‘WE’VE SEEN MORE THAN A HUNDRED RATS, CONSTANTLY RUNNING DOWN THE STREET’
Tenant calls for action after 5 rabbits die
FAMILIES on one of Stoke-on-trent’s newest housing estates say they have seen rats running through their gardens.
Tenants in Talbot Street, Hanley, say it has been a long-running problem since they moved into the new development around a year ago.
A video shared with The Sentinel shows one rat scurrying under a fence into a garden in broad daylight.
Now Shannon O’toole says five of her pet rabbits have died from disease spread by the vermin.
The 22-year-old said: “I had six pet rabbits and I’ve only got one now.
“They caught a disease from the rats. I’ve seen them running through the garden since we moved in.
“The rats would eat their food and then the rabbits caught it off the food that was left. You can’t vaccinate the rabbits against it.
“There have been pumpkins left outside for Halloween and rat droppings have been found inside.
“It’s just getting worse. They’re river rats and they are massive. They come in the garden under the fence.
“We’ve seen more than one hundred rats since we moved here, they’re constantly running up and down the street. My dog goes mad at the window barking at them all day.
“These are really expensive houses and we didn’t plan on having our pets pass away as a result of vermin.
“We can’t put any poison down because the dog would die if he ate it. We want the landlord to get some traps, but we just get brushed off. Our three-bedroom property is £735 a month. We’re paying a lot of money, but not getting what we paid for.”
Neighbour Jack Middleton says he has seen a ‘bunch’ of rats on the Emma Bridgewater car park opposite.
The 27-year-old said: “I think there should be some traps put down.”
Novus Property Solutions is the builder behind the 128-home Saxon Place estate, off Lichfield Street. The four-acre site is owned by Fortior Homes, which is linked to Stokeon-trent City Council. The estate is managed by Leeds-based Liv Group.
A Fortior Homes spokesman said: “We’ve received two reports of rats in gardens and an inspection has been carried out. We are now deciding on the most appropriate course of action.
“Rats only appear where there is a food source, so we will also be arranging for the council’s pest control team to provide advice to residents on some simple steps they can take themselves to deter rodents.”