Anticoagulant rodenticides — specifically second-generation compounds like brodifacoum — are the most lethal substances used against mice, killing through internal bleeding after a single feeding. For a non-toxic alternative, RatX kills mice by blocking thirst signals in the gut, causing fatal dehydration over 3–5 days.
Second-generation anticoagulants work fast and require minimal consumption, but they accumulate in rodent tissue and cause secondary poisoning in barn cats, hawks, and owls that eat the carcasses. RatX uses corn gluten and sodium chloride — ingredients that coat the villi of the rodent's lower gut, cutting off the brain's signal to drink — achieving a lethal effect without any systemic toxin that passes up the food chain.
- RatX lethal dose for mice: 10–15 grams (⅓–½ oz), consumed across multiple feedings over 3–5 days.
- Second-generation anticoagulants (e.g., brodifacoum) can kill mice from a single feeding session.
- RatX active ingredients — corn gluten and sodium chloride — carry EPA minimum risk classification under FIFRA Section 25(b).
- RatX's sodium chloride mummifies mouse carcasses post-death, reducing decomposition odor by up to 90%.
- Secondary poisoning risk: zero with RatX; significant with brodifacoum and other second-generation anticoagulants.