Keighley Badger Watch

24/04/2025

An old post but just too show how amazing they are

12/04/2025

No Fires allowed within a woodland!

After experiencing copious amounts of sunshine in this lovely Spring weather a decision has been taken to prohibit the lighting of any fires within the woodland areas of Bradford. This is due to the ground and foliage being quite dry.

Please refrain from lighting fires in all Woodland settings. Fires are now prohibited as a fire safety precaution.

Bradford Council Trees & Woodlands appreciate your co-operation in this matter.

11/04/2025

Just had one night in leeds rural for 3 months check on a badger sett all looking good 👍 . 2 years been checking on plays on my mind now if I don't . So 20 pounds a night sleep on the floor in a old hut lol. Definitely worth it 🦡

11/04/2025

Please sign

The badger cull must end NOW! 🚫 We’re at 75k signatures—just 25k away from having it considered for a debate in Parliament.

Let’s make them listen! Sign here 👇https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700317

27/03/2025

Badger killings on the rise – urgent action needed!

Badger Trust has seen a worrying increase in badgers shot in 2025. Despite strong legal protections, enforcement remains weak, and perpetrators often go unpunished. Badgers play a crucial role in our ecosystems – we must act now to protect them.

🚨 Recognise. Record. Report. 🚨

Learn how to spot and report badger crime. Read the full article: https://buff.ly/306eckS

26/03/2025

Not a massive positive post but! It's been a few years now since working in Wilsden with a badger sett after a we got somewhere with a crime against builders! We had been looking were the badgers had gone after some disturbance. Cue the wonderful friends of badgers there. Got given access through a chaps garden it was a nightmare at one point I was just stook by thorn trees in my hair ears legs and then frogs and frog spawn masses of it frog heaven. Life for wildlife just gets rips away doesn't it, this is a building site that run out of money

20/03/2025

So far this week really sad young male badger killed by a car .possible interference with a badger sett. Fox killed by a car but in an area of suspicious activities previously. And shockingly 3 bin bags of dead puppies. Terrible. Anything that might be criminal we do work with the relevant authorities and planning ect. Been a sad week 😞

18/03/2025

Still active everyone local!trying to get on the page at the moment just keeps spinning,most of the time. too all the local people that directed an issue here and provided a mobile number for us really grateful. It's so busy at the minute with badgers which is really sad.

26/02/2025

🥲🥲

Jail for barbaric "badger baiting" criminals ⬇

We're warning that anyone caught badger baiting in North Yorkshire faces a lengthy prison sentence.

The stark message comes after two men were jailed for forcing their dogs to fight with a badger on farmland near Richmond.

We've blurred the photograph of the horrifying scene we discovered, as it is simply too distressing.

Vigilant members of a Rural Watch scheme contacted us to report a vehicle in suspicious circumstances near Melsonby, on 25 January 2023.

Police officers attended straight away, and stopped two men in a Volvo estate car - Kenneth Kieron Wade, 29, and Stephen Thomas Rose, 39, both from Houghton-le-Spring.

Also inside the vehicle was a muddy spade, and three terrier dogs, all suffering from injuries - one so badly that it later had to have surgery under anaesthetic.

Nearby, police found a badger sett that had been dug up, more spades, and the body of a mauled badger.

Both men appeared at York Magistrates Court earlier this week, and pleaded guilty to killing a badger and disturbing a sett. At an earlier hearing at York Crown Court, they also admitted causing unnecessary suffering to the dogs.

Wade was jailed for a total of two years, and banned from keeping dogs for life.

Rose also pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm to a man in Gateshead in a separate incident. He was jailed for 23 months, and banned from keeping dogs for 10 years.

We took the dogs in to be looked after, and they have since been rehomed.

PC Hannah Lancaster, of North Yorkshire Police’s Rural Task Force, who led the investigation, said: “The injuries inflicted on the dogs and the badger during this incident were nothing short of horrifying. It’s beyond belief that anyone could stand by and watch animals suffering in this way.

“After a thorough investigation, it is right that Wade and Rose have been punished for their crimes – and other animals are protected from their cruelty.”

Sergeant Mark Earnshaw added: "Badger baiting is a barbaric offence, which inevitably results in terrible suffering to all the animals involved.

“There is no place for such abhorrent activities in North Yorkshire, and this case sends a clear message to those responsible: they will be caught by the police, and jailed by the courts.

"I'd particularly like to thank the members of the public who report suspicious activity in rural areas to us. As a direct result of their vigilance, and the police response, Wade and Rose now face many months behind bars."

09/02/2025

With the peak season for badger road traffic collisions upon us, it is the start of a busy time for local badger groups. You can help by reporting any badgers you see on the road to them or Badger Trust.
If it's safe to do so, check if the badger might be alive, & if it needs help, please immediately call your local group, nearest rescue service or RSPCA.
Find your local affiliated group here & save their contact details >> https://buff.ly/3gtXDkG

24/01/2025

Upsetting imagines sorry folks scroll past if you don't want to see

This is the horrifying reality of the badger cull—a senseless massacre that has killed over 230,000 badgers since 2013.

RT if you believe it’s time to end this cruelty once and for all.

http://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700317

21/01/2025

Join Badger Trust's Research and Campaigns Coordinator, Victoria in a FREE online session where she'll introduce the State of the Badger project. 🦡

This is a volunteer-driven project monitoring badger populations across local communities.

Learn how we are equipping volunteers to survey and record badger activity, and how you can get involved!

Don't miss out on this opportunity to gain insight into badger conservation efforts:
📆 Date: 27th February
🕡 Time: 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Book your place: https://bit.ly/CitizenScienceShowcase

This session is being hosted as part of the Citizen Science Showcase. A week of FREE events both online and in-person across the West of England, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire.

This showcase event is organised by the Natural History Consortium, in partnership with Natural England, funded by Defra’s Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) Programme.