Rats turning up in Innisfil

Some residents in Alcona are concerned about the number of rats showing up in the community.

Long-time home owners in the area say they have never had a rat problem before this spring and as summer wears on it’s becoming clear the problem isn’t going away, despite efforts to exterminate the rodents.

“We’re trying to take this matter fairly seriously,” says Danny Rodgers from the Town of Innisfil. “We have contacted our animal control officer, they have a licensed person on staff to deal with pesticides.”

Resident Andrew Smith tells CTV News he’s caught about 30, roughly half field mice and half rats.

“The first one we saw was in April, then we saw more and more,” says resident Brenda Hudson. “Then we started putting out traps and poison around the end of May.”

Ruth Gowan with Abell Pest Control says a female rat can have four to seven litters per year and each litter can have up to twelve babies in it.

Residents are being asked to call town officials in Innisfil if they have ongoing concerns about rats.