Dingo attack shows fencing fails | Fraser Coast News | Local News in Fraser Coast

Fraser Coast Chronicle

The latest dingo attack on Fraser Island was a glaring example of the futility of the dingo fence program, conservationist Mike West said yesterday.

Mr West said the incident on Monday, in which a dingo latched on to a teenage girl's shorts near Eurong, showed the fences had not solved any problems.

“The dingoes are still going to interact with people,” he said.

“The government has spent millions of dollars on these fences and they clearly don't work.

“They've been mishandling the situation right from the start and it's time they tried something different.”

Mr West said the solution was to make the dingoes wild again.

“They have to be made nervous around people,” he said.

“I saw a dog at Eurong the other day who looked to be the dominant dog of the puppies.

“He walked right behind me and caught me by surprise but he wasn't frightened of me.

“The rangers will find the dingo and they'll walk right up to him, because he won't be frightened of them, and they'll shoot him. That's the tragedy.

“You don't see this type of treatment in countries where they have larger animals that can kill people, like lions and bears.

“We should be looking after them.”