Pesticides: Animal Repellents

Common Brand Names:

Chemical Action and Usages: A number of companies manufacture animal repellents. A discussion will follow concerning some of the repellents offered by the brand or company listed above. Most of these products use environmentally friendly ingredients to deter the target pest through odor and taste. For instance, many of the small animal repellents contain garlic, capsaicin (hot pepper) and putrescent egg (smell of an animal protein). Mole repellents usually contain castor oil. Many of these products are labeled for use in vegetable gardens and ornamental plantings. Consult each product individually as to its ingredients, usage and restrictions. These repellents are available in RTU sprays, aerosols, granules and liquid concentrates depending on the product chosen.

Bobbex offers a number of environmentally friendly repellents including a Deer repellent, Animal repellent (rabbit, squirrel, vole, chipmunk etc.) and a Goose repellent for geese and other fowl.

Bonide offers the following repellents-Deer & Rabbit, Dog & Cat, Mole and Hot Pepper Wax Animal repellent.

Dr. T’s Nature Products offer one of the widest ranges of environmentally friendly repellent products including, but not limited to Snake-A-Way, Rat-A-Way (mice & rats), Deer, Rabbit and Squirrel, Mole Out and Bat Scat.

Ferti-lome offers a Dog and Rabbit Ridder, Dog & Cat Repellent, Mole-Go Mole repellent and a Deer repellent. Natural Guard, the natural product division of Ferti-lome, offers an Animal repellent containing Hot Pepper Wax.

Cautions/Instructions: Read the label carefully of the brand, repellent type and formulation you have selected. Apply the product according to the directions on the label. Most of they products have a rather short residual, so their effectiveness will depend on rainfall, irrigation and other environmental factors.

Toxicity: In humans, some of these products are toxic to humans if ingested and may also cause skin and eye irritation. The products containing capsaicin (hot pepper) are especially prone to causing skin and eye irritation. These products are generally non-toxic to birds, bees and fish. Consult each individual product for additional toxicity information.