http://www.aolnews.com/world/article/go ... s/19526285

[artist4perry]

Don't kill the Roos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[The Sushi Hunter]

Do they make kangaroo burgers over there?

[G.I.Jim]

Do they make kangaroo burgers over there?

They did at one point! My parents spent a month there when I was around ten, and they said that one of the local McDonalds (I believe that's where it was anyways) was shut down and fined because of it. "I'd like a McJoey please with extra sauce"!

[Babyblue]

Don't kill the Roos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have to agrre leave the babies alone That just plain sucks eggs.

[Andrew]

Do they make kangaroo burgers over there?

Yep...and Steak and stew. And dog food Roo mince is very low fat. Good for ya!

Trust me, those buggers are everywhere. But don't want them shot either.

[artist4perry]

Do they make kangaroo burgers over there?

Yep...and Steak and stew. And dog food Roo mince is very low fat. Good for ya!

Trust me, those buggers are everywhere. But don't want them shot either.

I learned they lick their arms to cool down.......that is amazing. And how the baby roo makes it from where it is born to the pouch when it is blind, bald, and not much bigger than an inch or two in size is amazing to me. What wonderful creatures you have over there. I would love to see one. All I get to do is see them in zoos.

[The Sushi Hunter]

Do they make kangaroo burgers over there?

Yep...and Steak and stew. And dog food Roo mince is very low fat. Good for ya!

Trust me, those buggers are everywhere. But don't want them shot either.

I can imagine that they taste a lot like deer meat. And yeah, they are cute animals and I wouldn't want to see them get shot either.

[Arianddu]

The claims about the joeys being clubbed is largely bullshit; it stopped being done about 40 years ago when guidelines about roo shooting and culling were introduced.

I used to live in Canberra, and there was a real problem with roos coming right into the centre of town because after a huge fire in the ACT several years ago, the city parks were about the only place around with grass and water. Having come in, they stayed. They get hit by cars with monotonous regularity; one stretch of road between Civic and Queanbeyan got nicknamed 'Rotten Roo Road' because there would be 10-20 or so roos hit and killed every day along that stretch, and the council couldn't/didn't clear the bodies daily. Canberra gets morning fogs daily for about 6 months, and the roos move out of the city at around dawn; in autumn, winter and early spring, that means that when rush hour starts, the visibility is low and that's when the roos are moving. Stupid buggers have NO road sense whatsover; they take the first leap towards whatever startled them, then veer off to one side. It works a treat with confusing wild dogs and dingos, but doesn't have much luck scaring cars off; just gives the driver a heart attack.

We're talking the equivalent of herds of deer moving into the centre of Washington DC. A small number of people jack up about the cull, and beat it up, but the truth is, it happens every year and it's carefully monitored to ensure it's done as humanely as possible. And it's a lot less cruel and a hell of a lot less dangerous than leaving 2,000 roos to be taken out by cars.

BTW - kangaroo is possibly one of the tastiest red meats out there, and one of the healthiest too.

[artist4perry]

The claims about the joeys being clubbed is largely bullshit; it stopped being done about 40 years ago when guidelines about roo shooting and culling were introduced.

I used to live in Canberra, and there was a real problem with roos coming right into the centre of town because after a huge fire in the ACT several years ago, the city parks were about the only place around with grass and water. Having come in, they stayed. They get hit by cars with monotonous regularity; one stretch of road between Civic and Queanbeyan got nicknamed 'Rotten Roo Road' because there would be 10-20 or so roos hit and killed every day along that stretch, and the council couldn't/didn't clear the bodies daily. Canberra gets morning fogs daily for about 6 months, and the roos move out of the city at around dawn; in autumn, winter and early spring, that means that when rush hour starts, the visibility is low and that's when the roos are moving. Stupid buggers have NO road sense whatsover; they take the first leap towards whatever startled them, then veer off to one side. It works a treat with confusing wild dogs and dingos, but doesn't have much luck scaring cars off; just gives the driver a heart attack.

We're talking the equivalent of herds of deer moving into the centre of Washington DC. A small number of people jack up about the cull, and beat it up, but the truth is, it happens every year and it's carefully monitored to ensure it's done as humanely as possible. And it's a lot less cruel and a hell of a lot less dangerous than leaving 2,000 roos to be taken out by cars.

BTW - kangaroo is possibly one of the tastiest red meats out there, and one of the healthiest too.

