(KTLA) – Wild pigs in California were recently found to have blue-colored muscle and fat, a sign that they may have ingested toxic rodenticide bait, according to the state’s Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Lab testing confirmed the presence of diphacinone, an anticoagulant rodenticide, in the stomach and liver of one pig showing blue tissue in Monterey County. The investigation was led by CDFW’s Wildlife Health Lab and the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory in Davis after a wildlife trapper reported the unusual coloring in March.
Rodenticides are designed to kill rodents but can also harm other animals, either by direct consumption or by eating animals that have been exposed…