The Bizarre Truth of Alberta’s Rat Population
Did you know that there is an entire province of Canada that is entirely rat-free? Alberta, Canada introduced a zero-tolerance rat policy decades ago, prohibiting the sale or ownership of pet rats and urging every citizen to either kill or report any rat they come across. Alberta also established its own rat force to combat the problem, including nationally subsidized pest control, with every municipality appointing their own pest control inspector.
Alberta launched a full on war on the destructive rodent pest and won, succeeding in achieving the largest rat-free area in the world, with as little as 1 to 5 infestations confirmed per year. Alberta achieved this through aggressive rat control services and a huge public education campaign. Alberta educated the public on why rats needed to be destroyed, where rats can be found, what people can do to eliminate rats, and who people can call when rats are spotted.
Many people wonder if Alberta’s zero tolerance style of rat control can be implemented in the United States or other parts of the world. While eliminating rats in an entire state may not be feasible right now, in the meantime there are plenty of pest control companies like Summit Pest Control that can keep rats far away from your property.
The Rat-Free Province
Norway rats are a commensal species, meaning they have to live with or near humans and man-made structures. Rats can’t live alone in nature, they rely on us to survive. Rats arrived in the Americas in the 1700’s, but did not begin invading Alberta until the 1950’s. During the early 1950’s, a crop protection supervisor named William Lobay came up with the idea of a control zone on the border with Saskatchewan to keep rats out of Alberta.
The Agricultural Pests Act of 1942 designated animals that were likely to destroy crops as pests. Rats are one of the leading causes of crop destruction around the world, as they will eat any crops they come across, dig up roots and chew through plants. The Agricultural Pests Act also required that every person and municipality had to destroy and prevent the establishment of pests, which greatly aided in the establishment of Alberta as a rat-free zone. Alberta Agriculture pays 50% of the salary/expenses of a full-time pest control inspector for each rural municipality on the border of Alberta. People who didn’t comply with pest control inspectors to destroy rat populations could be eventually faced with court action. However, due to the destructive nature of the rats, most people comply, as there have only been 7 notices issued to control rat populations since 1956.
Under the Agricultural Pests Act, it is illegal to own rats as pets, even if they are domesticated, as a pet rat escaping its home could set up a breeding population. Only zoos, recognized research institutions and universities are allowed to keep rats, and they must go through the government to obtain permission. Alberta was able to eliminate any breeding rat populations through the implementation of extensive rat control services and widespread public education.
Control and Education
Alberta implemented a heavy rat control program across the entire province, including the destruction of rats, rat-proofing homes and buildings, destroying rat harborages and eliminating rat food supplies. In the early 1950’s, during the early stages of elimination, 63,600 kg of arsenic trioxide tracking power was used across 8,000 buildings. While this was not a sustainable strategy, as the arsenic was also harmful to livestock and people, it was effective in buying Albertans time to develop a true pest control program. The current pest control program consists of destroying any found rat infestations, distributing bait and establishing bait stations, removing rat harborage, eliminating rat food supplies, rat-proofing buildings and checking every premise within 30 km west of the border.
Public education is one of the biggest parts of Alberta’s rat control program. Most citizens of Alberta did not know what rats looked like, so informing the citizens on how to identify rats, and most importantly, why they were so dangerous was and continues to be an integral part of rat control. Alberta Agriculture distributed preserved rat specimens to offices across the province, alongside conferences held in several towns and thousands of posters and pamphlets describing the appearance, signs, and danger of rats were distributed. Talks were hosted at schools and fairs, and a radio program began broadcasting information on rat control.
Today, Alberta has succeeded in eliminating all breeding populations of rats, so much of the public education is focused on identification of rats, as most rat sightings that are reported turn out to be muskrats, mice, voles, gophers and other small mammals. However, while breeding rat populations have been wiped out, Alberta’s rat patrol is still very active, always on call to destroy any rats that are reported to their dedicated phone line and e-mail address. Alberta remains the largest single jurisdiction in the world without rats. So, if Alberta can do it, can the United States achieve the same feat?
Is It Possible Here?
If Alberta was able to achieve an almost totally rat-free state in under 60 years, is it possible to achieve this in other areas of the world? Is it possible to achieve this in Virginia? The answer is a bit complicated. Rats are extremely clever rodents that can survive anywhere that humans live, so eliminating them will take the coordinated effort of an entire population. The population of Alberta has the advantage of being smaller and composed mostly of farmers, who would suffer direct financial loss at the hands of a rat infestation. It would be more difficult to get the vast populations of America’s cities and suburbs to get on board, as everyone must do their part for a total rat elimination like Alberta’s to work.
While it would certainly be difficult, Alberta’s success proves it is not impossible. To achieve a rat-free Hampton Roads, we’d have to start off with just one rat-free city, then slowly move across the area, adding more and more rat-free areas. However, this would be a long way off in the future. If you have rats on your property NOW, what should you do about it?
Rat Control in the Meantime
Creating rat-free cities and states in America might not be possible for a long time, but meanwhile, you can create a totally rat-free home or business with the help of a licensed pest control company like Summit Pest Control. Summit can offer professional rodent seal-outs to keep rats from entering the home, and rat fences to keep them out of your yard. A quarterly rat control treatment can also prevent rats from settling down on your property. Properly storing food in sealed containers and removing water sources, as well as keeping your home and yard free of clutter and debris can prevent rats. If you have a current rat problem or just want to prevent rat problems in the future, contact Summit Pest Control today for rat control services in Newport News and Hampton at 757-901-4455!