Bogus bovine tricks ticks
If someone said to you Switzerland, you may immediately think of chocolate, expensive penknives or skiing. Some of you might think cuckoo clocks (but you'd be wrong because they are German) and some of you might think of the 1848 constitution (but you just need to get out more). You're unlikely, however, to think of ticks: you will be from now on though.
Our yodelling cousins have invented a fake cow (well, cow hide) that is so life-like, ticks will actually make it their home and even lay eggs. Big deal you might say, but from an animal welfare perspective this is a day of much rejoicing. Currently more than 10,000 animals are doused with various chemicals by pest management scientists each year, all in the name of research (and burgers). Much better therefore to be able to spray a glorified rug and leave the poor cows alone (until we kill them for burgers that is).
This is where the ethics go out of the window because the whole idea of the research is how best to kill ticks - so, cows good, ticks bad. No one it seems is shouting about the rights of the ticks - poor little blood-sucking, creepy wee beasties just going about their nasty flesh-biting business. Apparently the early signs of a successful pesticide is a tick with trembly legs in an Elvis stylie. There's only one thing really to say to our Swiss cow rug inventors - thank you very much.
Our yodelling cousins have invented a fake cow (well, cow hide) that is so life-like, ticks will actually make it their home and even lay eggs. Big deal you might say, but from an animal welfare perspective this is a day of much rejoicing. Currently more than 10,000 animals are doused with various chemicals by pest management scientists each year, all in the name of research (and burgers). Much better therefore to be able to spray a glorified rug and leave the poor cows alone (until we kill them for burgers that is).
This is where the ethics go out of the window because the whole idea of the research is how best to kill ticks - so, cows good, ticks bad. No one it seems is shouting about the rights of the ticks - poor little blood-sucking, creepy wee beasties just going about their nasty flesh-biting business. Apparently the early signs of a successful pesticide is a tick with trembly legs in an Elvis stylie. There's only one thing really to say to our Swiss cow rug inventors - thank you very much.
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