350 domestic rats recovered from one apartment go to new homes

Some 30 rats are being cared for at the Peterborough Humane Society after the owner surrendered the rodents to authorities. (Harrison Perkins / CTV Toronto)

NORTH BAY, Ont. -- An animal welfare group in Ontario says more than half of nearly 600 domestic rats seized last year from an apartment in North Bay, Ont., have been adopted.

The rodents were found in a one-bedroom apartment in North Bay, Ont., in December, when the local humane society received a report about a large number of domestic rats being kept in the residence.

A spokesman for the North Bay and District Humane Society said most of the rats were found running free in the apartment at the time.

Daryl Vaillancourt said a woman voluntarily surrendered nearly 600 rats that were removed from the apartment over several days and sent to other humane societies.

The Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says more than 350 of those rats have now found new homes after a "rat adopt-a-thon" was hosted at a number of PetSmart stores across the province from Jan. 21 to Feb. 12.

The 51-year-old woman who surrendered the rats in North Bay faces four Ontario SPCA Act charges.

She is accused of permitting distress, failing to provide sanitary living conditions, failing to provide care necessary for general welfare, and failing to provide adequate and appropriate medical attention.