New super-toxic rat poisons are indiscriminately killing hawks, owls, eagles, foxes, bobcats, mountain lions and other non-targeted wildlife.
This gray fox tested positive for three types of rat poison. It died within 24 hours of arriving at the Wildcare animal rehabilitation center. (Photo: Melanie Piazza/Wildcare)
Developed with a longer half-life to overcome the resistance mice and rats have built up to older poisons, the new compounds being pushed by pesticide manufacturers have been wreaking havoc on the rodents’ natural predators.
The California Department of Fish and Game (CFG) has confirmed 240 cases of non-targeted wildlife being exposed to the anticoagulants that work by causing animals to bleed to death.
Wildcare animal hospital in San Rafael, California has found that 74% of the predators that come through its doors test positive for rat poison.
This includes the San Joaquin kit fox, the coyote, red fox, gray fox, black bear, badger, fox squirrel, mountain lion, bobcat, golden eagle, great horned owl, barn owl and turkey vulture.
CFG recently urged the California Department of Pesticide Regulation to restrict the sale of the rodenticides mostly to professional pest-control operators, rather than making them available to urban and suburban homeowners.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been pushing to ban the sale of the super-rodenticides to consumers and to restrict how they’re stored and used.
In the American tradition, manufacturers are pushing back with lawyers and lobbyists.
In a connected development.
Dateline, Los Angeles — A necropsy performed on a young female mountain lion by the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory and UC Davis, detected exposure to two anticoagulant compounds commonly found in rodent poison.
Puma-25, about 1 year old, appeared in a photo taken by a remote camera in 2012 in the Santa Monica Mountains. (Photo: National Park Service)
Anticoagulants can cause uncontrolled bleeding and have been confirmed as the cause of death of two other mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains during the last decade. Mountain lions may ingest poisons when they eat animals that have consumed them.
Source: LA Times
First Light Productions 
What a disgrace.
Any progress on the Univ. Wisconsin Cat Torture? I’m gearing up to post about it with pictures of all 5 of my cats lying next to signs that say, “We are NOT an Expirement!”
I haven’t picked up on any further developments. You’d think there would be an outcry of sorts at the school. I’ll keep digging. Look forward to your post.
That’s my feeling exactly — you’d think some of those university students would speak out against that barbaric research.
Reblogged this on cissyblue and commented:
We are all connected. Please do not use poison ever. Mother Earth is alive, and we should all be stewards. It is one big way to make a difference and save the planet, her people and the animals. Don’t buy harmful chemicals. Support clean and green for all the right reasons!!!
Reblogged this on Ann Novek–With the Sky as the Ceiling and the Heart Outdoors.
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