A northeast neighbourhood is on alert for rats after residents discovered one of the rodents last week.
A resident contacted the city after discovering a rat in a shed. Bylaw officials killed the pest but saw signs of burrowing and nesting, leading them to suspect there could be more.
“We’ve seen evidence of rat activity so we’re staying with it until we can confirm there are no others,” said bylaw and animal services boss Bill Bruce.
He wouldn’t reveal the neighbourhood where the rat was discovered but said letters have been distributed to every home telling residents to keep an eye out for the rodents.
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An Alberta border patrol program has helped keep the province essentially rat-free since the 1950s.
Calgary bylaw and animal services officers receive about 125 calls a year reporting rats in the city, but the majority wind up as sightings of muskrats or large mice, said Bruce.
The rat discovered in the northeast was a Norway rat, a rodent known for damaging buildings and crops and carrying diseases.
Bylaw officers have set up traps and bait in the neighbourhood and will monitor the area for at least the next three weeks.
A contractor will come today to clean up the back alley and general area where the rat was found, Bruce said.
The signs of nesting are particularly concerning, since the rats are prolific breeders, said Bruce.
“It doesn’t confirm they’re breeding, but it does confirm they’re set up to.”
The news comes as a Saskatchewan town grapples with a rat infestation.
Health authorities in Swift Current issued a warning after the number of rat complaints spiked, including reports of a person bit while in bed.
According to Bruce, rats that end up in Calgary often come from Saskatchewan, hitching a ride in vehicles and transport loads. It’s not known how the northeast rat got here.
jkomarnicki@theherald. canwest.com
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