Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[Fancychooklady]

I feel for the family and the organisers . The other competitors were devastated and having marshalled out on the cross country , I can only guess how traumatised the steward would be. I can't say I miss eventing, seeing them go through the starting gate and nervously waiting them to reappear through the trees. I remember that panic of when Winston our eldest daughters mount came galloping out with no rider, I was physically sick. We spent that Sunday night in emergency , and thankfully all turned out well. The equestrian world are a close knit community and our daughter was at a comp in qld yesterday and the word went round only minutes after the tragic accident .
The beautiful Caitlyn at ' trot up ' with her mount Ralphy.

 

[Fancychooklady]

I had baits put in my house by an exterminator and they said it wasn't a worry about my dogs and cats.  They used warfarin-type baits and it wouldn't have hurt them if they'd found a dead one and had a nibble.  They also said they didn't usually die out in the open, but in their hidey-holes.  I wasn't too bothered because my animals are spoilt, they do not need to eat carrion and probably wouldn't be interested anyway.  Also, as it's dose-related, they'd have to gobble down lots and lots and lots of dead critters to get in any way enough "stuff' in them to hurt them.  From memory, they had different things to use where there were animals and where there weren't.  Arsenic or strychnine or anything like that would be more of a worry.

With the chickens, they are so little, it wouldn't take much for them to be affected by anything compared to my dog who has a bit of meat on her bones.  And they are complete gutses.  If there as a dead anything, they'd eat it, for sure.....  

The baits interfere with the bodies vit K and prevent the blood clotting, the rodent generally die from a massive internal bleed.
Warfarin itself is tasteless but it's the flavour additives that can make these baits attractive to your dog or cat.

http://www.vetwest.com.au/pet-library/rat-bait-toxicity-poisoning

 

[mooandmcgee]

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Does that apply to native species? I thought it would be illegal for the introduced vermin to be release because they threaten our natives.

Yes, I apologise for the misinformation, I had to ask hubby to clarify. Yes if they caught natives they released them, if they caught vermin they took them away and kill them.

It was a few years ago, a house down the street had a very exentric, super lovely, extreme hoarder living in it. She was elderly and the poor girl as lovely as she was had mental health issues and so was moved to a home. The house was is such bad shape and had SO many things living/dead inside it was demolished. This is when we had the uninvited visitors.

At the time I was pregnant with my first & was an emotional nut case, I was concerned that our dog would find the poisoned mice before we did and didn't want to "find" any myself. We live in suburbia and as there was a bit of an invasion, many neighbours also had concerns. So about 16 or so households that participated and employed this company.

At the time I was very upset over our elderly neighbour's living conditions and although we weren't close we did talk. I was very pregnant, owned and was running an insanely busy business and just had to much on to cope with anything else. So hubby just let me believe the company we hired released everything they caught. LOL!!!! I never questioned, he only just told me the entire story this morning after I asked.

Sometimes it's good not knowing all the details.

All in all he remembers there was about 30+ mice, 10 or so bigger rats and a family of possums which were released.

Edited to add
Mice and rats were killed, possums were released. They also found a few big snakes during this time which were re-homed. Unsure if the snakes were from her house or not.

 

[appps]

So sad Fancy. I'm sure it makes every parent even more nervous for quite some time.

 

[User395221]

It is termed 'secondary poisoning' and can be fatal, especially if the rat found and eaten has recently died. The rat liver retains the blood thinner ( warfarin type ), and occasionally coats the mouth and gut of the dead rat. If dead rat eating is suspected, contact with your veterinarian is considered essential.

Yes, but the exterminator used baits that were the lowest risk for my animals. I thought there'd be dead rats everywhere, but luckily what they said about them dying in their hidey-holes turned out to be the case, and I didn't get any out the back. I'd also take my dog to the vet if she ate any dead rat that just appeared out of nowhere because you couldn't know what it had been baited with.

According to this warfarin is "slight risk" to birds and "low risk" to mammals (secondary poisoning, not primary, obviously you have to keep baits away from pets). I still wouldn't want to use any baits around the chooks. It's one thing when you've got rats up in a tree and they've snuck into the roof, it's another in the pets' actual home. I'll get some traps and hope that the little blighters go to them.

http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/rodenticides.html

Quote:
That sick crow may have been the source, too. Also, the stress of the fox could have reduced everyone's immune system.
Quote: The d'uccles are "kneehigh to a grasshopper". The bigger little girls (pekin type cross-breeds) could probably go higher, but the little little girls need it low down.
Quote: The little coop doesn't have a door, the coop and run are combined. I'd have to put the traps in the yard. Whether the mice would come out when they've got the inside to go to, remains to be seen.

