The robust favorite of BBC nature programs, the badger, is one of Britain’s most adored animals and is protected by the government — until now.
English dairy farmers appealed to the government when so many badgers acted as mobile weapons, exposing cows to bovine tuberculosis through their saliva and urine.
The British government was influenced to take extreme action and wipe out 70 percent of the badger population in two areas, NPR reports .
According to an article from The Independent, animal rights activist intend to deprive farmers of sleep in culling zones by using fireworks, rape alarms, and vuvuzelas near farmers’ homes.
People in Britain are so outraged by the government’s plans that in an edition of BBC’s Countryfile program, one marksman who was interviewed had his face covered and an actor re-voiced what he said.
Last month, a list of some farmers involved in the culls had their phone numbers, addresses, and names compiled and put online by activists.
The badger movement is not led solely by extremist, who British police feel may try to hijack the movement; many activist are nonviolent.
Notably, naturalist David Attenborough is helping to lead the movement by lending recommendations of what the government had done in the past to help curb the badger furor.
Brian May, British rockstar and animal welfare campaigner, is proposing a better option to eradicating a large portion of the badger population would be to vaccinate them instead:
“Farmers have been killing badgers for many, many years now. And effectively, we’re in a cull situation already — and TB is rampant.”
Some animal welfare groups are considering boycotting goods in an act of protest as well.