Small Animal Damage Control
Hank Uhden
WY Dept. Of Agriculture
Small Animal Damage Control
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• Manual & Handouts
• Purpose of Training
• Training Outline:
• Commonly Used Products
• Commonly Controlled Animals
• Need for Control or Disease Vectors
• Bird Control
• Diseases of Major Health Concern
• Plague, Rabies, Hantavirus
Small Animal Damage Control
Objective of Control Program
• Reduce and/or Eliminate
Economic Loss
• Access the Damage
• Positive Pest Identification
Who ?...
Me !?!
Small Animal Damage Control
Correct Control Solution
• Preventive or Protective
Control
• Habitat Alteration
• Pyrotechnics
• Scare Devices
• Removal of Food Supply
• Trapping, Lethal &
Non-lethal
• Exclusion
• Epizootics
• Aversion Techniques
• Toxicants
• Repellents
• Shooting
Small Animal Damage Control
Toxicology
• Bait
• Food item w/ toxicant
• Lethal Dose (LD)
• LD 50 LD 100
• Milligrams of toxicant / kilogram of body weight
• Lower LD
50
s are more toxic
Small Animal Damage Control
Toxicology
• Grains Commonly Used:
• Barley, Wheat, Oats
• Grains:
• Whole
• Mechanically Altered
• Dependent upon 1) Pest to be controlled;
2) Site of Application; 3) Protection of nontargets
Small Animal Damage Control
Safety Precautions
• Label Equipment
• Poison
• Skull & Crossbones
• Wear Respirator
•Never carry toxicants in passenger compartment
• Prohibit:
• Smoking, eating, or other hand to mouth contact
Small Animal Damage Control
Rodent Control
• Rodenticides
Rodenticides are
substances or a
mixture of substances
intended for
destroying, repelling,
or mitigating rodents.
Small Animal Damage Control
Rodent Control
• Rodenticides
Color Additives:
• Protect seed eating birds
• Aid in bait identification
• Aid in bait preparation
• Prevent accidental human consumption
• Prevent diversion for use as livestock feed
Small Animal Damage Control
Specific Products
Commonly Used
Strychnine
Zinc Phosphide
Anticoagulants
Aluminum Phosphide
Small Animal Damage Control
Strychnine
ALL ABOVE GROUND USES
HAVE BEEN CANCELLED
• Uses limited to below ground - pocket
gophers only
• Acute, single dose toxicant
• White, bitter tasting powder - Made from
seeds of the Asian strychnos nux vomica
tree
Small Animal Damage Control
Strychnine
• Available only in an alkaloid form
• Almost insoluble in water
• Will breakdown if exposed to heat & light
• Other characteristics
• Is not cumulative
• Toxic to most animals
• Has a slight odor
• Rapidly absorbed effects rapid
• Is not selective
Small Animal Damage Control
Zinc Phosphide
PRE-BAITING IS NECESSARY!
• Use restricted to July - December
• Prozap™ (HAACO) allows use in WY
March 1 - June 30 (SLN - 24c)
• Labeled for: meadow mice, voles, ground
squirrels, prairie dogs, various species of
rats and other rodents.
