It's not just cities anymore — Canadian suburbs see surge in rat populations

If you’re noticing more rats in your neighbourhood, you’re not imagining it. According to Abell Pest Control, there’s been a rise in rat populations in Canadian suburbs.

Cities might be a hotspot for rats, but that’s quickly changing as these rodents are now being spotted in residential communities outside urban areas. The company has reported a “concerning rise in rat populations within suburban areas.”

“In 2020, amidst the pandemic, Abell Pest Control witnessed a staggering 50% surge in service requests linked to rats,” said Mike Heimbach, vice president of business development at Abell Pest Control. “Since then, inquiries have risen by an additional 24%. This significant uptick for a single pest is alarming, and we anticipate the trend persisting.”

So what happened?

According to the company, they mainly investigated downtown areas near waterfronts, hotels, and restaurants. Since these businesses leave garbage in alleys, these areas become their “primary food source.”

However, that changed because of the pandemic. As businesses shut down, the rats’ food sources dried up. So they moved.

Grace800/Shutterstock

Aided by “large infrastructure projects,” rats relocated in huge numbers, eventually settling in suburban communities.

“Rats reproduce very quickly, and this has prompted an unprecedented flood in calls from residential communities unaccustomed to their presence,” said Heimbach. “These rodents are not motivated to vacate; they’ve made themselves at home and are here to stay.”

Rats are known to squeeze through tight spaces — sometimes as small as the size of a quarter — and enter homes and buildings “through buildings and gaps in doors, cracks in foundations, or openings around pipes.”

Here’s how to protect your home from a rat infestation:

• Inspect your home’s exterior and make sure to seal cracks or openings – that includes windows, door seals, foundation cracks, and vent covers
• Make sure vents, ducts, and utility openings have no gaps
• Ensure that bins are tightly sealed so as not to attract rats
• Remove bird feeders as they are “a common food source for rats”
• Declutter your yard, as these spaces can serve as hiding spots

You might also like:
• "Presence of smoke" forces Canada-bound Delta aircraft to make an emergency landing
• Weekend winner: Lottery player wakes up a brand new millionaire, two split second prize
• Is it even possible to retire at 65 anymore? Canadians in big cities weighed in, and things got dark