 

[LuckysMum]

Fancy I was telling my husband about the Caitlyn and how sad for everyone. He worked at a major hospital in Perth for 17 years he said he had seen many come in by helicopter. One day 2 were flown in one after the other from different horse events. Unless you hear about these accidents you don't realize how dangerous horse riding can be.

In the past we have baited and one time a chook ate a dead mouse right in front of me. I rang the vet and he said she will be fine. He said the amount the mouse would have eaten should not affect the chook and he was right she did have any problems at all. After that every time I saw a dead mouse I would run with and pair of long tongs and get it. The chooks got used to me doing that every morning that if they got it before me the knew I would take it off them so they would run and hide behind a tree and swallow in one go. We don't bait anywhere near the chooks now and only when we see a few mice or droppings. Mostly we trap.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Fancy I was telling my husband about the Caitlyn  and how sad for everyone. He worked at a major hospital in Perth for 17 years he said he had seen many come in by helicopter. One day 2 were flown in one after the other from different horse events. Unless you hear about these accidents you don't realize how dangerous horse riding can be.

In the past we have baited and one time a chook ate a dead mouse right in front of me. I rang the vet and he said she will be fine. He said the amount the mouse would have eaten should not affect the chook and he was right she did have any problems at all.  After that every time I saw a dead mouse I would run with and pair of long tongs and get it.  The chooks got used to me doing that every morning that if they got it before me the knew I would take it off them so they would run and hide behind a tree and swallow in one go. We don't bait anywhere near the chooks now and only when we see a few mice or droppings. Mostly we trap.

We have a youngster here that has just recently retired from racing and whilst he isn't particularly naughty, last time we took him out he reared up and fell over backwards. Luckily Jess managed to clear most of herself away from him as he came down and only ended up with bruising down one side.
Horses don't intentionally fall on their rider and in fact I've witnessed horses do somersault in the air and still manage to clear the rider. It's just a freak accident.
Our Dutch instructor tells us repeatedly that ' horse riding is the second most dangerous sport in the world ' not quite sure is first.

 

[LuckysMum]

We have a youngster here that has just recently retired from racing and whilst he isn't particularly naughty, last time we took him out he reared up and fell over backwards. Luckily Jess managed to clear most of herself away from him as he came down and only ended up with bruising down one side.

Horses don't intentionally fall on their rider and in fact I've witnessed horses do somersault in the air and still manage to clear the rider. It's just a freak accident.
Our Dutch instructor tells us repeatedly that ' horse riding is the second most dangerous sport in the world ' not quite sure is first.

I don't blame the horses I used to ride for fun quite a few years back and they can be the most gentle loving animals. But they are big and accidents will happen.

Life is for living not sitting back and watching life go by. While we do take care in the things we do there are risks in everything.

 

[MyHaven]

Yes, I apologise for the misinformation, I had to ask hubby to clarify. Yes if they caught natives they released them, if they caught vermin they took them away and kill them.

It was a few years ago, a house down the street had a very exentric, super lovely, extreme hoarder living in it. She was elderly and the poor girl as lovely as she was had mental health issues and so was moved to a home. The house was is such bad shape and had SO many things living/dead inside it was demolished. This is when we had the uninvited visitors.

At the time I was pregnant with my first & was an emotional nut case, I was concerned that our dog would find the poisoned mice before we did and didn't want to "find" any myself. We live in suburbia and as there was a bit of an invasion, many neighbours also had concerns. So about 16 or so households that participated and employed this company.

At the time I was very upset over our elderly neighbour's living conditions and although we weren't close we did talk. I was very pregnant, owned and was running an insanely busy business and just had to much on to cope with anything else. So hubby just let me believe the company we hired released everything they caught. LOL!!!! I never questioned, he only just told me the entire story this morning after I asked.

Sometimes it's good not knowing all the details.

All in all he remembers there was about 30+ mice, 10 or so bigger rats and a family of possums which were released.

Edited to add
Mice and rats were killed, possums were released. They also found a few big snakes during this time which were re-homed. Unsure if the snakes were from her house or not.

You must have a lovely hubby.

 

[User395221]

I got up to find 2 crows on my patio. They had OPENED a bag of bunny kibble that was there and were trying to help themselves. Seriously, cheeky. I shooed them away and they came back, they don't care one iota where they go or what they do.