Building a Poison-Free Marco

What began as a mission to save birds of prey led to the eye-opening realization of the insufficient and damaging methods used by many pest control companies to manage rats. During the last five years, our partnerships have grown, and a three-step program was established. This is only the beginning, as we have big plans for continuing to expand education to the public, pest control companies, and businesses in every way possible. One of our most important partnerships is Paul Trap from Seal Em Out, who runs a business focused on exclusion and now incorporates Good Bites fertility feed made by Wisdom Good Works in areas with larger rat populations. As we have made huge improvements in condos, homes, and businesses, we are hoping to eventually connect with other pest control companies to lead the way in proper techniques. If you own a pest control company, please reach out to us for a meeting! Paul can provide his services and then involve Good Bites and/or train your staff on how to properly seal buildings. Sealing buildings is the most important prevention and long-term solution. All companies should take this step first for the structural integrity of the building and the health and safety of people and pets. We continue to test birds of prey but are also investigating other mortalities of species such as nighthawks, which we suspect are related to eating insects like cockroaches that have ingested poison inside the boxes. Anything that enters a box of poison has the potential to spread it through the food chain. This is not just about rats. We need to remove poison from our ecosystem to keep people, animals, and our water healthy. Additionally, this goes beyond just Marco Island. We have also met with Collier County management and hope to make positive changes in Naples, too. Collier County schools are also on our list of future goals.

Our three-step program

#1: Seal Your Building

Call Paul (Seal Em Out) at 239-722-8243 for a free inspection to properly seal all points of the building with a one-year warranty.

#2: Trash and Plant Management:

Ensure trash is contained with proper lids and when possible, kept indoors. Trim all plants away from rooftops to prevent easy access to rodents. 

#3 Good Bites:

For areas with higher rat populations, Good Bites fertility feed is a safe product not affecting anything in the food chain. It works by causing infertility in male and female rats while normal predation continues to plummet the numbers. Contained traps can be used during the initial install to quicken the drop in numbers.

We are proud to announce the following folks who have become poison-free facilities and have been awarded a certificate to display in their building: Crescent Beach Condos, City of Marco Island properties, Wesley Methodist Church, Sunset House South Condos, Shipps Landing, Emerald Beach Condos, and Marco Eden Apartments. Some proposals are pending for large hotels and other businesses.  We will continue to update our list!

Currently, we are visiting restaurants, hotels, and other businesses. We look forward to moving forward with our mission to make Marco Island free of rat poison and promote the most effective and long-term methods of rat prevention. Please help us spread the word! If your facility is interested in free presentations and/or free inspections, email us at owlwatchmarco@gmail.com.