Just so you know, it’s not that I’ve been avoiding the topic of San Francisco real estate – in fact, there’s all sorts of action happening. But I’ve been too swamped juggling offers, upcoming listings and escrows to effectively write about it. I, and just about any other SF Realtor, can tell you things are picking up here in the SF market, but I’ll save that for another day.
Today, I wanted to share a little video with you and ask for your help.
We all know that rodents can be a nuisance. They are destructive, cause property damage, and have inspired more than one cartoon where a woman jumps up on a table and screams.
And while you don’t want the little (or big) critters in your homes, rat poison is not the answer!!!!
Meet Curbie. Curbie was found on the Curb (thus the name) after street sweeper one day. Curbie didn’t look well. He was docile. Not like your average wild rat. My boyfriend chased him across the street to some bushes so he’d at least have some cover – we live down in the Outer Sunset by Ocean Beach and there’s a hawk on just about every block down here, and they’re all competing for food with the neighborhood kitties.
A few days went by, and Curbie still wasn’t doing very well. He was still in the same spot where my boyfriend had left him. And he wasn’t acting very wild. He looked sick.
So, my boyfriend captured him, put him in a box and started to feed him hoping he’d get better. After doing some research, it began to look pretty obvious that Curbie was poisoned. Feeling bad for the critter, and not wanting to watch him suffer, we began looking for help, and found it at Wildcare an organization that works “to make sure all species can coexist– not just by treating sick or injured animals (over 3,000 of them a year), but also by teaching people how to live peacefully with wildlife and by advocating for better protection of wildlife and our remaining open spaces”.
Curbie, thanks to the friends at Wildcare, made it out ok. His release video is above, and if you don’t pay attention, you’ll miss him – he’s THAT fast, THAT fiesty, and THAT much better.
But there are other Curbies out there and the rat poison problem doesn’t lie so much with the rodents themselves (though, really, if you think it’s an acceptable to leave an animal to die slowly by internally bleeding for a week or more, you’re pretty much an A**hole), but lies in an even bigger problem – the fact that prey feed on the rodents and then they, too, get sick and die.
Information from Wildcare‘s site:
Every year WildCare admits predatory animals like hawks, owls and foxes that have eaten rodents poisoned with anti-coagulant rodenticides (rat poisons).
The rodenticides currently on the market are advertised as “strong enough to kill in one dose,” and they do kill rats (slowly and painfully of internal bleeding), but it can take up to seven days for the rodents to die.
In that time, a desperate rodent can enter the food chain and carry the deadly poison to any animal that picks him up as an easy meal.
That hawk or owl dies too unless proper treatment can be administered immediately.
So what can YOU do?
You can help in two ways.
First – STOP USING RAT POISON! There are many humane options for removing rodents. I prefer the humane trap and release traps.
And second – donate to Wildcare. They do a lot more than just rescue wild animals like Curbie. They offer an interactive experience where people can truly understand what it means to co-exist with wildlife around us, even here in San Francisco.
And Curbie? Well, as you can see, he’s got a second chance at life. And the singing at the end of the video? Yeah, that’s me. Let me know if you know anyone ready to cut me a record deal. 😉
