Fishery owner 'put out of business by otters'

[Still Waters]

A fishery owner is suing the Environment Agency for £2.5 million over claims a colony of otters put him out of business by eating all his fish.

Brian Dodson claims the government body created an otter haven on a nearby river and failed to inform him of the potential problems the furry mammals could cause.

After stocking six lakes at his new business with thousands of carp at a cost of £250,000, the protected otters sought out his fishery as a rich food source.

http://www.telegraph...f-business.html

[AsteroidX]

He never heard of a otter trap. They even have catch and release style ones. If they were outside there "protected area". Ignorance is not an excuse to sue.

And what kind of business stocks 6 lakes with 1,000's of carp. Carp is about worthless except maybe as chum or catch and release. They like the easiest fish in the world to catch. You can catch em with cheese whiz.or bread. In many places there nearly considered an invasive species.

Good luck on this lawsuit.

Final Score:

Carp Breeder 0

Otters 1

[wolfknight]

The otter have to eat too.

[freetoroam]

Otters will eat just about anything, afterall, they have to eat. We generally do not eat carp in England, but this is beginning to change with the arrival of the Eastern Europeans, who do.

But can not feel sympathy for the owner as his priority is sport and the priority for the otter is food.

[Grandpa Greenman]

I used a dog when I use to work at a fish farm. Otters could clear out a pond, but the dog would chase them and harass them, soon they moved on.

[freetoroam]

Over a period of years his valuable fish were decimated

================================================

why did he not start doing something to protect the fish at the start, like getting a dog, instead of waiting for a period of years??

[Grandpa Greenman]

Otter hounds where breed to hunt otters. I think the guy is just looking for a new way to make money.

[Urisk]

Can't wait til the Government gets wind of this. Let another animal witch-hunt ensue....

All I can say to someone like that, who can't look after a business, find ways to mitigate his loses and work in a balanced relationship with the nature around him is: "Good!".

I bet the carp aren't even native.

Edited January 18, 2013 by Urisk

[freetoroam]

Can't wait til the Government gets wind of this. Let another animal witch-hunt ensue....

All I can say to someone like that, who can't look after a business, find ways to mitigate his loses and work in a balanced relationship with the nature around him is: "Good!".

The guy stockpiled carp for sport and was anti otters, I doubt nature comes before money in his books. I hope he never runs any kind of colony again.

[WoIverine]

I saw an otter running down the sidewalk outside of Disneyland a few months ago. It was crazy, it stopped, looked at me, then looked at the old guy walking behind me and took off. Strangely enough there were no large bodies of water around anywhere. I almost wonder if it was somebody's pet or something.

[freetoroam]

I saw an otter running down the sidewalk outside of Disneyland a few months ago. It was crazy, it stopped, looked at me, then looked at the old guy walking behind me and took off. Strangely enough there were no large bodies of water around anywhere. I almost wonder if it was somebody's pet or something.

Could have been someones pet, but I know whos pet it was definitely not.....Brian Dodson`s.