Rev Posted April 18, 2007 Weve just bought in some woolens from NZ http://www.nznature.co.nz/ a few different things but the quality is good also good i think to support southern hemisphere manufacturing and especially the use of Fine Merino and feral possum wool from NZ they have a few chinese items (with silk in it) but most in made in NZ ive only just started doing my winter shopping id rather spend the $ there than on heating bills i reckon i can get away without turning on the heater till mid june, and stop using it by end august if we rug up right that'll take a chunk out of last years $600 plus winter electricity bill the possum wool thing seems to be catching. our local post office guy sports a possum beanie too i figured the topics relevant here dressing right is the start of energy conservation yeah? and darn the feral possums Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
watertrade Posted April 18, 2007 I will do my bit to control the possums... http://www.nznature.co.nz/ecofur2.htm Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elzar Posted April 19, 2007 Yeah i agree on the dressing part. I hate the fact that i need a jumper in summer when i enter an air conditioned room and why should people want to run heating when a jumper will do the trick?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
reshroomED Posted April 23, 2007 I've eaten possum when I was a little kid but remember little more than that. When I lived in Tassie, they supplied over 50% of my dog-meat. Big gastards over there. The fur is *very* fine though (you can actually pluck one if so inclined) so should be excellent for clothing. ed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
devance Posted May 3, 2007 The U.S. possum. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didelphimorphia http://www.possumrescue.com/ I like the NZ much better. . http://www.nznature.co.nz/ecofur2.htm Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 20, 2007 When I lived in Tassie, they supplied over 50% of my dog-meat. Big gastards over there. WTF? They are a protected species in Australia. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 20, 2007 I will do my bit to control the possums...http://www.nznature.co.nz/ecofur2.htm except for the fact that they also buy tassie possum skins to manufacture. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
reshroomED Posted May 20, 2007 WTF? They are a protected species in Australia. Yes, they are. They're also legally hunted for fur by permit, and legally culled to limit crop damage. Regardless of this, when any animal becomes too populous in an area culling is necessary, and I have no problem doing so, with or without a permit. Usually I'd waste no part of an animal but possum fur 'slips' (comes away from the hide) so easily that I never actually tried tanning one. The dog took care of the rest. It's funny how the furry critters grab the sentiment, whereas crows and such can be literally hunted out of enormous areas without a raising a comment. ed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 21, 2007 Yes, they are.They're also legally hunted for fur by permit, and legally culled to limit crop damage. Regardless of this, when any animal becomes too populous in an area culling is necessary, and I have no problem doing so, with or without a permit. Usually I'd waste no part of an animal but possum fur 'slips' (comes away from the hide) so easily that I never actually tried tanning one. The dog took care of the rest. It's funny how the furry critters grab the sentiment, whereas crows and such can be literally hunted out of enormous areas without a raising a comment. ed not really, we have not been discussing crows... there may be just as much resistance if we were to.... in regards to possum numbers... I would imagine that in forested areas within aus(where they are hunted for skin), the numbers would not grow too large due to environmental restrictions...It would be my reasoning that if numbers were to become too populous, it would be within an urban environment (where i doubt they are hunted). Please, dont get me wrong... if NZ wants to clear up it feral problem... which obviously needs to be done anywhere where a introduced animal threatens to ecosystem and lively hood of native species... I have no problem with that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
reshroomED Posted May 21, 2007 not really, we have not been discussing crows... there may be just as much resistance if we were to.... in regards to possum numbers... I would imagine that in forested areas within aus(where they are hunted for skin), the numbers would not grow too large due to environmental restrictions...It would be my reasoning that if numbers were to become too populous, it would be within an urban environment (where i doubt they are hunted). Please, dont get me wrong... if NZ wants to clear up it feral problem... which obviously needs to be done anywhere where a introduced animal threatens to ecosystem and lively hood of native species... I have no problem with that. No, we're not discussing crows. But we are discussing possums, which you have some interesting theories about, although factual knowledge would be more to the point. Being herbivores they don't adapt well to urban areas, and they're trapped for fur not skin. I'd recommend a quick google re possums in Tassie and you may find that they are quite a pest when in numbers. The reduction in the fur-trade had quite an impact on populations (I was there seven to ten years ago and they were rampant in many areas then). I'd imagine that it will only have worsened since, although a 'plateau' will be achieved at some point. Feeding my dog possum was beneficial to the ecosystem, and didn't require an animal be bred for slaughter. They're the pro's, and I can't think of a con. ed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 21, 2007 (edited) "...legally hunted for fur by permit, and legally culled to limit crop damage." I didn't know that. I had a quick flick over the relevant articles, and it seems like the reason for their abundance is because of agriculture... "In Tasmania, brushtail possums continue to benefit from the clearing and modification of native vegetation for agriculture and forestry. Ongoing damage to crops and plantations means that the pest status of this species endures." Here's the list of reasons for culling them given by the government: 1. to ensure viable populations of the brushtail possum remain throughout the species existing geographical range; 2. to manage the species as an ecologically sustainable resource; and, 3. to reduce economic loss or damage to nature, and the pastoral, forestry and agricultural industries. I think the first two are bullshit, the last reason is the real reason. So it sounds like forestry and agriculture fuck up the possums habitat and cause them to increase in number and the solution is to cull the possums. Sounds like a quick-fix to me. BTW, do you have a permit for hunting them? Also, although I'm a vegetarian I don't have any problem with killing any animal as long as it is done humanely and for good reason, and I feel just as warmly towards crows as I do possums. In fact, in the last couple of months I've rescued a baby pigeon and two hedgehogs... nothing furry about those. I also let spiders, moths and slaters outside, so I guess I am what you would call sentimental, but not just towards cute little balls of fluff. Edited May 21, 2007 by IllegalBrain Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 21, 2007 there is hedge hogs in nz??? agricultural lands... i dint think of possums being there!!! duh!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 21, 2007 Yep hedgehogs and possums... there's plenty of forests and beautiful wilderness too Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hebrew Posted May 21, 2007 i wish to get some possum skins or even jsut plain possum wool for knitting that istn mixed with merino, anyone got any ideas what it is like to import skins from NZ is that allowed? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 21, 2007 Here's an interesting point on why the WWF opposes the possum fur industry in NZ. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