Small Animal Damage Control
Zinc Phosphide
• Characteristics:
• Heavy, finely ground gray-black powder
• Strong, pungent, garlic like odor
• Insoluble in water & alcohol
• Reacts with acids readily
• Less toxic than strychnine
• Slowest acting of the commonly used
rodenticides
Small Animal Damage Control
Anticoagulants
• Characteristics:
• Reduce clotting ability of blood
• Death occurs from internal & external bleeding
• Affected animals die quietly
• Poison of choice in and near cities
• Little danger to domestic animals
• Available as dry bait, or water soluble
• Vitamin K is the antidote
Small Animal Damage Control
Aluminum Phosphide
• Characteristics:
• Registered for control of various
burrowing rodents (e.g. Prairie dogs)
• Tablet form
• Moisture produces phosphine gas
• Labeled for outdoor use only
• Rangeland & pastures
• Non-cropland areas
Small Animal Damage Control
Gas Cartridges
• Produces carbon monoxide
• Unrestricted use product - easy to use
• Precautions:
• Do not use near buildings or flammable
materials
• Carbon Monoxide is odorless, colorless
• Labeled uses:
• Small Gas Cartridge: burrowing rodents
• Large Gas Cartridge: coyotes, skunks
Small Animal Damage Control
Vertebrate Pests
Commonly Controlled
Prairie Dogs
Porcupines
Moles
Skunks
Pocket Gophers
Ground Squirrels
Bats
Birds
Small Animal Damage Control
Prairie Dogs
• Baiting
• Zinc Phosphide requires
pre-baiting
• Best when green forage is not available
• Use one (1) teaspoon of bait/burrow
• Fumigants
• Clean-up following bait applications
Small Animal Damage Control
Prairie Dogs
• Precautions
• Always wear gloves
• When working with toxicants
• When handling carcasses - host to plague
infected fleas
• Black-Footed Ferret Searches
• Dependent upon size of treatment area,
species of prairie dog
Small Animal Damage Control
Pocket Gopher
• General Information:
• Extensive underground
burrow system
• Eat plant roots & stems. Girdle trees or clip
tree roots
• Mounds are horseshoe shaped
• Active in winter
Small Animal Damage Control
Pocket Gopher
• Control:
• Most Effective: Toxicants
and traps
• 0.5% Strychnine Oats
• Large or heavily infested areas - use burrow
builder
• Hand baiting, fumigation, or trapping for small
areas
Small Animal Damage Control
Ground Squirrels
• General:
• More destructive than prairie
dogs - larger numbers & range
• Estivation - tend to live in one place
• Active year around
• Host to plague infected fleas
Small Animal Damage Control
Ground Squirrels
• Control:
• Fumigants
• Gas Cartridges
• Trapping
• Toxicants
Small Animal Damage Control
Porcupines
• Classified as a rodent
• Primarily inhabit
forested areas
• Do not hibernate, rest in same place
• Damage: Girdle pine trees, eat fruits, alfalfa,
sweet corn
• Control: Trapping and/or shooting
Small Animal Damage Control
Moles
• Classified as a rodent
• Pest of gardens, lawns,
flower beds
• Rarely surface above ground
• Most damage caused when digging
• Voles, white-footed mice, house mice, other
animals utilize tunnels, cause damage often
blamed on moles
Small Animal Damage Control
Moles
• Control:
• Exclusion
• Cultural: Re-packing soil, reduce soil moisture
• Repellents: Onions/garlic around gardens
• Toxicants: Will not take bait readily
• Fumigants
• Trapping: Only effective method
Small Animal Damage Control
Skunks
• Member of the weasel
family
• Classified as a predator
• Plant & animal foods - insects preferred
• Will eat small mammals
• Classified insectivorous
Small Animal Damage Control
Skunks
• Health risk:
• Rabies
• Habitat:
• Clearings, pastures, prairies
• Usually a den - hollow logs, under buildings
• Dormant during extreme cold
• Most reports come in early spring and fall
Small Animal Damage Control
Skunks
• Control
• Preventive control foremost Seal Openings
• Trapping - Lethal & live traps
• Shooting
• Large gas cartridge
• Toxicants - NONE
Small Animal Damage Control
Bats
Here’s your problem - a bunch of
bats in your chimney!
