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The so-called second-generation rat poisons that have been developed in recent years never should have been allowed on store shelves. It was obvious from the start that a poison that remains in a rodent's body long after it's dead would end up poisoning the animals that eat the rodents — including household pets, foxes, golden eagles and owls. In fact, the animals the pesticide is most likely to kill are the ones that naturally keep rat populations down by preying on them. Testing of birds of prey in San Diego County found that more than 9 in 10 had rat poison in their systems; the pesticide is also found in more than three-fourths of the state's mountain lions. Last...