The myxomatosis issue

Authors: Scott I
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 34, Issue 5, pp 72-73, May 1986
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: General
Subject Terms: Animal welfare, Viral, Pest/pesticides, Disease/defect, Infectious disease
Article class: Correspondence

---

Abstract: Having bitten like the proverbial shark in response to Dr. Meadows` letter on the High Country, I wish to make a few comments on the myxomatosis proposal. At a meeting held by the Tussock Grasslands and Mountain Lands Institute in Cromwell (February 8th, 1986), rabbit control was discussed. Scientists assured us that there are no technical problems in introducing the disease, and some farmers whose properties are threatened by the furry hordes considered that the estimated effective control period of about 15 years could well see out their own farming lifetimes. Who can blame them for grasping the chance to unload the problem on the next generation? In informal discussions over refreshments at the meeting several points were brought up which I feel should have been discussed more fully. The problem areas are most commonly in regions with stocking rates of about one wether/ha, sometimes involving a small part of a given property. It seems that unlike the original explosion of rabbits about a century ago when they spread right to the ice in our own area, they now prefer to infest only the lower country. In areas where they are a problem there is no way control can be justified by farming economics. The problem is an environmental one, and the present government with its new Ministry of Environment plans must take up its responsibility. I personally feel there must be a better way to control rabbits than myxomatosis…

---