Rodenticides

also see wildlife section/birds p.2  wildlife section/ mammals

The City of Regina has started its spring ground squirrel control program for 2026.(3 May 2026)   The product used is named as ROZOL on the sign. The active chemical is Chlorophacinone. The city is generally careful in its use by putting it inside burrows and picking up dead animals every day or 2.  Hopefully Wscana does the same. However,  it is a slow killing chemical so it is possible that sick animals wander around. If a dog or predator eats a sick ground squirrel, they would ingest some and could get quite sick.        'Chlorophacinone is a first-generation anticoagulant rodenticide. The mechanism of action results in internal bleeding due to non-functional clotting factors. It was used as a toxin to control rodent populations. It is classified as an extremely hazardous substance in the United States as defined in Section 302 of the U.S. Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (42 U.S.C. 11002) and is subject to strict reporting requirements by facilities which produce, store, or use it in significant quantities.'

Rural officials hopeful strychnine use will resume.    Federal ag minister opens door for possible emergency registration to address burgeoning gopher populations.(SaskToday, Karen Briere,Nov 23, 2025)  'The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities is taking a verbal commitment from the federal agriculture minister on strychnine use as a good sign.      Strychnine was banned for control of Richardson’s ground squirrels in March 2023, and all uses became illegal in September 2024.    Delegates passed a resolution calling on SARM to lobby both levels of government for better alternatives to strychnine, or its reintroduction until better alternatives are found. They also want the province to enact legislation to control the gopher overpopulation.    Producers say the alternatives to strychnine don’t work as well. The zinc phosphide products have to be placed early in the year.   Sameer Thakker, president of the Canadian Pesticide Management Association, said the future will focus on integrated rodent management. Integrated rodent management includes education, elimination or reduction of water and food sources, and then control. Thakker said several jurisdictions have banned what he calls second-generation rodenticides because they are highly toxic to non-target animals. Thakker expects training courses will be necessary. The risks of using rodenticides, the proper use of personal protective equipment and following the labels are critical. For example, mandatory carcass search and removal procedures will have to be followed.  He said conversations have to extend beyond rodenticides to raptor programs, alternative products, use of bait stations and the changing habitat of the pests.  People must educate themselves on the biology of the pest with which they are dealing . As well, they can’t complain about a problem but do nothing to prevent or address it.SNAP Comment: .bad news ...nontarget species poisonings with strychnine have been widely documented in Canada and elsewhere. I disagree with the observation that 'Dogs were the most common species poisoned with strychnine". I would amend it to most reported species as most wildlife carcasses are unlikely to be found or reported. People care about their dogs and horses and are moke likely to bring them in. Because of the current poor SK pesticide use training, and that it excludes mandatory training for farmers, I would say that wearing protective equipment and removal of carcasses is no likely to be followed. 

Raptors And Rat Poison (By Cathy Bell, Cornell Lab All About Birds, July 15, 2015)     Of 161 raptors brought in to Tufts Wildlife Clinic between 2006 and 2010, 139—a whopping 86 percent—tested positive for anticoagulant rodenticides. Ninety-nine percent of those had brodifacoum in their liver tissues. Yet only nine of these birds displayed sufficient symptoms to lead to a clinical diagnosis of anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning.   A knowledge gap, says Allen Fish, is precisely the trouble. “There’s no clear public record of where we’re putting pesticides, who’s using them, how much is being used. Until we demand that information, we’re flying blind. There needs to be a whole public reckoning of who uses what, and why. We need to track how operators are using pesticides and then see if there’s any correlation with animal kills. We don’t know these impacts. We don’t have any data.”  As for the environmentally conscious homeowner with a rodent problem, Palmer points out that “there are many effective, economical, and easy-to-use pest control options that are much better for human health and for wildlife.” (ABC offers a list at saferodentcontrol.org.)  According to Fish, snap traps offer a more humane way to kill rats than a drawn-out and painful death by poison. SNAP Comment:  Brodifacoum is usually used in rodent bait. There are 17 brodifacoum containing pesticides regiaterd in Canada in April 2024. Most are registered as commercial products, none for direct use by consumers (domestic).

Rodenticides (Chemical Watch Fact Sheet, Vol. 20, Pesticides and You, No. 4, 2000-2001) Sorry, this is old but still relevant. However many new chemicals have come on the market since then.

Ask Retailers to Care About Kids™
and Pull Toxic Pesticide Product from Shelves  Group Renews Call for Immediate Stop to Sale of Toxic Rodenticides     (Beyond Pesticides, May 30, 2014)  USA

Anti-coagulants are often the main method of rodent control and they have terrible effects on other species eating affected rodents. There are many new classes of anti-coagulants on the market. They are, of course, used in medicine for several conditions. However, they would likely, like most medications, come out at the other end and end up contaminating water. I haven't found any studies on that. 

I looked on the Internet for fact sheets regarding anti-coagulants and wildlife and am still searching. 

Study Finds Eagle Populations Experiencing Widespread Rodenticide Exposure    (Beyond Pesticides, April 21, 2021) 'The vast majority of bald and golden eagles in the United States are contaminated with toxic anticoagulant rodenticides, according to research published in the journal PLOS One earlier this month.   Prior studies have deemed anticoagulant rodenticides “super-predators” in ecosystems for the widespread damage that can result from their use. This is because rodents that eat these chemicals, often contained in toxic baits, do not die immediately. While a rodent is likely to die from this poison, ingesting it also turns it into a sort of poison trojan horse for any predator that may take advantage of its slow decline. An eagle that eats a poisoned rodent at the edge of death will be the next to succumb to the anticoagulant effects of the chemical.   The second-generation anticoagulant rodenticide brodifacoum was the most detected compound in sampled eagles.