The Fisheries and Conservation Department issued a "pig slaughter order" in the middle of last month, which caused great social repercussions and became a topic of greatest concern to animal protectionists.
In just over a month, the government has captured and culled 28 wild boars. The department explained that because wild boars reproduce and continuously invade communities, contraception and relocation methods are no longer feasible, so they changed to euthanasia to humanely deal with those in the urban area. Wild boar.
Some veterinary students initiated 400 joint signings to oppose the New Deal earlier, and some concerned organizations believe that the source is that human beings are too close to wild animals, and active feeding has led to the abuse of wild boars invading communities. They advocated amending the Wild Animal Protection Regulations to completely prohibit them. Feeding, and citing foreign examples, educate the public to use mild intimidation to drive wild boars close to the market, so that wild boars will not be killed indiscriminately.
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According to the statistics of the Fishery and Conservation Department, there are currently about 2,500 wild boars in Hong Kong. A total of 44 wild boar injuries were recorded from 2011 to mid-December this year. Among them, 38 cases (86%) occurred in the past 4 years. The previous policy was to arrange for hunting teams to hunt wild boars. Faced with the rapid increase in the number of wild boar breeding and invading communities in recent years, the department started to implement a contraceptive and relocation plan at the end of 2017. During this period, a total of 800 wild boars were relocated. About 450 wild boars were neutered, and the number of neutering accounts for less than 20% of the total. However, the department recently stated that the relevant plan was not effective. Therefore, the relevant plan was stopped in November this year and the wild boars that invaded the community were treated humanely by euthanasia.
The Director of Fisheries and Conservation Department, Leung Siu-fai, said on Sunday (26th) that the number of wild boar injuries this year reached 20. Since the beginning of November, the strategy for handling wild boars has been changed. A total of 28 wild boars have been captured and humanely destroyed. The purpose is to protect the safety of the public. .
Looking back on the past cases of wild boar injuries, the incident in which the 83-year-old mother and police officer of the international queen Coco Lee was attacked by wild boars aroused concern. Lee's mother was caught by a wild boar while walking on the top of the mountain on the morning of September 30 this year. After the impact, there were multiple fractures and paralysis on the right half of the body. Afterwards, he was admitted to the hospital for 5 hours of treatment and more than one month of rehabilitation treatment.
On November 9 this year, a 52-year-old auxiliary policeman was hit and bitten by a wild boar in the parking lot near Feilong Terrace, Tin Hau Temple Road, North Point. His right calf and right hip were injured. Deep on the hillside, he was seriously injured and died in the end.
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In fact, they all want to return to the housing estate in the mountains, but they are about to die after passing through the urban area.
Wong Ho-yin, Director of the Hong Kong Wild Boar Concern Group
Group approval of wild boar policy retrogrades to increase resources for wild boar contraception
The AFCD’s method of "seeing pigs and killing pigs" triggered extensive discussions from all walks of life. A number of veterinary students recently initiated a joint signing to oppose the new policy, which was supported by more than 400 people in the industry. There was even a veterinarian who expressed concern about resigning from wild animals. Management Advisory Group.
Wong Ho-yin, director of the Hong Kong Wild Boar Concern Group, expressed puzzlement at the AFCD’s sudden change of wild boar policy, emphasizing the importance of “human and pig co-existence” in the community. The government and the AFCD claimed to protect animals, but they also destroyed wild animals humanely. The wild boars that appeared in the urban area had to "crack to death". The practice was contradictory. He also gave an example of three small wild boars that appeared near the swimming pool in Tseung Kwan O at about the afternoon of the 16th of this month. They were unable to escape death because they called the police. "In fact, They all wanted to return to the housing estate in the mountains, but they would die after passing through the urban area," he described the incident as absurd.
Wong Ho-yin, director of the Hong Kong Wild Boar Concern Group, expressed confusion over the AFCD's sudden change in the wild boar policy. He emphasized the importance of "human and pig co-existence" in the community. He lamented that the policy had gone backwards and suggested that the government allocate more resources and manpower for wild boar contraception.
(Photo provided by the Hong Kong Wild Boar Concern Group)
Wong Ho-yin also pointed out that the AFCD has always adopted a friendly policy for wild boars in the past. The minimally invasive contraceptive surgery introduced in 2017 has become a global pioneer, and the plan has achieved a success rate of over 90%.
It’s a pity that good times are not constant. Wong Ho-yin lamented that since the wild boar wounding incident in November this year caused a sensation in the city, the policy has gone backwards. In the past, the AFCD had allocated too few resources and manpower to deal with the wild boar problem. The argument of rights and interests runs counter to it, and it is recommended that the government allocate more resources and manpower to contraception for wild boars.
Veterinarians advocate using the "Hazing Program" to drive wild animals away
As the boundary between the urban area and nature becomes blurred, wild animals will enter the urban area from time to time, and some people will express their love for wild animals by feeding.
