Moncton ranks in first place as Atlantic Canada’s “rattiest” city, pushing St. John’s, N.L., to second place after it held the top spot for three successive years.
Dieppe, N.B., came in third, Halifax in fourth and Charlottetown took the fifth spot.
In a release, Orkin Canada, the country’s largest pest control provider, released on Wednesday its annual list of the cities with the most rats in Atlantic Canada to shed light on some major changes brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The cities were ranked on the number of commercial and residential rodent treatments that Orkin Canada carried out from Aug. 1, 2020, through July 31, 2021.
The company said that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the closure of restaurants in urban areas and more people staying at home in the suburbs may have had an effect on the eating habits and behaviour of rodents.
It went on to explain that there has been more food waste during the lockdown than non-lockdown times.
“Food abundance means potential increases in rodent populations, which is why people may be seeing more rats and mice in residential neighbourhoods,” Orkin Canada said.
Global News reported in 2017 that residents in a north Moncton neighbourhood asked the city to take more action to control an infestation of rats.
In response, the city said rodent control is the responsibility of individual homeowners and that city officials don’t have the right to go onto someone’s property to do rat control.
Orkin Canada warned that as winter approaches, rats and mice may be looking for shelter indoors, and suggested the following tactics to prevent rodents from entering homes:
- Seal cracks or holes in your foundation and install weather stripping around windows and doors.
- Keep shrubbery at least a metre away from the exterior walls of your home.
- Get rid of moisture sources, such as clogged gutters.
- Be diligent in keeping garbage and old food away from your house.