How Many Rodent Sightings Were Reported in Waltham Last Year?

WALTHAM, MA – Earlier this week, data from an American Housing Survey ranked the Boston metro area second in the nation in rodent sightings. Though the survey is from 2015 – it is conducted every two years –many in Waltham noticed an increase of the furry pests in their own hometown in 2016.

And according to Director of Public Health John Zuppe, it's not their imagination. Zuppe told Patch there was an uptick in rodent sightings last year, with the health department fielding 190 complaints.

Zuppe did not have records for previous years but estimated the Health Department received an average of fewer than 20 complaints per year. So far in 2017 there have been 15 reports – and it's only January.

One reason for this is the unseasonably mild weather during the fall and winter months.

"Usually when you have cold weather and real snow it does drive down the population," Zuppe said. "Last winter was very mild, so we didn't have the rat kill-off during the winter you'd normally have. It's kind of going in that direction now."

Another cause is major disruptions in infrastructure that comes from several developments popping up around the city. The health department has begun to curb this by ordering property owners that wish to demolish a building and developers to have at least 30 days of rodent control before they can demolish a structure.

And when the health department gets a report, it doesn't just hone in on the building where it was reported, but tackles the area as a whole.

"When we get a complaint at a particular address, we try and put out educational flyers and do a sweep of the whole neighborhood," Zuppe said.

The city then requires property owners to hire an exterminator to remedy the issue.

In some instances, this has worked, and Zuppe says there were areas in the city last year that no longer face a rodent problem.

But residents can do their part to help curtail the number of rodents in the city, namely, by ensuring their trash is maintained properly. That includes keeping trash stored in barrels with tight-fitting lids, leaving the barrels closed and not leaving trash outside in plastic bags for collection.

"If a rat or mouse can't eat, it won't reproduce and spread," Zuppe said. "The population is determined by food supply, and if the food supply dries up they start to die."

Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story stated the health department sends rodent control to properties. The city instead requires property owners to hire an exterminator and owners and developers that want to demolish a building to have at least 30 days of rodent control before they can demolish a structure.