Facing the recent controversy over pig slaughter, NPV Non-Profit Veterinary Services Association Chairman Mai Zhihao believes that Hong Kong people should replace feeding with deportation, and encourage the public to refer to the popular "Hazing Program" approach to wild animals in foreign countries when wild animals enter the community. At that time, the residents tried their best to drive them away and scare them away, "to scare them as soon as they fell," and use gentle means to drive them out of the community, such as irradiating them with strong light, looking for gravel and throwing them near them, etc. So that wild animals such as macaques, wild boars, and even stray dogs no longer get close to humans.
NPV Non-profit Veterinary Services Association Chairman Mak Chi-ho suggested that Hong Kong people should drive away instead of feeding, referring to the popular "Hazing Program" approach to wild animals in foreign countries. When wild animals enter the community, they should use gentle means to drive them away. Out of the community.
(Photo by Li Qianting)
As long as you enforce the (Prohibition of Feeding Wild Animals Law), Hong Kong people will definitely comply (comply), as if the epidemic prevention policy is safe to travel and everyone will follow it.
Mak Chi Ho, Chairman of NPV Non-profit Veterinary Services Association
As for the contraception and relocation plan, Mak Zhihao understands that there may be technical difficulties. "But since you are all anesthetized and want to kill, it is better to go to sterilization with anesthesia."
He suggested that the government should amend the law as soon as possible. At present, the Wildlife Protection Ordinance only prohibits the feeding of wild animals in certain areas. He described that the relevant laws are backward and should be changed to regardless of the location. Feeding wild animals is a violation of the law. It is strict law enforcement. I believe that the number of wild boar feeding in Hong Kong will drop sharply. "As long as you implement it, Hong Kong people will comply (comply). It's as if the epidemic prevention policy is safe to travel and everyone will abide by it."
Ai Xie promotes the improvement of urban design and restarts the pilot plan for contraception and relocation
The Association for the Protection of Animals stated that wild animals are part of the natural ecology of Hong Kong. Humans should respect the living space of animals. Under any circumstances, the management of wild animals should adopt non-lethal methods. It urges the Fisheries and Conservation Department to restart wild boar catching and contraception. And relocation pilot plan.
The Association further recommends that the problem should be handled in a multi-pronged approach, including educating the public to prohibit feeding of wild animals; using garbage collection facilities that are free from wild animals, such as open-cover garbage bins to prevent wild boars from hitting the garbage bins Come to find food; also work to improve the urban design. Currently, some of the facilities make it difficult for wild animals that accidentally enter the city to return to their original living areas; to avoid human intervention in the lives of wild animals.
Veterinarian: It is more difficult for staff to catch wild boar than cats and dogs
Although more than 400 members of the industry have jointly signed their opposition to slaughter of pigs, some veterinarians believe that the AFCD has certain difficulties in implementing the contraceptive and relocation plan.
Veterinarian Li Changsheng said that catching wild boars is much more difficult than catching cats and dogs. It is dangerous to catch wild boars for sterilization or relocation, such as the process of capture, anesthesia, and injections. If the quantity is not accurately predicted, the wild boar will wake up and struggle early. There is a chance to hurt the staff.
Li Changsheng also pointed out that the AFCD cannot have enough staff to sterilize and relocate all wild boars, and the wild boars that have entered the community "know how to go and turn their heads", so the relocation is of little significance.
Veterinarian Li Changsheng said that catching wild boars is much more difficult than catching cats and dogs. It is dangerous to catch wild boars for sterilization or relocation, such as the process of capture, anesthesia, and injections. If the quantity is not accurately predicted, the wild boar will wake up and struggle early. There is a chance to hurt the staff.
(Photo provided by the Hong Kong Wild Boar Concern Group)
Fisheries and Conservation Department: Wild boar threatens to increase sterilization and cannot keep up with reproduction speed
A spokesperson for the Fisheries and Conservation Department responded that in the past three years, a total of nearly 1,000 reports of wild boar infestation and nuisance have been received, which is a sharp increase from the hundreds of cases in the same period in the past. Since 2018, 38 cases of wild boar injuries have been recorded.
The AFCD added that in the past, wild boars would only attack when they were provoked or trapped. However, in 20 cases (45%), wild boars rushed to eat and accidentally injured citizens, believing that wild boars are increasingly threatening citizens in urban areas. Bigger.
The spokesperson pointed out that this year a total of 30 cases of wild boars that were re-infested in urban areas or residential houses after relocation were processed. Some black spots have as many as 40 to 50 wild boars, and there are less than 10 wild boars. The consequences are disastrous. Therefore, the AFCD will prioritize humane treatment of places where a large number of wild boars are infested and where wild boars have injured people or pose a danger to the public.
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