Roosevelt Island Rat Bait Trap Poison Kills One Dog, Injures Another

I received a message on January 12 from a concerned Roosevelt Island resident:

about the unattended rat bait stations throughout Roosevelt Island

Image of Roosevelt Island Rat Bait Trap

reporting that:

there have been contact by 2 dogs 1 in which died, the other wound up in the emergency @ the animal medical center due to eating the Rat poison this past weekend

despite the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) being informed previously of the Rat Bait Traps not being properly secured.

On January 13 I sent the following message to RIOC's Vice President of Operations Fernando Martinez:

I have heard from residents that a dog was poisoned from RIOC's use of rat traps.

Any comment?

RIOC's Press Spokesperson replied that a response is forthcoming soon. Will publish the response as soon as it is received.

Roosevelt Island resident Joyce Mincheff adds:

A dog has been poisoned

The dog is recovering but has permanent liver damage.

From the results of the dog's blood test, the Vet commented that his level was the highest she had seen in a dog that survived. It takes approximately 3 to 5 days for the poison to produce severe symptoms from the time it's ingested. The dog was bleeding throughout its organs. It had not been off the Island in over 2 weeks.

The dog weighs approximately 17 lbs. It's unlikely that a dog with less weight would have survived. That would include breeds like Chuahuahs, Yorkies, Maltese, Jack Russels, Shitzhuhs, Havanese, Min-Pins, Pomeranians, all toys.

I've spoken to RIOC about their use of rat poison and I understand that the buildings use similar devices.

It's imperative that locations where rat poison is in use should be posted. RIOC tells me that their boxes are virtually tamper-proof and locked down. It seems likely to me, that any authorized, qualified exterminator would be careful in securing the trap. As RIOC has reported doing, I'm wondering whether it's possible for the buildings to use the spring trap that catches the rat rather than poison.

I'm hoping all the building managers will:

• inspect their bate boxes and make sure they're secure,
• post notices to alert the public where rat poison is in use,
• exchange all poison devices for spring traps.

Since we can assume that any effort made by the buildings or by RIOC would have taken place with appropriate caution, it seems more likely that the poison was maliciously put out. I would like to ask you all to pledge to a fund that will provide a reward to anyone leading to the identification and arrest of any individual who spreads poison on the grounds of the Island in an unauthorized way. I'll be making a comment in the upcoming WIRE and on the blog, and would like to include a notice of this reward.

If there is any other suggestion you have concerning this matter, please advise.

The rat bait poison traps are located at Firefighters Field, Capobianco Field and near the Octagon.

UPDATE 1/19 - Just received response from RIOC:

Last week, RIOC was alerted to a potential rat bait poisoning of a dog on the Island, which has not been substantiated. In response, we had the rodent bait stations on Roosevelt Island inspected by Urban Exterminating Services. They found that all stations were covered with locked, tamper-proof bait stations, which are State-approved.

Residents and visitors should note that tamper-proof bait stations are located throughout the Island, but rodenticide (which is included in certain of the more heavily infested stations) is placed away from where people and pets can easily access it.

However, due to lack of rodent activity, many of the stations were removed. We will now use poison-free snap traps except for in heavily infested or garbage dumping areas. All areas will continue to be inspected twice a month.

UPDATE 8:45 - RIOC Board of Directors discussed issue today. Here's what happened.