Badger setts are protected under UK law, but illegal interference — blocking, digging, baiting — continues and causes significant welfare harm to these social animals.
Badger welfare violations represent some of the most deliberately cruel wildlife crimes in Britain. Badger baiting involves prolonged suffering as dogs are set to fight badgers underground — animals that are protected, social, and highly attached to their territorial home. Sett blocking causes slow deaths from suffocation or starvation for animals — including cubs — that cannot escape. Despite legal protection since 1992, enforcement is hampered by the covert nature of the crimes and limited police resources for wildlife crime. Strong public condemnation and improved enforcement are essential to addressing these welfare violations.