Curious Case of the Dogs and SWT

They're funny places these moors and they're funny people who manage them. To add to that they have some funny ideas, not least when it comes to the vexed matter of dogs, dog owners and dog walking.

It all comes to a head when they try to manage the land in an artificial, anti-nature way to encourage ground nesting birds. It's gardening for birds similar to the way people garden herbaceous borders for flowers. It's slanted this way because the focus on ground nesting birds is compatible with farming and farm subsidies. If they were to stop interfering and let nature take over, as it should in a nature reserve, then different birds would move in and the ground nesters would choose to go elsewhere - and so would the dosh from the Common Agricultural Policy. As it is, managing the land this way and bringing it into 'good agricultural condition' may make no sense for a supposed 'wildlife' organisation but it's perfect for an office outfit that's well-trained at filling in forms and raking in farm grants.

Perfect for managers but not perfect for dogs who like to run about on this public land, land  we thought was protected for recreation like this. Dogs can't read the notices that SWT put up. But their owners are the target for this dishonest harassment. SWT's aim is to make them feel guilty. These conscientious people who believe their dogs should have proper exercise in a place where they won't be likely to bother dog-phobic people (cynophobia is the term) in urban and suburban public parks, are now to be made to feel guilty because the birds that SWT want to attract may not like dogs either. SWT's hope is that a proportion of them are feeble enough to be easily intimidated.

The fact is, a fact SWT and other local conservation industry people don't like to face, that there's not much difference between the phony conservation of the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (which believes wildlife is best served by shooting it) and their own brand of conservation. Both like 'open landscapes', dislike trees, preferring ground nesting birds, dislike native predators and want to control everything - even as far as shooting wildlife.

So they make the place as attractive as they can for these birds to send out the message ( I suppose I have to say via Twitter) that here they will find favourable treeless conditions tailored for their needs and lots of lebensraum. And a special part of the message is the promise to deal with potential threats such as dogs and foxes.

Curious must be the word to describe the approach. It doesn't seem long ago that SWT's managers were telling us that they welcomed dog walkers, yes even in summer and even when dogs were off lead. Now they are planning to browbeat people with notices referring to the Wildlife and Countryside Act and subsequent amendments that we know are not relevant to Blacka. They also threaten to close down certain routes regularly used. All in direct challenge to the injunction in the Graves Covenant, Blacka's governing document, that the place is for recreation as in a public walks and pleasure ground where the management plans of the conservation industry should give way to recreation. And there is no more established recreation activity on Blacka than someone walking with a dog.