Most bats are
protected under
the Migratory
Bird Act
Small Animal Damage Control
Bats
• Insectivorous
• Not aggressive, but will bite
if handled
• Health risk: rabies & encephalitis
• Control:
•
•
•
•
Exclusion (permanent solution)
Ultrasonic devices - not effective, some attract bats
Naphthalene Flakes (Moth balls)
Toxicants - NONE
Small Animal Damage Control
Bird Control
• Migratory birds - 50 CFR 21
• Game & Fish Chapter LII
Non-game Regulations
• Statutes define:
• “Predacious bird” means English sparrow and
starling
• May be taken any time during the calendar
year in Wyoming
• Legal to destroy nest & eggs
Small Animal Damage Control
Bird Control
• Statutes Define:
• “Protected bird” means
migratory birds as defined and
protected under federal law
• Diseases:
•
•
•
•
Histoplasmosis
Tuberculosis
Cholera
Parrot Fever
Small Animal Damage Control
Bird Control
• Urban sanitation problems pigeons, sparrows, starlings,
and increasingly geese
• Control:
•
•
•
•
Habitat manipulation
Aversion
Exclusion
Trapping & baiting
Small Animal Damage Control
Bird Control
• Control - continued:
• Toxicants (Avicides) & lethal
methods - legality?
• Chemosterilants
• Nest destruction
• Contact poisons
• Poison baits
•Toxic perches
• Carcasses picked up
• Surfactant or
detergent solutions
• Eagles most at risk
Small Animal Damage Control
Bird Control
Methods most effective when used
intermittently, in combination with other
techniques AND before birds establish
regular feeding habits
Small Animal Damage Control
- Diseases Highest Exposure Risk
Plague
Rabies
Hantavirus
Small Animal Damage Control
Plague
• Bacteria Yersinia Pestis
• First discovered in Yellowstone
Nat. Park - 1934
• Predominant in prairie dog populations
• Causes sudden, unexplained die-offs
• Not prevalent in big game populations
• Does exist in feline, canine, squirrel, rabbit,
chipmunk and other commensal rodent
populations
Small Animal Damage Control
Plague
• Human contact plague in 3
ways:
• Flea bite
• Unprotected contact
• Airborne particles
• Flea associated with human plague does not
exist in Wyoming
• Rodent flea though will feed on humans if the
opportunity arises
Small Animal Damage Control
Plague
• Last 80 years, all cases of
respiratory (pneumonic)
plague have been contracted
from house cats
• Chances of contracting plague are small
• Treatable if caught in time
• Symptoms similar to flu
• Wear impervious gloves (rubber latex) when
skinning wild animals
• Most at risk are hunters & trappers
Small Animal Damage Control
Plague
• Three types of plague:
• Bubonic - Flea bite
• Septicemic - Fluids from
infected animal
• Pneumonic - Secondary/Respiratory droplets
• Control of plague vector
• Sevin Dust
Small Animal Damage Control
Rabies
• People at high risk can be
vaccinated
• Any animal is capable of
contracting, carrying, and
transmitting
• Rabies can be latent
• Occurs most often in spring and fall
• Virus remains active even if frozen
• Death is not always probable
Small Animal Damage Control
Rabies
• Animals with rabies or
suspected cases:
• Cage the animal, notify
public health officer
• A rabid dog may:
• Bite other animals or moving objects
• Seizures, muscle incoordination
• Die by progressive paralysis
Small Animal Damage Control
Rabies
• Bats with rabies may be
controlled with tracking
powders
• Skunks - for testing
• Shoot in body, ship head to State Vet Lab
• Rabies can be contracted through open
wounds or breaks in the skin
• Wear impervious gloves when skinning wild
animals
Small Animal Damage Control
Hantavirus
• Deer mouse is primary
carrier
• Transmitted by:
• Direct contact with mice
• Inhaling airborne particles
• No known person to person transmission
• Infection in cats is rare
• Similar virus to hemorrhagic fever - no
known cure
Small Animal Damage Control
Hantavirus
• Causes flu-like symptoms
• Safety Precautions:
• Controlling rodents, cleaning areas:
• Wet mop
• Wear rubber or latex gloves
• Wear a HEPA filter - Not paper
• Eliminate compatible environment
• Disinfection and cleaning bleach
Small Animal Damage Control
Summary
• More rodent &
predator information:
Dept. Of Agriculture:
http://wyagric.state.wy.us/techserv/tsindex.html
Control Information:
http://wildlifedamage.unl.edu/
QUESTIONS ?