corvus Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 In case there is anyone living in the eastern Sutherland Shire, there's an ongoing Cane Toad problem down at Taren Point. Last I heard they were getting a few reports from residents of Taren Point and Caringbah of Cane Toads each week. Someone nearly lost their cat to one. It is not known if they are breeding. Apparently they are coming in on car parts from QLD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rysup Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casima Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 Eeeep I'm moving to Sutherland in the next few weeks, will keep an eye out, thanks for the heads up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loving my Oldies Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 OMG. You'd think that Parks and Wildlife or the department responsible would be pulling out all stops NOW! Not just wring their hands when the problem is too big. Locals need to be educated too on how to humanely dispose. How horrible !! Murderous b***dy things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted April 15, 2010 Author Share Posted April 15, 2010 We haven't seen any here in the suburbs immediately around Sutherland. At the moment it looks like they haven't got further than Caringbah. It has been going on for a while. I don't think much is being done about it. NPWS would know. Unfortunately NPWS are too busy handing out parking tickets in the Royal. I would say if you're in the area look for toad eggs. I think everyone would get off their butts if it was found the toads were breeding. It's considered a bit cool for them down here, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iggy mum Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 At the moment it looks like they haven't got further than Caringbah. Geez, that's where I grew up, never thought I'd see the day that cane toads arrived there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stolzseinrotts Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 (edited) Geez, that's where I grew up, never thought I'd see the day that cane toads arrived there... I hope very much that this is contained and very very quickly! Damn things are horrid beasts! Edited April 15, 2010 by Stolzseinrotts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarope Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 Little bastards will be everywhere soon. :D I'd better go and buy a golf club. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted April 21, 2010 Author Share Posted April 21, 2010 Just bumping this with a little update. Although it is still not confirmed, it looks as though they did breed this season. All evidence points to it being very likely. There is a rumour they might be in the Royal, but it is not confirmed. The local council has been very good about it, doing letterbox drops and sending people out to collect toads. The public are asked not to kill any toads, but to call someone either at the council or NPWS to come and collect them for a positive ID and so forth. There's not much that can be done in winter, but the hope is the cold months will give everyone a chance to convince the landowners where the likely breeding site is to allow people on their land to see just what the heck is going on and probably trap toads at the breeding pond. It will be interesting to see how this pans out. Sydney is not the ideal climate for toads and I think there's a fair chance of taking care of this before it gets out of control. Here's hoping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wagsalot Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 Im not good with this cane toad stuff, but if they do get around here regularly, are there precautions I should be taking to keep the cat & dog safe during the day? Or is it just a night time thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenGirl85 Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 It just seems to be a night time thing, I dont let my dogs out unsupervised at night, you also need to make sure you either change their drinking water every morning, or raise it up so toads dont swim in it at night because they poison the water Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeckoTree Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 They'd want to get onto it fast, and pull out no stops on all control measurs if they are able to breed and survive so far south. The best thing you can do if you can is train the dog to 'leave it alone' and ignore them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashanali Posted April 21, 2010 Share Posted April 21, 2010 The cold doesn't stop them. They just end up sleeping for a very long time. Hopefully it will slow them down enough that you can do something about it. Make sure there is no standing water within reach. Also if you have anything laying in your yard (old tarps/logs/concrete blocks/bricks/potted plant etc) make sure you clean them up or check under them as they are favourite hiding places during the day time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wagsalot Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Damn, its going to be hard for the cat, as she's outside in her run day and night - and theres lots of hiding spots in there, so my best option is to keep them out. The only ones I've seen are big - but Im guessing the younger ones are smaller? The gaps in the steel of the run are about 8cm X 5cm - would they get through that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenGirl85 Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Definately, best to put a smaller mesh around it to stop them The only place they can get into my yard is a tiny gap between the gate and the fence...I dont get many, but they do get through there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashanali Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Even the big ones can fit into gaps you wouldn't imagine. They are also excellent diggers. If you're serious about preventing them from coming in, dig a trench about 20cm deep and run wire or plastic mesh in it as a barrier (obviously make sure that the top of the mesh meets flush with the existing enclosure.) The best thing you can do is turn the lights on and head outside every night and dispose of them. Over time you will get less and less of them or you will stop their progress in it's tracks. They like the lights being on and they like short grass. It makes it easy to pick them off. Also don't expect to whack them with a golf club and kill them. They can have their guts hanging out and be flattened but after you leave they will roll over, suck it all in and jump away. You really do need to bag, freeze and bin them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot. Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Also don't expect to whack them with a golf club and kill them. They can have their guts hanging out and be flattened but after you leave they will roll over, suck it all in and jump away. You really do need to bag, freeze and bin them. Ugh! It is disgusting. Cool to watch though ;) Their guts have to come out of their rear end for them to die. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenGirl85 Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Also don't expect to whack them with a golf club and kill them. They can have their guts hanging out and be flattened but after you leave they will roll over, suck it all in and jump away. You really do need to bag, freeze and bin them. I use dettol on mine, PineOclean is supposed to be just as good and cheaper..plus it smells better And before anybody says anything I dont care if it burns them, if my dogs grab one they will die a worse death, and there is no way Im catching them and sticking them in my freezer, they scare the crap out of me, the closest I get is the other end of the shovel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wagsalot Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 Im not so worried about them in yard, just not in the cat run, where the cat is nearly 24/7. I guess when it gets to that point round here I'll put chicken wire round the existing wire. I hate the bloody things and I've only been around them for a week (A camping holiday in Ballina). There was hardly any lighting in the camp ground and you never knew what you were going to step on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeckoTree Posted April 22, 2010 Share Posted April 22, 2010 One day a toad will have its own lawyer, just like the pike fish did in switzerland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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