Transfer of best practices in antipoching and antipoison activities: a workshop

On 23 and 24 September, in Tarvisio, an international workshop for the transfer of good practices to fight the illegal poisoning of wildlife was held. The course is part of Action A3 of the LWA EU project, whose aim is to create an international coordination for the fight against crimes against wildlife.

The workshop was organized by the Italian Carabinieri Forestali (CUFA) and was attended by 20 agents of the Austrian and Slovenian Police Corps. The course was an opportunity for an exchange of knowledge on the problem of poaching and poisoning, with a focus in particular on antipoison dog units, on which CUFA has developed over the years a consolidated experience to share.

The workshop was divided into two days: the first was dedicated to the theoretical aspects: an overview on problem of poisonings, the types of poison and their effects, first aid actions of poisoned animals were provided. In particular, some case studies have been examined to provide practical information on the conduct of investigations for poisoning crimes.

The second day was dedicated to field activities: a practical demonstration of how the canine antipoison units work. There were two units present: one from Piedmont, born during the LIFE Wolfalps project, the second one from Abruzzo, formed during the LIFE Pluto project. The participants were thus able to see two different methods of training and working of antipoison units. They simulated both the search for poisoned morsels, weapons and ammunition, and the proof finding.