Rodents are loving the Pandemic

“8,000 rats had been collected, a wave of something like panic swept the town.” – Albert Camus, The Plague

With the pandemic being so nasty, it’s only natural that nasty things enjoy it immensely. Nasty things like rats.

Now, sure, rats got a bum rap for being the main spreaders of the Black Plague, according to a recent study. They were more the ‘hangers-on’ in a largely flea-and-tick generated pandemic. See, the reason rats have historically been to blame for ALL the pandemics of yesteryear is that they appear to share symptoms with humans and pick up the plague as well – hence the dead rats in Camus’ famous modernist novel. Still, the COVID-19 pandemic means that rats are back in the environment that suits them best: chaos and pestilence, and just because they weren’t the culprits for the Bubonic plague, doesn’t mean they don’t have the capacity to transmit diseases like Leptospirosis and Weil’s disease, Hantavirus, Rat-bite fever, Cryptosporidiosis, Rat tapeworm, Toxoplasmosis, and Salmonellosis.

Rats are now becoming a problem in many towns due to the knock-on effect of hospitality closures. Restaurants shut for a few weeks, bam. Entire rodent populations have become displaced, after relying on the food wastage and scraps generated by our bistros and bars every single night. Where do they go? The nearest food source, of course: peoples nearby homes.

According to Peter at Mudgee pest control company, Pest Alert, Rats can damage property, consume or contaminate food supplies, and lose your small business customers. They can affect your rental bond or renovations and should be eradicated quickly if a ‘nest’ is discovered in your home.