Barn owls are iconic farmland predators whose welfare is threatened by secondary poisoning from rodenticides used to control agricultural pests, causing slow and painful death.
Barn owls dying from secondary rodenticide poisoning experience prolonged internal hemorrhaging over several days — a painful and distressing death. Because they consume multiple poisoned rodents, anticoagulant accumulates to lethal levels even when individual prey items carry sub-lethal doses. Reducing reliance on second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides in favor of integrated pest management, barn owl nest box provision, and targeted use of less persistent rodenticides directly improves barn owl welfare while supporting natural pest control services.