A Better Mouse Trap

Linda Johnson would like to remind us all that "when we poison the environment, it flows through the food chain of which we are a part." She's talking about when people put out poison to get rid of pests, such as rats and mice. What are pests to some people are food to lots of wildlife and we need to remember that. CWC receives many animals that have secondary poisoning because they have eaten rats or mice that have been poisoned. These include owls, hawks, coyotes, bobcats, foxes, etc. This poisoning makes them very sick and sometimes they die from it.

The sticky glue trap is another method you might want to think twice about. Linda states, "It not only targets rodents, but non-target animals such as frogs, birds, lizards, etc." The traps are baited with seeds, so a bird or lizard could go over to investigate and be caught as well. Once something is stuck on the traps, it's virtually impossible to remove them and they die a very slow death.

Linda suggests an alternative to both of these methods. "Keep food and trash in tightly lidded containers. If you have to eradicate pests, use Hav-a-Hart traps, which are the catch and release method." Let's help keep our wildlife safe and healthy!

Thank you Linda for this lifesaving information.