FIRST STRIKE EVERY TIME

Using a soft rodent bait allows for greater flexibility – a big benefit when rodent pressure is extremely high.

 

With ideal weather conditions, the past few months have seen mice numbers in plague proportions throughout Australia, especially in south western Queensland and country NSW areas. How do pest managers and their accounts defend against this invasion? Gavin Wilson, technical and marketing manager for Liphatech, believes a good place to start is to apply Liphatech’s ‘four principals of denial’.

“Firstly, don’t let rodents eat – maintain good sanitation, and remove food waste and rubbish. Secondly, don’t let the rodents drink – eliminate moisture sources by ensuring proper ventilation, and repair defective plumbing roof leaks,” said Mr Wilson. “Thirdly, don’t let them come in – prevent entry and exclude pests. Caulk, seal, screen and patch exterior pest entry points, and trim vegetation away from properties and outbuildings. The fourth principal of denial is don’t let them hide out – eliminate shelter and harbourage sites, reduce clutter and conducive conditions. Maintain a plant, weed and pest-free zone around the structure’s exterior.”

Jason Bowers from Central Pest Control Queensland (pictured above) supports these principals as part of his professional pest management services. Recently, some of his accounts became affected by extremely high rodent pressure, with some customers in Chinchilla, Miles, and the surrounding areas being affected, mainly by mice.

“We have been working closely with our accounts to seal up any exterior entry points to stop mice from getting inside and the only rodent bait we use is First Strike. It’s great because of its palatability, quick knockdown, and suitability for ongoing maintenance programs. We have less bait wastage in using First Strike and a quicker time for re-baiting stations due to the soft bait and sachet- style packaging, which provides better economics for our commercial accounts,” explained Mr Bowers.

 

A large number of First Strike sachets loaded into a station to combat a mouse infestation

 

Liphatech First Strike Soft Bait uses the active ingredient difethialone, invented by Liphatech. As a second generation anticoagulant formulation, rodents consume a lethal dose in a single feed and begin dying 3-5 days later. Made with different blends of oils and without the addition of wax, it is highly acceptable to rodents even when there is a competing food source.

Mr Bower continued, “With recent high mouse numbers causing chaos with some accounts, in some places we had to increase the amount of rodent bait stations around an asset and carry out more regular visits for inspection and re-baiting. I have also had to increase the amount of First Strike loaded into some bait stations as I found First Strike was being quickly consumed even after only a few days.”

As a soft bait, First Strike enables Mr Bower to easily increase the number of baits used in each rodent station. “In some areas we placed 34 First Strike sachets, which equals 340 grams of bait secured into one rodent station. We couldn’t have achieved this if we were using the old style wax block bait.

“My customers can visually see the results of how quick and effective First Strike is from being used in their rodent baiting programs. When my customers are happy, we maintain our long-term relationships and contracts, which makes us happy in turn.”