Mouse Poison

[Scooby172]

Neighbor called me yesterday concerned that another neighbor uses mouse poison in her garage. Neighbor is worried mice who have ingested poison will get in her yard and her dogs will eat them and get sick. My neighbor and I have big fenced in yards with dogs who are outside, neighbor has a German Shepherd and a small something (about 4 lbs). I have Jack who is 40 something and Keeva who is 48 lbs. I have never had a concern about this, know my dogs get into stuff in the yard, feral cat poop, bunny poop, they have killed a multitude of squirrels, skunks, cats over the years (yes it has happened even with supervision). Is this something I should be worried about? Thanks for any advice.

Linda, Jack and Keeva

[racindog]

I would think it is a concern. I really have to use it where I live on a farm and I try to be diligent to prevent it from happenning by using muzzles etc. But it is my understanding that secondary poisoning is a possibility. (All my dogs are HIGH prey so a cat wouldn't last 30 seconds on my place.)

[BellaBean]

It is something to be concerned with, my friend's greyhound recently spent a week at the ER vet because he was "poisoned" the only conclusion they could come up with was that since he is so high prey that he must have ingested a mouse or other animal that had ingested poison. They do not use poisons in their house.

[MerlinsMum]

Yes, you should be concerned. Emergency vets everywhere experience first hand the agony of watching a dog fade in pain from mouse poison. I can't believe poison as a form of "pest" control is still legal in this day and age. It makes me SO angry. Death by poisoning is a horrible, horrible way to die (and slow for the animals who ingest it and aren't taken to the vet because they're considered pests instead of companions).

 

I strongly recommend that you and your neighbor go talk with your other neighbor - as diplomatically as possible, at first, of course (after all this is just a suspicion at this stage, and you don't want your other neighbor to get defensive...) and find out if s/he is really using mouse poison. Good luck.

[OwnedBySummer]

I just recently read an article where it kills owls who eat the poisoned mice, so I would think that it would be a concern with a dog, too.

Edited February 13, 2013 by OwnedBySummer

[carronstar]

I would definitely be concerned. There was a grey near me a few years ago who died because she was nipped on the nose by a mouse in the park (NYC places a lot of traps/poison in the parks -- and they do flag it so people know). The vets at Animal Medical Center did their best to save her but they couldn't. That poison is nothing to mess with.

 

The city also lost several hawks last year because they ate mice who had been poisoned.

[Guest 2dogs4cats]

I don't know why people use poison. Any animal can eat that poison first of all and then they crawl into the wall of your house or garage and die there. Tell your neighbor, they won't like that smell in their garage.

[3greytjoys]

Agree with others. Many years ago, a small poisoned critter (baited in neighbor's yard) made it inside our fenced yard to die. One of our young, healthy large dogs (not a Greyhound) snagged it during a brief yard outing, and fell into severe seizures. It was horrifying! The e-vet didn't think the dog would survive hour-by-hour during the first 3-4 days. A week of intensive hospital care just barely saved dog's life, and only because we arrived at the e-vet so quickly.

 

Another family returned from work one day, looked in their fenced yard to find all (5-6) dogs dead (poisoned). They didn't use rodent poison on their property.

 

[Hubcitypam]

There are different kinds of rodent poisions. If your neighbor went to Wal-Mart or the feed store you might need to be worried. The older cheaper ones (like DeCon) do have secondary toxicity but the stuff professional home exteminators have used for homes with pets for at least 15 years have low to no secondary toxicity.

http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/secondarypoison.htm

This is what the professional exterminators told me in a nutshell.

[PatricksMom]

I don't know why people use poison. Any animal can eat that poison first of all and then they crawl into the wall of your house or garage and die there. Tell your neighbor, they won't like that smell in their garage.

Yep, this is what our exterminator said. That and they are extremely unsafe around pets. I hated having to let them kill the rat, but it least it was quick and didn't risk the lives of pets or the neighbors outdoor cats.

[sobesmom]

Just a couple of thoughts on this. I don't necessarily disagree with other posters, I'm just trying to do some risk evaluation here.

 

How far can a poisoned mouse get before it dies? I don't know. So - if you find that out you can know if a poisoned mouse can get into your yard.

 

Also - would your dogs eat a dead animal? I know for a fact that my Diana (grey) will chase, kill and consume a live mouse, baby rabbit, or bird that she can catch. She'll kill a rabbit or chicken, but not eat it. Apparently only "one-gulp" caught prey is swallowable. A dead animal, she will sniff, but not eat, or even pick up. It's all about the chase and kill. Even a small critter that isn't running doesn't interest her, so a staggering, half-dead mouse in her yard wouldn't entice her. All dogs are different, that's just what mine would do.

 

I know it's not a popular way to go - but I have rat poison under my house at all times. It's my first line of defense. Kill em off before they get in. No basement, just a crawlspace. I also have mouse poison strategically placed in my home from fall until spring, in places that cannot be accessed by a dog in case the first line of defense fails. I've never found a dead rat or mouse or anything in my house or yard, but I'm sure I've killed off many. I live in a rural area and experience has taught that if I don't do prevention, rodeents WILL try to make my home their home in the fall.

 

I'm not saying poison is 100% safe. It's a calculated risk I'm willing to take for my home.