Area health official outlines efforts to combat rat problems

NORTH ATTLEBORO — Residents can take some simple steps to keep rats from becoming a problem in their neighborhoods, the town health director told councilors this past week.

Anne Marie Fleming told the council at its regular meeting Monday that in recent months she’s received “probably more rat complaints than I’ve seen in recent years.”

Local officials have been aware of the problem since last summer, but there’s been an uptick in reports recently.

There are a number of reasons for the phenomenon, Fleming said, not only in North Attleboro but in other communities.

Attleboro, for example, has had numerous rat infestation issues over the last two years.

Recent winters have been milder and there has been a decline in the number of predators, experts say.

When restaurants shut down during the pandemic, rat colonies that fed on scraps from those business moved into residential neighborhoods, where they found birdseed and chicken feed. “They love the occasional egg, as we all do,” Fleming added.

Part of the solution, she said, is to make sure the rodents don’t have a food source, such as a trash bin that is not secure or trash bags left out too long before they are picked up on trash day.

“If you are leaving bags with garbage outside, that will be an attraction,” she said. One answer is to buy a trash barrel to put the bags in.

Town Manager Michael Borg said officials are looking into changing from bags to barrels for the town’s solid waste collection.

Both Borg and Fleming urged residents who suspect a rat infestation to call town hall rather than simply note it on social media.

“We can advise you and give you pest-control advice,” Borg said.