Rat Poison Blamed For 2 North Shore Dog Deaths Over Weekend

NAHANT, MA — Nahant officials are urging residents to check with pest-control companies to make sure they are in compliance with the town's prohibition of rat poison after it said two dogs died this weekend after it is believed they ingested the anticoagulant rodenticides during a local walk.

Town officials said a Nahant resident lost two large Labrador retrievers after they ate something during their daily walk.

The town passed a prohibition of rat poison on all public and private property during its 2026 town meeting.

"Please check with any pest control company that you are utilizing to ensure that these SGARs are not being applied to your property," the town alerted residents.

Speak Up For Animals President Deb Newman told Patch last year that commonly used anticoagulant rodenticides are not only ineffective in solving an infestation, but they cause a painful bleeding-out for rats and mice who consume the bait, and also doom birds of prey and other rodent predators to the same fate.

In this case, they also apparently were fatal for the dogs that found the poison presumably intended for the rodents or ate the rodents themselves.

The rodenticide issue is most prevalent near malls and shopping centers that use rat poison to control the rodent population in and around dumpsters.

The food placed in the dumpsters draws the rodents, and the rodents draw the birds of prey, which will feed on them near restaurants or as they cross nearby roadways.

Nahant is one of several North Shore cities and towns that have either recently passed moratoriums on rat poison, instead implementing programs that include "rat birth control" designed to slow the proliferation of the rodent population without the consequences of a painful death and danger for other animals.