Badgers are England’s largest land carnivores who eat up to 200 earthworms a night. They also eat slugs and snails (so always use non-toxic prevention methods), soft fruits (raspberries, blackberries) and even the occasional hedgehog (their claws not affected by the spines). Mostly found in woodlands, they only venture out at night or sunset to forage, then return to underground tunnels that feature a main hang-out area and smaller rooms to rest. They make their beds from hay, grass and bracken, all regularly cleaned out to fleas and mice. You can recognise badger tracks by kidney-shaped paw prints with big claws!
It’s never advised to artificially feed wildlife unless necessary, as it encourages them to rely on you, and to go near roads or harm. If you must feed badgers in exceptional circumstances or bad weather, Badger Trust say not to feed salty nuts, but instead recommends leaving out (covered) cat biscuits.
how to help an injured badger
Don’t cut it free (it may run off and develop pressure necrosis (the skin dies and open wounds appear). Instead call your local badger group (also report dead badgers) or local wildlife rescue (or nearest vet). One fifth of adult badgers are killed on roads each year (mostly at night in spring, when cubs start to emerge – read how to make roads safer for wildlife). Report poaching concerns to Wildlife Crime Unit (or anonymously at Crimestoppers).
small dog gone down a badger sett?
This happens often, especially with terriers. Call your local badger group for advice, as wrong actions could harm both dog and badger. Do not dig (instead identify hole and monitor, until help arrives). Most dogs come out for food, water, or if you call or rattle a favourite toy.
do badgers cause bovine TB?
Over 200,000 beautiful badgers have been culled in recent years, due to the (mostl political) view that they cause bovine TB (all experts say 94% of cases are caused by cattle-to-cattle transmition). The solutions are better cattle testing, controls on cattle movement, effective slurry management, additional biosecurity measures and cattle vaccination (info on all of these solutions can be found at TB Hub).
- Until a cattle vaccination is in force, there are badger vaccination programs in East Sussex, Staffordshire and other high-risk areas. Badgers are humanely marked after vaccination, and the same areas revisited annually for five years, until most animals are vaccinated.
- Homeopathy at Wellie Level offers courses for farmers (for all kinds of illness). They include info on good animal husbandry, which of course helps to prevent all disease in cattle and other barnyard friends.
- Modern farming uses maize, which badgers love (but is low in nutrients so causes poor immunity). A few years ago, one Cotswolds farmer installed ‘mineral licks’ on his farm for badgers, made with vitamin E and selenium. In the midst of bovine-TB crisis, his herd remained disease-free. He wrote to the Environmental Minister of his findings, but never got a reply.
10 years of study, the leading scientific brains – all said the cull of badgers will do nothing. Simon King
