LARGE numbers of farms across the country continue to suffer serious rat and mouse problems, despite more frequent rodenticide use and generally improved baiting practice.
This is the finding of the latest annual rodent control study, conducted by BASF Pest Control Solutions in association with Farmers Guardian.
The 2009 study involved more than 90 separate holdings spanning a broad range of enterprises, spread over about 13,000ha (32,000 acres) from Orkney to Devon and Anglesey to Norfolk. Most farms experienced both rat and mouse problems at some stage, with rat infestations rated more serious by most.
Dairy units experienced noticeably greater rat problems than pig and poultry, arable or beef and sheep holdings. The greatest mouse pressures were felt by pig and poultry producers and the least on arable units.
Every farm carried out some rodenticide baiting in the year ending last October, with more than 90 per cent undertaking three or more cycles against the 80 per cent-plus doing so in 2008.
More than half the arable and pig and poultry units baited six or more times in 12 months, compared to around a quarter of beef and sheep, and dairy producers.
Unsurprisingly perhaps, the winter months saw the greatest rodenticide use, with more than 70 per cent of farms baiting each month from September through to February. Baiting fell off slightly in March and declined steadily from April to June, before picking up again from July. Even so, 15 per cent of farms used a rodenticide in June and these were almost equally divided between the four different enterprise types.
Every farm can identify at least one way in which they are finding rodent control more challenging these days,
Just like 2008, bigger and more frequent infestations and longer baiting periods are considered the three greatest challenges.
A greater need to safeguard other animals, greater farm assurance demands and less predictable infestations are identified as key control challenges by many.
Rat and mouse infestations are becoming more problematic and less predictable,” he says.
At the same time, there is a growing need to demonstrate good control for farm assurance purposes.
Baiting has to be increasingly secure to protect non-target species, which can seriously limit its effectiveness in some cases;especially so with less and less time available on most units.”
Control practices
Its good news the fact nearly three quarters of farms now place all their rodent bait in secure containers and continued improvement in most key control practices over the past three years. However, there are still a number of causes for current concern.
Studies shows only 4 per cent of farms are currently employing all six of the most important elements of best rodent control practice, for instance,
Half are using two or fewer elements and 15 per cent none whatsoever. Most farms clearly have considerable room for improvement in rising to the increasing control challenge.
Farmers would do well to concentrate on improving the accuracy of their bait point siting, the number of bait points they use, the frequency with which they top them up and the extent to which they rodent-proof alternative food sources, in particular.
Equally, when tackling rats, it really helps to permanently site empty bait containers in key locations to overcome their natural wariness of new things - something less than a third of farmers currently do.
Thankfully, rodenticide resistance still does not appear to be a major issue with either rats or mice on most farms. Most farms in the latest study rarely, if ever, come across resistance in either rodent species.
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