Rats in Bristol! Is it real or rumor?

Some say there’s a problem in town, but the crews on the front line say it’s all about prevention

By Christy Nadalin
Posted 10/19/18

Much like the Fight Club in the 1999 film of the same name, it seems that the first rule of rats is, we don’t talk about rats. Residents don’t want to talk about it; businesses …

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Rats in Bristol! Is it real or rumor?

Some say there’s a problem in town, but the crews on the front line say it’s all about prevention

Posted

Much like the Fight Club in the 1999 film of the same name, it seems that the first rule of rats is, we don’t talk about rats. Residents don’t want to talk about it; businesses don’t want talk about it … most businesses anyway. Happily, Michael Hoffman and Drew Lombardo of Reliable Pest are happy to talk about it.

The alarm was recently sounded on a local Facebook group, when a new resident, concerned by a conversation she had with a neighbor, asked the question: Does Bristol have rats? The conversation quickly spiraled out of control into an online “debate” about people picking up after their dogs, but nonetheless, the question was asked.

Does Bristol have a rat problem?

Despite anecdotal reports of rat sightings in neighborhoods around town, there is not, at present, a rat situation that would be considered problematic enough to have raised any official alarms — in part, because the town, and residents, are taking preventative measures.

“I have not received any recent complaints to the town administrator’s office relating to rodents,” said Town Administrator Steven Contente. Mr. Hoffman, who also happens to be the pest control contractor used by the town, concurred. “We preventatively control the landfill once a week,” said Mr. Hoffman. “Because Steve (Contente) doesn’t want a problem. He’s really big on fixing a problem before it becomes a problem. And it’s working. There’s no evidence of activity there.”

Accordingly, most town properties, from the transfer station to the State Street reservoir, to the perimeters of school properties, are maintained with bait stations. These are boxes that are tightly secured with keys and weights to prevent access by children and dogs. Rats, however, can access the bait, which is poisoned. Bait stations are very effective at controlling rat populations before they become problematic.

The town is not, however, responsible for controlling rats on private property — and residents around town, from Metacom Avenue to Hope Street, are reporting sightings.

One Hope Street resident who did not wish to be identified said that after two decades in his home, he suddenly started seeing rats in his yard about two years ago. He began trapping them, and as of last week, he had caught 14 in all. With no apparent sanitation issues in his yard or in the yards immediately adjacent, he’s at a loss as to what is attracting the rats. 

Contrary to what most people believe, you do not need to be living in squalor to attract rats to your property. “They like compost,” said Mr. Hoffman. Compost — even just leaf litter and grass cuttings — are a seemingly benign and environmentally responsible feature of many local garden plots. Nonetheless, compost attracts rats, and Mr. Hoffman recommends that everyone who composts use a bin, not just a pile or an enclosure.

Mr. Hoffman doesn’t really differentiate between rats and any other “nuisance” animal that might take up residence in a part of your property where they are not welcome, much like raccoons or squirrels. But rats do have a bad rap, primarily because sanitation issues are often at the heart of what typically attracts them. That said, “sanitation” can refer to bird feeders, or a hole in an otherwise secure garbage can.

Beware, bird feeders

“Bird feeders are the worst," Mr. Hoffman said. “They love those black sunflower seeds. Housing complexes like North Farm and many others have banned bird feeders … You can end up with rats because you have any kind of harborage. That could be a nice shed in your yard, with a garden nearby.”

The Hope Street resident’s next move is going to be to install a mesh foundation on his shed, which is the only obvious place in his yard that might be harboring the rodents. But while that may solve the problem in his yard, chances are, the rats will just migrate to the next safe spot.

Animals losing their homes

“Rats are part of nature, and we’re doing a lot of construction work,” said Mr. Hoffman, which disrupts the rats’ homes and sends them looking elsewhere. “It’s like people saying that they are seeing a lot of deer. But there aren’t any more deer. There’s just less woods for them to hide in.

“We’re getting increased calls about all wildlife, never mind the rats — because every time we eliminate more of the woods, those animals have to go someplace,” Mr. Hoffman said.

In fact, Reliable Pest has one employee who puts in 50 hours a week on wildlife removal exclusively.

Still, when it comes to rats, the best thing people can do is make sure their trash is secure. With so many restaurants, residents and shops in close proximity downtown, prevention is the key.

“If one comes and sets up shop, it becomes difficult to get rid of the population,” said Mr. Hoffman. "People are going the preventative route, because nobody wants to walk in on Monday morning to that phone call."

“If they have that constant food source, they’re going to thrive,” said Mr. Lombardo. “And the last two winters haven’t had a deep enough, long enough freeze to slow down the population,” which makes prevention all the more important.

It’s a matter of us just talking to business owners and homeowners. If you have a trash can with a hole, let’s cover that up, little stuff like that. It’s a constant team effort.”

Ultimately, though, the men on the front lines are clear that there is no town-wide problem. “Honestly, wild turkeys are a bigger nuisance than rats,” said Mr. Hoffman.

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