Safety is an important consideration when applying chemicals to treat or prevent a pest's infestation, especially indoors. For this discussion, we won't be including weed control products (herbicides), although many definitions of "pesticide" would, as weeds are also "unwanted organisms." Also, we will not be addressing current methods of termite control in this article.
The pesticides that homeowners typically use fall into two broad categories, insecticides and rodenticides. Their names are fairly self explanatory. One kills insects the other kills rodents (mammals). The accidental poisoning dangers, however, are quite different.