Having read the response by one of your readers to my question previous as to who is going to pay for the damage done by wild boar it did make me smile, how selective your reader is. I wonder would they be so easy-going if the boar had ripped their lawn up or sheep had stripped their garden bare? Do they turn a blind eye when mice get in their loft and chew things up? I very much doubt that unless, of course, they are stupid which I am sure they are not.
No, what we have here is someone who, whilst far from stupid, is simply removed from reality.
The reality is that these pigs have little or no place in today's Forest of Dean. I cannot say that they have never roamed the Forest but I can say they have not done so in the last 50 years. In today's difficult financial climate the last thing we need is these animals tearing up the verges. We are not a city with kerbs at every roadside, hence the verges are laid out in such a way as to be walked and easily mown to keep tidy all of which not only helps road safety but also enhances the look of the Forest to tourists who will play an ever larger part in the local economy.
Outside of the danger these animals appear to be to many dog owners, just to enlighten your writer as to the cost of repair the damage to the verge by Winner Garage was not great, perhaps 50 yards, but I was quoted £500 to put it right.
Imagine the cost for the rest of the Forest and even when repaired these animals will come back and tear it up again. For me it is simple – either your writer gets his spade out or porky has to go.
– Bob Morgan, Winner Garage.