reshroomED Posted May 21, 2007 So it sounds like forestry and agriculture fuck up the possums habitat and cause them to increase in number and the solution is to cull the possums. Sounds like a quick-fix to me. Not quite. Damaging their habitat reduces population growth. The problem is that agriculture generally involves a proliferation of young, green shoots, and possums find these quite attractive. So we actually create a pro-possum environment (no major predators in Tassie). BTW, do you have a permit for hunting them? Also, although I'm a vegetarian I don't have any problem with killing any animal as long as it is done humanely and for good reason, and I feel just as warmly towards crows as I do possums. In fact, in the last couple of months I've rescued a baby pigeon and two hedgehogs... nothing furry about those. I also let spiders, moths and slaters outside, so I guess I am what you would call sentimental, but not just towards cute little balls of fluff. Been seven-odd years since I lived in Tassie, but no, I did not have licence to take possum back then. They were over-abundant at the time, their size made them viable, and that's about it. Roo's have always filled this niche before, but weren't there in enough concentration to justify killing. Mind you, the odd wallaby fell into the cooking-pot. And had there been more wobblies about, I would have taken more. Balance. For about $150/yr you can become licensed to use gill-nets, and take abalone, cray, and mutton-bird (in season). How's that for a license for potential abuse? ed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 21, 2007 (edited) Being herbivores they don't adapt well to urban areas, I would disagree... i believe with food scraps and manicured gardens, they adapt quite well to the burbs. and they're trapped for fur not skin. fur, skin... its all the same, and u know what I was saying. also, with roo's previously on you kill list, could it be that you were just too cheap to pay for dog food? Edited May 21, 2007 by shroomytoonos Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 21, 2007 (edited) "Not quite. Damaging their habitat reduces population growth. The problem is that agriculture generally involves a proliferation of young, green shoots, and possums find these quite attractive. So we actually create a pro-possum environment (no major predators in Tassie)." Yeah, I understood that the overpopulation was caused by agriculture, that's what I meant when I said "it sounds like forestry and agriculture fuck up the possums habitat and cause them to increase in number" by "fuck up" I meant upset the balance, not just destroy the forest they live in. "For about $150/yr you can become licensed to use gill-nets, and take abalone, cray, and mutton-bird (in season). How's that for a license for potential abuse?" Yep, I think the whole thing's fucked up... seems to me that's the kind of thing that happens when humans are in charge of "balance". Edited May 21, 2007 by IllegalBrain Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
reshroomED Posted May 21, 2007 Yep, I think the whole thing's fucked up... seems to me that's the kind of thing that happens when humans are in charge of "balance". That about sums it up for most human endeavours. Being herbivores they don't adapt well to urban areas, I would disagree... i believe with food scraps and manicured gardens, they adapt quite well to the burbs. and they're trapped for fur not skin. fur, skin... its all the same, and u know what I was saying. We're talking brush-tail's here, not your average little mainland poss, average weight would be around 10lb. Disagree all you like, but give evidence of where brusshy's have done so as I'm yet to see it, and find it very unlikely given their primrary needs. And it's not all the same, as trapping has cruelty factors that can't be escaped and skins with holes in don't sell. Fur, on the other hand, can ignore such restraints. So maybe *u* don't know what you're saying. also, with roo's previously on you kill list, could it be that you were just too cheap to pay for dog food? Ever been to a knackery? Or an abattoir? Funnily enough, meat doesn't grow in tins, animals get chopped up and shoved in. And in such a humane way too. Of course dropping an animal that has lived it's life wild, and literally doesn't feel the impact, is far more barbaric. You've formed an opinion on the Tassie possum situation with no factual background, and when I point this out you accuse me of being too cheap to buy pet-food. Congratulations. As I don't post that often, and am by nature a tad curt in my posts, I thought that I could ignore (as much as possible) the recent deluge of crap that has flooded the fora. Obviously not to be, so on with the gumboots and end of conversation for me. ed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 21, 2007 "That about sums it up for most human endeavours." With regards to modern industry and agriculture, sure, but that doesn't mean things have to be that way... I believe its possible for humans to live harmoniously with the Earth's other living systems. BTW, not a big issue but the way you wrote your post kind of makes it look like you're responding to one person rather than two... I refuse to be associated with shroomy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 21, 2007 (edited) pls delete Edited May 22, 2007 by shroomytoonos Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chilli Posted May 22, 2007 Shroomy you know I was joking right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
XipeTotec Posted May 22, 2007 Shroomy you know I was joking right? yeah... i might actually delete that whole post... i dont want to argue with reshroomed Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ThunderIdeal Posted May 25, 2007 hedgehogs, like, introduced by pommies?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
devance Posted June 17, 2007 I left the door open once and the top drawer of furniture. I shut the drawer and the next day heard scratching noise from such. After remembering every science fiction bad ending I managed to get the courage to open it and there was a baby possum. Just let it go of course. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites