![]() It is important to prevent rodents from causing infestations in our homes because both rats and mice can pass diseases such as hantavirus, bubonic plague, leptospirosis, salmonellosis and tularemia to humans, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The Flint Creek rehab center advises that rodenticides intended to kill rats and mice should not be used indoors or outdoors because of the high risk of secondary poisoning in raptors. ![]() If those rodents are then eaten by a predator, like a hawk or eagle, they, too, are consuming large quantities of the rodenticide, the Cornell Lab reports. So-called second generation rodenticides are effective at controlling rodent populations, but they work by building up in the bodies of the rodents that ingest them to a much greater than lethal dose before ultimately killing the animals. In particular, raptors, or birds of prey, can be poisoned by rodenticides when they eat rodents that have ingested the rat poisons, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Both the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Wildlife Illinois maintain lists of wildlife rehabilitators you can contact for assistance with injured wildlife.Īnother rodent control measure that can have unintended consequences for other wildlife are rat and mouse poisons, or rodenticides. Do not try to remove the animal from the trap, because you could inadvertently injure it. If you find an animal that has been injured by a mouse trap, safely contain the animal and transport it to a wildlife rehabilitator or veterinarian, the Humane Society advises. With their forceful snapping action, the traps can cause serious injuries to wildlife and pets that are inadvertently trapped. ![]() Snap traps can be an effective means of catching mice, but they should not be used outdoors or in garages, where they are more likely to catch unintended targets, the Flint Creek rehab center advises. In addition, they can become injured as they try to escape. Instead, animals - not always mice - get caught in the adhesive and die slowly either by suffocation or starvation. Glue traps aren't designed to kill their intended target, usually mice. They are commonly used as an alternative to snap traps because they aren't as dangerous to young children and pets, but they are ineffective and inhumane, according to the Humane Society of the United States. Glue traps, in particular, are problematic. And the Wildlife Center of Virginia has implored people not to use glue boards or glue traps because it has cared for many snakes, lizards, birds and small mammals that have become caught on the traps. Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation recently posted on its Facebook page about a great horned owl that came under its care after its foot was caught in a snap trap. In many cases, snap traps and glue traps end up ensnaring - and injuring or killing - other animals that cross paths with the traps. Rodent control can be necessary to prevent mice and other small rodents from entering our homes, but many common control measures should never be used outside because of the risks they pose to other animals.
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