Deer, and fawns

Julia J. Di Sieno
Executive Director
Animal Rescue Team, inc.

Young deer are called fawns. Fawns are often found alone, because they do not flee from danger until about 14 days of age, and they do not forage with their mother until they are older. To escape detection a fawn lies motionless in tall grass or other cover. Its spotted coat helps it blend into its surroundings by imitating dappled sun on vegetation. A fawn’s lack of scent also helps to protect it from detection by predators.

MOUNTAIN LION FOUNDATION
LIVING WITH LIONS PROJECT
Promoting Non-Lethal Predator Control Alternatives

NATURAL RODENT DETERRENTS
1) Rodents and especially mice are allergic to oil of peppermint and will not frequent a property where they can smell
it. If you place a few drops of oil of peppermint on a piece of cotton and place it anywhere you feel that there is a
mouse problem, you will never see them again. Use only the “real” oil of peppermint, not peppermint extract, for the
best results. You can also plant peppermint in your garden to keep all types of rodents away from the plants. They are
also repelled by camphor and pine tar.
2) There are a few ground covers that rodents do not like to live in or be around. These are adjuga, carpet bugle, cape
weed, chamomile, Indian rock strawberry and creeping speed well.
3) Hire some barn owls to address your rodent problem by installing some nesting boxes. A family of 6 barn owls can
consume as many as 16 or more rats in one night.
4) Rodents will avoid certain plants that give off repulsive scents. These include daffodils, hyancinths and scillia.
5) Gopher purge (uphorbia lathyrus) is a plant that contains pods each containing three seeds. The plant is a natural
repellent to gophers and moles and all other burrowing animals. The roots are so poisonous to them as well as to
humans and it will eliminate the problem.
6) Keep all trash + food tightly contained, woodpiles and debri picked up, drainage pipes clean and fi ll the ends with
chicken wire to prevent rats from entering and setting up house, also remove bird feeders until the problem is under control. Natural Pest Control Internet Sites: Critter-repellent.com

THERE ARE ALTERNATIVES TO POISON
Learn more environmentally-friendly
non toxic gardening practices at:
www.fi negardening.com
(click on pests and diseases)
www.wasteless.org
(click on environmentally preferable
purchasing and then on less toxic gardening/IPM)
Pest Prevention:
http://ipmguidelines.org
National Pest Information Center:
www.epa.gov

JUST BECAUSE WE DON’T WITNESS IT...
DOESN’T MEAN IT ISN’T HAPPENING
BRODIFACOUM
Trade Names:
Ialon, Havoc, D-Con mice and rat traps
Mechanism of Action: second-generation anticoagulant. Absorbed
through the gut and inhibits the vitamin K-dependent steps in the synthesis
of multiple clotting factors. Death usually occurs through gastric hemorrhage.
Metabolism: brodifacoum is retained in the tissues at high rates,
sometimes remaining in organ systems during the entire lifetime of an
exposed animal. In a study that measured the retention of radioactive
brodifacoum in the livers of single-dosed rats, 34% of the single dose is
found in the liver after 13 weeks, and 11% of the dose remained in the liver
for 104 weeks, approaching the normal lifespan of a rat (U.S. EPA MRID
42007502).
Very highly toxic to mammals and birds.

Brodifacoum is extremely dangerous to birds through secondary exposure,
especially raptors feeding on poisoned rats and mice.
Hundreds of avian and other wildlife mortalities have been
reported across North America.
Brodifacoum is absorbed through the gut and works by preventing the
normal clotting of blood, leading to fatal hemorrhage. It is highly effective
at small doses - usually a rodent ingests a fatal dose after a single feeding
and will die within 4-5 days. The greatest risk to wildlife from brodifacoum
is secondary poisoning. Rodents continue to eat poisoned bait so at the
time of death the amount of brodifacoum present in their bodies is many
times the amount required to kill them. Non-target wildlife such as predators
and scavengers may then consume rodents that have ingested large
doses of brodifacoum. It can take as little as one poisoned rodent, or a
predator may accumulate enough brodifacoum after consuming several
poisoned prey items, to induce life-threatening or fatal effects. A single
dose of brodifacoum can depress blood clotting for months
in some animals, including birds. Stress or slight wounds incurred
in the fi eld, such as small scratches that normally occur when a raptorial
bird captures its prey, are often suffi cient to cause a fatal hemorrhage.
Raptor species maintain hunting territories that may include areas near
agricultural or other industrial and urban buildings where rodent control is
ongoing. Local avian predators may consume rodents living in and around
these structures. However, the death of such a predator will most likely
occur some distance away from treated sites, making it diffi cult to observe
patterns of mortality attributable to any one cause. Furthermore, birds that
have been exposed to lethal levels of brodifacoum may be more likely to
die from other causes such as accidents or predation. Most mortality undoubtedly
goes undiscovered. For these reasons, the true impact on birds of many pesticies,
including brodifacoum is obscured.

More on Pesticides:

1) Widely used pesticides are not particularly specific for the “target” organism. Such
pesticides can cause unintended and unwanted effects
to “non-target” resources. Species can be exposed to pesticides by many
routes, with the simplest form being direct contact or ingestion.
2) Animals can ingest pesticides indirectly through contaminated foods such as
leafy material, seeds, and prey (including insects and other animals), or by water contamination
through precipitation and irrigation (puddles, drinking water, bathing water or
breeding).
3) Aquatic organisms can be exposed to pesticides entering water bodies through runoff
and groundwater infi ltration. Measurable amounts of pesticides have been detected in
rainwater.
4) Indirect effects of pesticides can also have signifi cant implications to animal species.
For example, herbicide drift can harm plants and consequently damage the habitat upon
which an animal species depends. A given pesticide can be relatively non-toxic to an
animal species, but may be lethal to its prey or food plants. Similarly, an insecticide can
indirectly harm an endangered plant that may depend upon a specifi c insect pollinator.
5) Wildlife, for example, are more susceptible to pesticide effects during nesting, nursing
of young or during times of low food availability.
6) Primary exposure includes eating, drinking, preening of feathers, skin contact
or breathing of vapors.
7) Secondary exposure occurs from scavenging on contaminated
food, such as exposed carcasses, or feeding upon insects. If pesticide
levels are high enough, wildlife often die suddenly.
8) Not as readily observed in wildlife are the sublethal, or
non-fatal, consequences of ingesting pesticides. Behavior
changes, weight loss, impaired or unsuccessful reproduction, high offspring mortality
or deformed embryos are results of sublethal exposure to pesticides. Affected wildlife
become easy prey for predators, while many lose their ability to adapt to environmental
changes.
9) Pesticides can reduce insects that may be important
food sources for young birds and fi sh, and habitat is similarly reduced
when vegetation is destroyed -- a critical factor for small wildlife populations already
stressed by insuffi cient habitat.
Raccoon - Los Angeles
Diet: : Small mammals, birds, insects, trash,
carrion and fruit.
Coyote - Admitted with mange, Griffi th Park.
Diet: Small mammals, rodents, ground squirrels, carrion, berries,
fruit, vegetables and insects.
Screech Owl - Agua Dulce.
Diet: Small rodents and insects.
Greenback Heron - Simi Valley.
Diet: Fish, small mice and insects.
Grey Fox - Van Nuys.
Diet: Small rodents, birds, insects, fruit, berries and carrion.

More PDF's:

Wildes Opossum Brochue

Wildes Coyote Brochure

Wildes Raccoon Brochure

Wildes Skunk Brochure

Wildes Trap Brochure

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Operating with permits from California Department of Fish & Game.