THE DESTRUCTION OF RATS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2983, 17 May 1911, Page 23

THE DESTRUCTION OF RATS.

Now that the Health Department is about to {undertake a campaign against rats the following should be of interest to farmers whose yearly loss from the ravages of the rodents must be very heavy: —- Professor Neumann was recently invited by the Gorman Government to make a series of experiments to keep down rats. His investigations have resulted in. the discovery of a preparation, which he calls “ Ratin.” The German Government have subjected this preparation to searching tests, and the Minister of Agriculture has sent out a circular in which he says: ‘‘ln, ordea* to test the efficacy and practical use of ‘ratin,’ the Chamber of Agriculture for the province, of Saxony Ims made exhaustive trials in its own bacteriological institute, as well as on a number of farms. The results of these experiments have now come to hand, and show that ‘ ratin, when applied in solid or liquid cultures, causes among the rats (even in cases; where ordinary noisoins failed! a deadly epidemic, which kills off most of the animals, reaching often 100 per cent. The cultures, which are readily eaten by the rats, are easily applied, and in marked contrast to the usual ordinary poisons, are quite harmless to all domestic animals.' In. consequence of the successes that have so far been achieved with * ratin,* the Chamber of Agriculture in Halle will in future prepare cultures of ‘ ratin ’ at its own laboratory.”