At present, badger proof creep feeders are not commercially available, but some are on trial and may be obtainable in future. It is possible to retro fit rollers to conventional creep feeders to reduce the likelihood of access by badgers.
If feed and water troughs cannot be raised for practical reasons, you could instead wildlife-proof the perimeter of the housing with strands of electric wire to prevent access by badgers.
You could create a wildlife-proof corral using electric fencing and let the calves into the area to feed. When the calves are not feeding, the corral is closed. Residues of feed left after feeding are contained in the corral where wildlife cannot access them.
There are a number of manufacturers of badger-proofing equipment, for example IAE Ltd.
This depends on whether you suspect that the badger found on your land died as a result of bovine TB, or any other disease communicable to humans or animals. If you suspect this, the carcase should be treated as a category 1 animal by-product (ABP) as defined under the EU ABP Regulations. The carcase must be collected, identified, transported and disposed of either by incineration in an approved incineration plant or processing in an approved rendering plant. This can be done by contacting a local collector of fallen livestock, and the individual that found the badger would bear the disposal costs. Appropriate health and safety precautions should be taken when handling a badger carcase suspected of being infected with bovine TB i.e. wear gloves and preferably a face mask, and wash hands thoroughly afterwards.
If you don’t suspect the dead badger is infected with bovine TB (or another communicable disease), then you should treat the carcase as any other wildlife carcase found on your land. In England, badger carcases found on the side of the road should be reported to either Highways England (for major trunk roads) or the Local Authority (for all other roads) who will arrange for disposal.
The time taken to see badger activity if it is occurring is highly variable, so there is no set period of observation. Badger activity may be seen on the first night of observation, or it may take several weeks. Badger visits to farmyards may be seasonal, so cameras need to be kept in place at least until you are sure that resources outside of the farmyard are limited. For advice on camera placement, see our factsheet.
There is anecdotal evidence that badgers are attracted to maize and maize silage. In areas where maize is grown it often forms part of their diet. However, badgers can, and do, eat a wide variety of foods encompassing plants, invertebrates and small vertebrates. There is no evidence to suggest that reducing the amount of maize grown and replacing it with grass silage or other crops can reduce badger populations (and the incidence of TB in cattle) to an extent that would justify what would be significant changes to farm management practices.
There is no evidence to support this. The ensiling process results in low oxygen conditions which are likely to reduce M. bovis survival, although pH (around 4-5) and temperatures (20-30°C) are within the ranges that the bacteria can potentially survive. Research suggests that properly ensiled forage is unlikely to be a source of M. bovis infection to cattle. Surface contamination of silage with urine and faeces from TB-infected badgers is a more likely transmission route to cattle. Therefore, biosecurity measures should be implemented on-farm to prevent badgers accessing stored forage.