Alberta is no place for a rat

The Canadian province of Alberta is the most dangerous place in the world to be a rat!

Considered to be rat-free, it has been waging a war on the rodent for more than 70 years.

Last year just 31 rats – up five on the 2020 total of 26 –were discovered in the province, all of them believed to have been ‘hitch-hikers’ in visitors’ vehicles.

Alberta has had a rat control programme in place since 1950, with a team of officials dedicated to making sure the few rodents that cross the province’s border are rapidly hunted down before they can thrive.

Karen Wickerson, a rat specialist who manages the provincial programme, told CBC news the numbers crossing into her sphere of operation fluctuated yearly.

“And the majority of them are hitch-hikers in vehicles from BC (British Columbia),” she said.

The larger Norway rat is the most common rodent to make the mistake of moving to Alberta, with the smaller Black rat only an occasional unfortunate visitor.

“They have longer tails, and they’re very good at climbing and surviving around water,” Ms Wickerson said of her smaller foe.

Members of the public who see what they think may be a rat can use a free-phone number to alert the authorities or, since 2020, can drop them an email.

People in Alberta, however, unused to rat sightings, have proved to have difficulties recognising the rodent.

Last year, in part due to the pandemic, saw a rise in reporting but most proved false.

Ms Wickerson said: “People were outside more, getting fresh air, walking their dogs, seeing critters and thinking, ‘That could be a rat’.”

Of the 460 sightings recorded last year, 222 were muskrats with 429 overall being classified as “non-rat” following investigation.

“Albertans have never lived with rats, so they don’t know exactly what they look like,” she said.

Inspection agents help farmers and home-owners stamp out any potential infestations when the real thing is spotted, though Alberta has not had to contend with more than five infestations in recent years.

“When I speak to Albertans about this, they’re all very proud of the fact that we are rat-free,” added Ms Wickerson.