At first glance, the EPA's proposed ban on consumers using fast-acting rat poisons seems like good news for rats, mice, dogs, cats, children and the countless other beings who suffer and die after ingesting rodent poisons every year ("Backyard debate: To bait or not to bait," June 11). But sadly, the slower acting poisons, including those that require animals to consume multiple doses, will still cause animals who ingest them to suffer prolonged and agonizing deaths.
As your editorial points out, poisoning rats isn't an effective means of rodent control because surviving rats will have a baby boom and rats from surrounding areas will move in to fill the void left by those who were killed. Preventing rats from taking up residence in the first place — by sealing cracks and holes in walls and foundations and keeping food and garbage in chew-proof containers — is much more humane and effective than resorting to poisoning these gentle animals. Even the smallest beings deserve our compassion.
Joseph Moore, Baltimore