20k sign up to save wild goats

A PETITION calling on the Scottish Government to grant protected status to primitive goat species on the Langholm Moor has passed 20,000 signatures. David Braithwaite, chairman of The Wild Goat Conservation Trust (TWGCT), said: “Given the diabolical way the wild goats are being treated by the new landowners, it comes as no surprise that so many people are signing the petition and standing up for these defenceless animals. “Something must be done and the government must take positive action to protect these endangered wild goats.” TWGCT vice-chair and secretary Gail Brown added: “People from near and far value these magnificent animals and want to see them left alone.” However, Oxygen Conservation who own almost 12,000 acres of the moorland, have said goat management was a ‘necessary but challenging step for conservation’.