VFF Livestock Group vice-president and Tallangatta farmer Peter Star said the move was one of common sense.
“The Wild Dog Management Plan is a nation-leading initiative that protects both farmers and our native wildlife,” Mr Star said.
The VFF said the Wild Dog Management Plan had been a successful wildlife management program since launching in 2012.
It has helped deliver both conservation and pest management objectives, including a 75 per cent reduction in livestock loss and attacks on properties that neighbour public lands in eastern and south-west Victoria since 2012.
Wild dog control in the three-kilometre livestock protection buffer will continue for the next year to deliver positive outcomes for producers. However, the long-term future of the program remains in doubt.
Mr Star said attention would now turn to ensuring the program is extended past 2024.
“Although it’s disappointing that the program has only been extended for a year, we welcome the opportunity to engage with the government to ensure the program is extended,” he said.
The VFF will continue to strongly advocate for the continuation of the program in order to protect livestock producers from the effects of wild dogs and dingo-dog hybrids.
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