Pest control kills billions of animals annually in agricultural and domestic settings. Understanding welfare-conscious pest management helps reduce unnecessary suffering.
Anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning causes prolonged internal bleeding over several days — a welfare-poor killing method that also causes secondary poisoning of predators consuming poisoned rodents. Snap traps cause rapid death when properly set but delayed death with severe injury when misfired. Glue traps cause extreme prolonged suffering and are banned in several jurisdictions. Exclusion — preventing rodents from accessing buildings through physical barriers — is the most welfare-positive approach and is also more durable as a pest control solution than repeated killing. Insect pest control with broad-spectrum insecticides kills vast numbers of non-target invertebrates, with potential welfare significance given growing evidence for insect sentience.