Send one to me! That would give an Arkansan old lady a start..........a kangaroo crossing the road. We have deer that do the same during hunting season. They dart out in front of or into cars. They can total your car. Once my sister........no this has nothing to do with Python............had a horse run into her jeep and totaled it out. Happens in the country quite frequently, animals crossing the road. Could they build fences to keep the roos from jumping out in front of the cars? I guess that would be expensive............sigh. I would love to see one up close so bad. I do know they are dangerous animals. They can kick the ever loving crap out of you, and scratch and bite. I love animals so much. But I can see it keeps them from over populating.

[Arianddu]

Send one to me! That would give an Arkansan old lady a start..........a kangaroo crossing the road. We have deer that do the same during hunting season. They dart out in front of or into cars. They can total your car. Once my sister........no this has nothing to do with Python............had a horse run into her jeep and totaled it out. Happens in the country quite frequently, animals crossing the road. Could they build fences to keep the roos from jumping out in front of the cars? I guess that would be expensive............sigh. I would love to see one up close so bad. I do know they are dangerous animals. They can kick the ever loving crap out of you, and scratch and bite. I love animals so much. But I can see it keeps them from over populating.

LOL - I've seen deer damage to cars and kangaroos are worse. There's an Aussie joke game, 'Identify that dent': splots of goo on the windscreen, you hit an insect; feathers in the grill, you hit a bird; front third of the car is squashed in, you hit a roo; engine is in the back seat of the car, you hit a wombat.

Don't worry Ginger, when you and Dan come over to visit, I'll make sure you get to play with tame kangaroos and wallabies. They have the softest fur you'll ever touch; baby chinchilla has nothing on it.

[artist4perry]

Send one to me! That would give an Arkansan old lady a start..........a kangaroo crossing the road. We have deer that do the same during hunting season. They dart out in front of or into cars. They can total your car. Once my sister........no this has nothing to do with Python............had a horse run into her jeep and totaled it out. Happens in the country quite frequently, animals crossing the road. Could they build fences to keep the roos from jumping out in front of the cars? I guess that would be expensive............sigh. I would love to see one up close so bad. I do know they are dangerous animals. They can kick the ever loving crap out of you, and scratch and bite. I love animals so much. But I can see it keeps them from over populating.

LOL - I've seen deer damage to cars and kangaroos are worse. There's an Aussie joke game, 'Identify that dent': splots of goo on the windscreen, you hit an insect; feathers in the grill, you hit a bird; front third of the car is squashed in, you hit a roo; engine is in the back seat of the car, you hit a wombat.

Don't worry Ginger, when you and Dan come over to visit, I'll make sure you get to play with tame kangaroos and wallabies. They have the softest fur you'll ever touch; baby chinchilla has nothing on it.

Sigh........I like wallabies too........and wombats, and all those cute n cuddly marsupials you guys get to see on a regular basis.

We have bunnies, chickens, cows, ducks, turkeys, deer, foxes, skunks, goats, snakes, spiders, turtles, frogs, opposum, raccoons, otter, beaver, geese, cranes that migrate through,fish, moles, coyotes, squirrels, crawfish, and thanks to texas and truck drivers we now have armadillos. But nothing as cool as a roo, or a wombat, or wallabies.

Trust me, if I could come there I would. Maybe I can get famous as an artist someday. My aunt from up north called me last night, she had googled my name and she found two seperate articles about my art. She said, "Ginger I just want you to be famous for your art, and not after you die!" LOL! She is so sweet. So now I have to get my art out there, I cannot disappoint my aunt! LOL!

[G.I.Jim]

I'd eat a damn kangaroo burger RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!! Sorry... I'm kinda hungry.

[The Sushi Hunter]

I'd eat a damn kangaroo burger RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!! Sorry... I'm kinda hungry.

I'm guessing in order for it to taste like a burger as we are accustom to...they'd have to grind in some beef fat with it like I know some people do with dear meat. Unless your really into that gamy taste.

[G.I.Jim]

I'd eat a damn kangaroo burger RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!! Sorry... I'm kinda hungry.

I'm guessing in order for it to taste like a burger as we are accustom to...they'd have to grind in some beef fat with it like I know some people do with dear meat. Unless your really into that gamy taste.

I'm a pretty adventurous person when it comes to trying new foods... I'd eat a straight kangaroo burger in a heartbeat!

[Arianddu]

I'd eat a damn kangaroo burger RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!! Sorry... I'm kinda hungry.

I'm guessing in order for it to taste like a burger as we are accustom to...they'd have to grind in some beef fat with it like I know some people do with dear meat. Unless your really into that gamy taste.

Actually, roo doesn't taste like venison, and it's not that gamey, just very tasty.