By K. Michelle Moran
C & G Staff Writer

GROSSE POINTE PARK — After squirrels apparently grabbed loose commercial rat poison pellets and scattered them throughout the city, leading to several suspected poisoning illnesses and deaths of local dogs, city officials are re-evaluating their rodent control measures.

During the Nov. 9 Park City Council meeting, City Council member James Robson, who was assigned to head up a rodent control committee, offered an update on the rat poison issue. The city’s rodent control efforts stirred fear and controversy among residents earlier this fall after their pets began falling ill, and they found the blue poison cubes, which some likened in appearance to sidewalk chalk, in their yards.

City Manager Dale Krajniak said there were 14 traps set up throughout the city, and all of them have since been picked up. The city has also stopped using the traps for the time being, he said.

Public Safety Director David Hiller said the existing bait has been sealed up and won’t be made accessible again until the Park decides its next course of action.

City Council member Gregory Theokas suggested getting rid of the remaining supply of poison, but other officials objected.

“What if we decide to reuse it (later)?” City Council member Robert Denner asked. “Then we’ve got to buy it again.”

As to one resident’s assertion that he spotted a city employee tossing unsecured poison pellets inside rat holes, Hiller said his investigation determined that this wasn’t the case. Hiller said the resident saw an unidentified man tossing the poison in the summer of 2008, not this fall, as previously believed.

Because business trash containers are thought to be a major factor in attracting rodents, Hiller said the Public Safety Department would be sending letters to all commercial businesses in the Park regarding proper trash disposal. Over the next couple of weeks, Hiller said, all of the business trash containers would be inspected. Those found deficient would have to be replaced at the business’s expense, he said.

Mayor Palmer Heenan asked what residents should do if they experience a rat problem. Theokas was among those who felt that the city should hold off on resuming its rat poisoning program until the committee completed its study. City Council member Laurie Arora, who asked to be added to the rodent control committee, said the problem was with the loose poison, not the traps that are used to contain it and keep it from being randomly spread.

In the meantime, Robson recommended that residents who experience a rat problem might want to contact rodent control specialists on their own, since the city’s program is on hold.

You can reach Staff Writer K. Michelle Moran at kmoran@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1047.