Save Newbury Wildlife is a group of Newbury residents dedicated to reducing the use of rat poisons, specifically second generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs), in our community. The intended use of these poisons is to control the rodent population. Unfortunately, they cause the unintentional poisoning of owls, hawks, eagles, foxes, and coyotes who eat the poisoned rodents. Pets and children and other small mammals who enter the bait boxes have also been unintentionally poisoned. The goal of Save Newbury Wildlife is to reduce the use of these poisons in our community by helping residents and businesses of Newbury manage rodents more effectively without poison. For cost/benefits of SGARs versus other methods

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What are SGARs?

Second Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs) work by stopping the rodent's  blood from clotting. The animal eventually bleeds out and dies. The EPA reports that rodents will die from 4 days to 2 weeks after eating the bait. This means that the rat can continue to eat the bait for at least several days before it dies, resulting in higher levels of poison in its body. These high levels combined with the potent nature of SGARs result in the death of a larger animal such as a fox, eagle, cat or dog.

Rodenticides are Everywhere! 

The poster above from Raptors Are The Solution (RATS) illustrates how rat poison makes its way through the food chain. A review article published in 2019 documented the worldwide presence of these poisons in non-target animals (animals other than the intended targets of mice and rats).

The Consequences are Serious.

A 2011 study found that 86% of 161 birds of prey, tested at Tufts Wildlife Clinic, had some form of SGARs in their liver tissue. A second study, conducted from 2012-2016 testing four different species of birds of prey in Massachusetts, found a rate of 96%.  A 2020 study reported that a stunning 100% of 43 red-tailed hawks in New England who were tested had anticoagulant rodenticide in their livers, indicating that the presence of rodenticides in our wildlife has only increased over the past decade.  And while the rodenticide may not always kill these non-target animals, it can still sicken them, weaken their immune system, and impact their ability to reproduce.

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