Country Living: Please don't poison the food chain

"Hoot-hoot-hoot-hoot." … The sound of an owl woke me up in the middle of the night recently. He was perched in our large oak tree, close to the house. "Hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot" … I held my breath as I awaited an answer … nothing came. I waited, then heard him again – the deep-throated "hoot" of what I believe was a male owl. Still, there was no answer. Time and again I listened to his repeated call – "hoot, hoot, hoot, hoot." But there was no answer. For many years, we've been blessed with the beautiful question/answer calls of a pair of owls in the night. First, the low-toned hoots of the male. Then, in answer, the higher-pitched hoot of the female to let him know her location. That's what I was waiting to hear. Yet, this time was different. His calls were unanswered repeatedly. My heart ached for him – his mate and hunting partner did not return his calls. His questions went unanswered. What happened? Did she die of old age? Did she die by other means? What would have caused Mr. Owl to lose his life partner? I hated the questions that came into my mind. A freak encounter with a predator? A tragic encounter with humans – perhaps with guns? Or, my next painful answer came – killed by poison? The thought haunted me. We've had to confront the "poison" issue on our five acres. We have perfect hunting grounds for owls, and seemingly thousands of gophers pockmark our property – part of country living, I conclude. But lately, the gophers have multiplied exponentially and their dirt mounds are everywhere. We've tried repellents, traps, gas fumes and flooding their tunnels with water. Nothing seems to work for long; they always come back in droves. The only known permanent deterrent would be to poison them. BUT WE'VE LEARNED NOT TO! Why? Because poison causes a slow, painful death and it doesn't just kill rodents, it kills their predators. When a rodent eats poison, it becomes the carrier of the poison. So when a predator eats a poisoned rodent, it kills the predator and it continues up the food chain. So if a fox, bobcat, coyote or mountain lion eats a poisoned animal, they too will die! I didn't know this when I moved to the country until we discovered rats in our attic. One day, I went to an outdoor hose bib to hand water some plants. Under the faucet was a rat on her hind legs seeking a drink from the faucet. It didn't move away, but instead, it looked up at me. I never knew how cute rats were until she looked me in the eyes. I swear I never could have imagined having a moment with a rat, but it truly touched me, those soft eyes pleading to me as if to say, "Help me." Then I remembered the poison we spread in our attic and some recollection of hearing that animals who ingest poison have an insatiable thirst for water. My heart sank when I drew the conclusion. Since that time, I've learned the devastation poisons can do to a whole food chain. So, now what do we do with our current problem with gophers? We simply can't keep up with them. We can't ignore them because their gopher holes and mounds can be ankle-breakers for humans and livestock. And, poisons can be attractive to our domestic pets, with dire consequences. We reached out to a professional pest control company that uses a gas that is pumped into their tunnels using a portable tank with a hose. The operator tells me, "It just puts them to sleep." Hmmmm, sounds painless with no suffering. I share this with all country property owners who may be tempted to use poison to eliminate pests. PLEASE DO NOT! Our wildlife is already extremely challenged by the rampant growth in Placer County. Not only are native species challenged by losing their habitat, they are being pushed to their limits in competition with human needs. I don't know what happened to Mrs. Owl and I may never know. I hope she didn't eat a poisoned rodent thinking it was an easy meal. I'll never know. But it still haunts me and compels me to want to make careful, educated decisions about my space in the country so I don't contribute to the demise of one of the very things that attracted me to live here. In the meantime, I'm waiting with hope for the return of the night sounds of Mr. and Mrs. Owl. Irene Smith has enjoyed rural living for more than 30 years and wants to share experiences and lessons learned from this lifestyle for the benefit of others. You can share your comments and experiences with Irene at n8rlvr2009@gmail.com.