A group of wildlife lovers based in the Forest of Dean, who set up a website designed to educate people about wild boar and how they should be treated, told the Ross Gazette they were not surprised to read MP Jesse Norman’s recent column in the Gazette about potential action which could be taken regarding the creatures.

They agree with the MP for Hereford and South Herefordshire’s comments that wild boar can grow to a considerable size and they are also very intelligent.

With regards to them being aggressive, they say that this is debatable as to date there has been only one confirmed incident where a member of the public was supposedly bitten by a wild boar.

They agree that wild boar will enter property if they can, however they say it is the land owner’s responsibility to keep his property and land secure from all eventualities.

And answering the MP’s concerns on bio-security, they suggest that it is in farmers’ best interests to implement tight bio-security measures as a matter of course, and they say that if these measures are in place and fit for purpose, then the risk of disease will be virtually eliminated.

The boar has been present in the Forest of Dean since 2004 and have since moved out to neighbouring counties, including Herefordshire, as there have been many reports of sightings in the Ross-on-Wye area.

They are also concerned that wild board are being culled in the deeper parts of the forest which means that they are moving closer to residential areas. They told the Gazette: “ The Forestry Commission tell us that the boar should be in the deep forest where they belong and then act surprised when they move away due to the intense culling every year.”

For more information about the group and their thoughts about the wild boar which live in the Forest of Dean, visit ww.theboaringtruth.org.See this week’s paper for more stories like this, available in shops and as a Digital Edition now.