Mozzies, Rats, Mice, Foxes; But No Flies and No Plastic
Rodents first.
Currently lots of folks having problems with rats and mice. Be alert after any rains for rat baits to be washed out of containers in your yard or for baits to get flushed under fence lines from higher up properties.
It takes 2 to 3 days for signs to show so don’t relax if your dog ate a bait yet some hours later still looks ok, it is not ok as most baits are slow silent poisons when they first start to work. The re-vomited now hot-wax bait can cause oesophageal burns on way back up so we just use a very very safe antidote that should be used with first 24 to 48 hours of known exposure.
Foxes: lots of foxes being sighted especially up near the park at the top of Mt Warrigal. Sarcoptic mange and viral diseases are a risk so keep up with broad spectrum flea products and vaccines in dogs and cats. Bravecto chew is effective against Sarcoptic mange and by happenstance is our Silent Auction/Secret Bid item for April so consider placing a charity bid that saves your money and does a good deed at same time.
Mozzies: We are hearing reports of Shell Cove residents being overwhelmed with small light seeking swarms of insects reputed to be baby mozzies. If that is the case, then keep up good Heartworm control on dogs and cats in this area.
A bit of Mozzie Trivia-the mozzie species active in the mornings prefer cats and those in the evening are attracted more to dogs. Given that owners let their cats out of a morning and take their dog for an evening stroll, the mozzies are certainly lined up to take advantage of the situation.
No Flies: have you noticed since the Fogo bins came in that we have had dramatically less flies?
The westerly winds can bring flies in as well but some credit has to be given to no rotting food sitting around for 2 weeks.
There is a bin liner that Shellharbour Councils’ new Garbage disposal company will accept being used in the KITCHEN Fogo bins. That had not been the case but now is.
These green or white corn starch bin liners last about a week and then break down: so just long enough to keep the big FOGO bins outside clean and dry as all contents sealed up in small bags and so fly free as well. I am reliably informed local business Leisure Coast Packaging in Sunset Bvd Warilla sells a white corn bag version of this product in all different sizes.
–http://www.lcpackaging.com.au.
Paper not Plastic in Oak Flats.
Our clinic has not used plastic merchandising bags for more than 20 years in Oak Flats. Everyone loves our smart coloured paper carry bags of all sizes. We purchase the bags locally from a Sunset Bvd Warilla business to keep our eco-footprint down even more. We still have had to use a small number of small zip lock bags for some medications but now with the help of Chris from Leisure Coast Packaging and her new paper medicine envelopes, we can scale back on our use of the zip lock bags as well.