Gates left open, missing retired ridden horses and dead brumbies that have clearly been left to suffer have land-owners up in arms near the Victorian/New South Wales border.
Respected local cattle producers Dick Rogers, Black Mountain, and Tammy Woodgate, Buchan, are horrified to have seen brumbies maimed, in one case a mare has been shot, then foaled and died.
The farmers understand the need for culling but can’t abide by the horses being maimed and not put out of their misery.
“They’ve been shot by someone on foot, not helicopters,” Mr Rogers said.
The brumbies were shot 16 kilometres along the Ingeegoodbee Track, in what’s known as Gum Forest, and just a kilometre away from one of the few private pieces of land near the border in that area, known as Christie O’Rourkes.
The owner of the paddock, Mick Flanagan, Jindabyne, tried to contact Parks Victoria by phone on a daily basis for almost two weeks, since raising the issue on June 18, also sending an email, to which he has heard nothing in reply.
He wants to know who dealt with the horses in such a manner.
“We found a salt block near where they were,” Mr Flanagan said.
“So, they’ve actually been lured into a place and shot, where they’re not harming anyone.”
The plot thickens with the image of a Hilux ute captured by a trail camera in the area during the same timeframe, the number plate being traced back to a pest animal management company.
The locals say there is also a notice pinned up on Ingeegoodbee Track stating pig hunting would take place from May 29 to June 15, 2024, and believe that may be just a facade for them to shoot horses instead.
“Parks Victoria are leading the Victorian people up the garden path,” Mr Flanagan said.
“Those hunters aren’t in here after pigs, I’d say they’re paid by the horse, because they’ve taken an ear off each one.”
According to Dick Rogers, the number of brumbies in the area hasn’t changed.
“There’d be no more brumbies there now than when I was a kid,” Mr Rogers said.
“From Suggan Buggan to the Cobberas, Wombargo and right down to the Snowy River, you’d be flat out seeing 20 to 30 head.”
“There are much bigger issues with pigs and deer,” Tammy Woodgate said.
“Nothing deserves to be maimed, they need to be shot properly, I don’t care what it is.
“People need to know what’s going on when things aren’t being done properly.
“There are only a handful of horses in Gum Forest, and they’ve shot them just for being there, simple as that.
“If the hunters are being sent in to shoot pigs, they need to be setting traps.”
Mr Rogers said there were existing pig traps “sitting idle from the Snowy River to the High Country” but there was no real evidence of pigs being hunted.
“There are pigs on the Wulgulmerang Road, you only need to go 200 metres either side and you’ll see they’re around, they’re even down as far as Nunniong.
“Nearly all the little flats on the High Country have been dug up, you’d swear someone had been there in a tractor in places.
“But they’re shooting horses and deer and leaving the carcasses.
“No wonder the wild dogs and the pigs are breeding up,” Mr Rogers said.
Buchan farmer, Peter Sandy, cannot believe the irony of the situation and is frustrated beyond imagination, particularly after the bitter experience last week of finding more of his sheep mauled and killed by wild dogs.
“The government has slashed funding for wild dog control but spends money on shooting brumbies, leaving carcasses that feed wild dogs,” Mr Sandy said.
“It would be good to be able to pinpoint who shot those horses, especially if they’re working for us taxpayers.
“The horses are harmless, innocent victims of the political games these government ministers are playing to appease the Greens and get their vote.
“I don’t know how they can sleep at night because I can’t.”
IMAGE: Tammy Woodgate, Buchan, and Dick Rogers, Black Mountain, are angry at the treatment of brumbies shot north of Suggan Buggan.
