California Assembly Bill 1788 and establishment of the California Ecosystems Protection Act indicates the evolution of public opinion regarding rodent management products is moving away from the use of poison. Similar actions have taken place in the province of British Columbia and the state of Massachusetts, with initiatives in the states of Washington and Connecticut. These events signal a trend in pest management that requires attention. There are many aspects of California’s law that will require further refinements such as enforcement, best practices, and the economics of the action. The FYXX foundation 501c(3) non-profit organization has undertaken to assess these elements of alternate rodent IPM programs including any offsetting benefits of public and employee perceptions. Data was collected from three sites: two animal sanctuaries and a large commercial business district. Strategies were as follows; site #1, an IPM program including exclusion, fertility control, repellents, station monitoring with relocation and reduction (98% population reduction); site #2 IPM including fertility control, monitoring and station relocation, (80% population reduction) and site #3, IPM including station lure baiting followed by targeted fertility control, and monitoring (91% population reduction). All data were analyzed with review by professional pest managers, facility management personnel, municipal agencies, and FYXX staff. Employee interviews and surveys indicated that there was a skepticism at initiation of the study, however, by month #3 a reversal to strong support for the new program and high satisfaction with a poison-free facility. These data indicate that collaborative work between product manufacturers, professional pest managers, and users can provide new alternatives to IPM programs that are economically sound, socially, and politically responsive to a new trend in pest management.

Norway rats cause extensive crop loss, infrastructure damage, and are vectors for zoonotic diseases. Due to growing efficacy, environmental, and animal welfare concerns related to traditional pest management tools, it is important to find new methods for controlling commensal rodents. Fertility control is emerging as a safe, humane, and effective method of long-term pest population management. SenesTech Inc. has developed an oral, liquid fertility management bait with two active ingredients: 4-vinylcyclohexene diepoxide (VCD) and triptolide. Previously, a 95% reduction in pups was observed through three breeding rounds when wild-caught Norway rats were caged in pairs and offered this bait for 50 days. Following these results, wild-caught Norway rats (n=6 males; n=15 females per group) were placed in open arenas, offered bait (in the presence of rat chow and water) ad libitum for 56 days, and allowed to breed for four rounds. Animals were bred within their treatment paired groups (control or treatment) for the first three rounds and then treatment cross-bred during the fourth round. Through three breeding rounds, 255 pups were born to control breeding pairs, compared to 12 pups born to treated breeding pairs. In the final round, 93 pups were born to control females paired with treated males and 80 pups were born to treated females paired with control males. A significant reduction in epididymis weight, and in testis weight and volume, was observed in treated males, while ovarian weight was reduced in treated females. These results indicate that fertility was dramatically reduced in wild caught Norway rats after consuming fertility management bait. Rats voluntarily consumed the treatment bait, and this free selection is essential for future field trials where the ability of the bait to reduce wild rat populations will be assessed in agricultural and urban settings.

Superior rodent management is critical to preserve the diversity of wildlife, and to mitigate environmental and social damage. Pest management strategies can employ 21st century methods to balance the human-animal conflict, especially regarding rodents. Non-toxic fertility control has several advantages over the use of poison when the following parameters are true: 1) rate of removal exceeds rate of population increase; 2) compounds do not bioaccumulate in the rodents or the environment; 3) non-lethal method targets both males and females; 4) animals can be detected at low densities; 5) cost analysis favors fertility control over lethality; 6) method has socio-political acceptance. Our fertility control system meets each of these requirements. Utilizing plant-root-based extracts from Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F, we have formulated a proprietary rodent feed pellet that is efficacious in reducing mice and rat populations in multiple settings. The pellets target rodents with a population reduction capacity of 98% that is sustainable over 12 months. The cost of the pellet solution is less than 90% of other fertility control products, and less than 47% of poison products. The functional key to the success of fertility-control approaches is optimizing feeding protocols to achieve maximum population reduction. We have developed an application-based system to provide sustainable cost-effective management. The monitoring system captures consumption and feeder service data. Point-of-entry data validation is enforced. Compliance with the service program is monitored and configurable alerts are issued for outlying events. These data are ingested into a data analytics engine which generates real-time dashboards for oversight and analysis. Administrative features provide user management, project definition and configuration. In-line instructional documentation and pellet supply order forms provide support for field technicians. As a 501(c)3 non-profit charity we are funded by Open Philanthropy to provide the rigorous data sets presented: a 21st century solution to rodent management.

Lethal rodenticides and other lethal tools of managing commensal rodent populations long-term are not sustainable due to population rebounds and increasing resistance to rodenticides. The use of integrated pest management (IPM) programs are more prevalent due to consumer desire to decrease rodenticide use and utilize environmentally friendly, humane methods. IPM plans often require multiple tools to control an infestation, such as physical, biological and chemical measures. Here, we propose that rodent population management would benefit from a new tool aimed at targeting the biological source of overabundance: reproduction. SenesTech, Inc. (Flagstaff, AZ USA) has developed ContraPest®, a liquid bait that limits the reproductive capacity of both male and female wild Norway and Roof rats. The two active ingredients, 4-vinylcyclohexene diepoxide (VCD) and triptolide, deplete all stages of follicles in the female and disrupt spermatogenesis in the male. Laboratory and field studies reveal that ContraPest® is palatable and repeatedly consumed by rats even when provided with ad libitum food and water. Studies involving laboratory and wild caught rats have demonstrated a 93 - 100% reduction in litter sizes of rats treated with ContraPest® compared to control rats. ContraPest® was tested on free ranging rat populations in agricultural and urban settings. Rat populations on protein production farms decreased by an average of 46% following 100 days of treatment with ContraPest®. In a complex urban environment, where property boundaries limit access to populations and foraging areas, ContraPest® reduced the seasonal population peak by 67% after 133 days of baiting. These studies, combined with all of our field studies and population reduction models, demonstrate that ContraPest® is a highly effective rodent contraceptive bait in a variety of environments. We strongly believe that adding/implementing fertility management via ContraPest® to an IPM program would enhance long-term rodent population control in rural, urban, and agricultural environments.