Rats vs rats vs baiting
Susan Hayek (Fri, 03 Sep 2004 10:22:42 PDT)
The big problem in bulbs is field mice and voles. The other day I
talked to a state pest control officer about them and was told that
the only effective control was poisoned grain, and that this is hard
to obtain. I knew about it but never used it because Koshka was an
omnivorous forager, but now she has died at a ripe old age, and my
present dogs don't forage as she did. I'm going to contact a pest
control company to see what I can get against these rodents, so I
can grow crocuses in the borders again, and not have to cover my
most precious pots of crocuses with wire mesh caps in the bulb
frames.
**The problem with poison grains is that the critter will pack its
cheeks with it and travel on.
Gophers can go 500' from the source of the grain.
I had an acquaintance lose his Borzoi a couple of months ago from
eating a gopher whose cheeks were packed with the poison. (The
autopsy showed the grains in the dog's stomach, and they checked with
neighbors surrounding their 2 acre parcel. Unfortunately their
neighbor had been baiting. Once the dog starts seizing their not much
anyone can do.)
The normal poisoned gopher probably wouldn't kill a large dog except
if he was storing the grain in the cheek pouches.
Gracie was picking off a couple of gophers a day in the spring and we
were just hoping we weren't close to anyone using poison for control.
Having animals keeps us honest about using pesticides and poison.
I had 3 Basenjis climb a 6 foot ladder to get at an unopened box of
Corry's Snail bait.
They ate enough to kill them, so off to the vet they went.
The vet said that most snail baits taste like licorice so they're
very appealing to dogs.
The poison rodent grains are probably equally tasty.
--
susan, who is.....
owned by Jasper & Schubert the Standard Poodles, Gracie the
Rhodesian, Pup-Quiz the Basenji and their Basenji brother, Jones....
on the North Coast of CA, USA
susanann@sbcglobal.net, copyright 2004