Kamikaze Kangaroos and PETA

I recently had to make a trip to Longreach and due to circumstances beyond my control didn’t leave for the two hour plus drive back to Yaraka till late afternoon. It was not a relaxed drive. As the daylight diminished, which was helped along by cloud cover, the kangaroos emerged.

This region has had wonderful rains and we were blessed with warm weather at the same time and the response from the growth of grasses and woody weeds has been nothing short of miraculous. We have hundreds of thousands of acres or hectares (whatever) of green feed stretching as far as the eye can see where feed is plentiful for sheep, cattle, goats, horses and kangaroos and all are sleek and fat at the moment.

However, we have a large percentage of kamikaze kangaroos who have decided that the roads and verges are where they want to be, now that they have dried out. I’m reasonably good at not allowing the vehicle I’m driving to be hit and my technique for this is simple. Some people have attachments to the front of their vehicles which emit a sound that wildlife can hear causing them to run away – so they say. Our method is the vehicle horn which yesterday played to the beat of The Little Drummer Boy for the last hour and half of the trip, causing the kangaroos to scatter thus giving me safe travel. And the more kangaroos I saw, and the more I beeped, the angrier I became.

And the reason I was getting angrier on my drive home related to a visit by a couple who had stayed in Yaraka for two days just after we finally had had our wonderful soaking rains. On their arrival they had counselled me on their research that kangaroos were a threatened species in Australia. They were PETA supporters and had decided to confirm the “kangaroos’ extinction theory.” And instead of touring the coastal roads, they would head for the great Australian inland, Yaraka, their destination, on a fact finding trip.

Their ‘fact’ finding trip was based on the road kill they saw. And they had seen none on their entire trip. Therefore no road kill meant, for them, that kangaroos were now seriously becoming extinct, and confirmed what PETA had told them.

Now if they want to believe what PETA tells them that’s fine with me, but let their philosophies and beliefs be based on facts. Their fact finding journey started in Brisbane and took them along the Warrego highway till they turned onto the Landsborough highway which led them to Blackall and then to Yaraka. This couple were some of the first to arrive here in Yaraka after the soaking rains had caused isolation with roads closed.

At that stage the country’s new explosive growth of grasses had not happened around here as it had around Blackall and the regions to the east, where earlier good rains had been experienced, and where the countryside was looking magnificent, and was very soggy and very boggy.

The gentleman who counselled me on their newly acquired and now confirmed research was a scholarly looking gentleman who spoke quietly and nodded his head up and down as he counselled me to confirm that what he was saying was true. No road kill to be seen anywhere equals kangaroo numbers are low to the point of extinction.

I gave the gentleman my opinion that the reason he hadn’t seen any road kill was that the whole region had experienced rain and the route they had travelled was where heavy rains had left the ground soggy and boggy which ‘roos avoided. As such. ‘roos where not foraging for food on the verges as they were surrounded by fresh growth and puddles. In answer to my query as to when they had travelled, they said that their driving hours where between 8:00am and 4:00pm. However, my opinions did not satisfy him and the previous nodding head turned to a shaking head as he politely disagreed with me.

That evening the ‘research’ couple came on the Sunset trip to Mt Slowcombe and (to my delight) there were a large number of ‘roos feeding on the flats as we approached Mt Slowcombe which I was able to comment on over the bus loudspeaker. On top of Mt Slowcombe they, and the other travellers, listened to my spiel as they watched the sun setting and the horizon light up. I made some derogatory comments about PETA, as I always do, half expecting to be interrupted but they were silent.

However, the highpoint of the trip was on the way home where we were confronted with ‘roos, ‘roos ‘roos, everywhere – all the way back to Yaraka. It was if the kangaroos had decided to put on a special display to prove they were alive and well – and increasing. A wonderful reality check for everyone on the bus. As I stood by the bus door as the passengers descended, our PETA friend stepped down and commented, “Seeing is believing and I’ll have to review some of my opinions.” I nodded my head up and down.

And it’s this example that makes me so angry with PETA. They are extreme in their highly publicised views. I was angry and disgusted some time back when they received huge media coverage as they pleaded with people to save the mice during one of the worst ever mice plagues, requesting that people do not poison or trap or exterminate them. They even suggested relocating them! Obviously, these people have never ever experienced the ghastliness of a mice plague.

At times, with the comments and statements they make I seriously wonder whether the PETA decision makers ever leave their city offices. I seriously doubt as to whether they have ever seen a “fly blown” sheep going through the agony of being eaten alive by maggots. “Stop the cruelty of Mulesing,” they shout from the roof tops. (Mulesing is where the skin around the anus is removed when the sheep are still lambs to prevent wool from growing in that area thus avoiding a dirt build up caused by their bowel movements). Yes, it is painful for a short period of time but they recover remarkably quickly and are almost guaranteed freedom from getting fly blown. And quite frankly, in my opinion, it’s no less horrendous than a baby boy getting circumcised.

And now PETA have a huge campaign asking people not to purchase or wear any wool products. ‘Wool is bad,’ they are telling the world. So is eating any type of meat as they carry on with their Vegan protests abusing those that do enjoy eating meat. And their organised farm gate protests made up mostly by professional protesters are of great concern. My fear is that one of these days the farm gate protests will be the cause of someone getting seriously hurt.

‘Fake News’ has now become an industry exploring the validity of statements and it seems that there are some organisations, institutions etc that are free to make statements without any fact checking done. Why does the media give coverage to claims that are just not true?
And that statement opens a whole new ‘can of worms’ which raises the question, is anyone canning worms?

I’ve vented my anger and feel better now!

Chris