The battle for one Oak Park resident began last summer after she noticed her dog was anxiously wanting to go outside more frequently. She discovered rats in her backyard and garage were drawing her dog’s attention.
“We basically caught 32 rats in one week,” said the woman, who asked that her name be withheld to protect her employment status. “One week!”
The large quantity of rats had her concerned, but the problem just kept getting worse.
“As the summer progressed, they [the rats] became more ballsy,” she said. “It got to the point where we did not even go to the backyard because there were so many.”
So, she called the village asking for help exterminating the infestation, she said, but they only left one trap.
Then, she discovered there were the rat droppings and a dead newborn rat in her home. It was too much.
She has yet to see the village take serious steps to reduce the rat problem, she said.
“I pay a lot in taxes,” she added. “I kind of expect that I can use my outdoor space.”
She is not alone. Oak Parkers are reporting on social media and elsewhere that the population of rats in the village appears to have increased. From photos of “rat holes” in alleys to photos of dead bodies by dumpsters, the complaints have been stacking up. It’s not surprising, some say. After all, neighboring Chicago is the city with the number one rat problem in the country, according to a list by Orkin.
However, Theresa Chapple, public health director for Oak Park, said she has not noticed an increase in rat reports in Oak Park.
There are a few ways, she offered, that the village responds to rat problems: education, mitigation and extermination.
If the village receives multiple calls from a specific area or block about a rat problem, they will warn the residents in that area about the sightings and offer educational materials, Chapple said.
If a resident or business owner were to contact the village about a specific rat problem at their property, they will be told to fill out a release form on the village website, allowing the exterminator the village partners with, Pest Management Services, to leave a bait trap. Sometimes they will use poison, depending on the situation, Chapple said.
“The service comes out in the winter every other week, in the spring once a week and in the summer twice a week,” she said.
The response time depends on the resident or business owner with a rat problem sending the request in by a certain time, Chapple said, to get on the exterminator’s schedule for the week. Otherwise, they’ll have to wait an additional week.
The exterminator will keep in touch about their process, Chapple said, and when they’ll be back to follow up.
“If they don’t see any activity after three times then they close the case,” she said.
The village also works to have educational information on social media and on its website, Chapple said, to explain how to keep the rat population down and prevent a problem. Rats are attracted to yards that are overgrown, food sources, trash and more, she said.
Ingo Schaefer, an Oak Park resident of more than 50 years, said has noticed rats around his property located at a duplex he owns on South Ridgeland Avenue, but none at his personal home.
“I’ve seen them scurrying across the alley,” he said. “In particular when it’s dark.”
He has not reported the issue to the village, he said, but he has seen other people on Facebook complain about the problem. The infestation seems to have increased, Schaefer said.
“I haven’t seen rats in years,” he said. “Most recently, I have.”
One attraction for the pests could be garbage, Schaefer said, due to trucks potentially dropping trash with the mechanical pickup. He said he’s cleaned up after the trash pickup several times.
Another attraction for rats could be residents not properly picking up after their dogs, he said, as he’s seen an increase in waste left around in the last several months. He said he worries about the rats getting into his house as well.
“You worry about disease, you worry about cleanliness,” he said. “They’re pretty nasty animals.”
Overfilling dumpsters and not picking up after dogs are two bigger issues that attract rats, Chapple said.
“They [rats] really enjoy dog feces,” she said. “I read a report that said that’s considered caviar to rats.”
Schaefer said he has seen the village lay out bait traps to catch rats but does not know if those are recently set or from past problems. He said he hopes the village will address the rats, although he thinks it’s an even bigger problem in neighboring communities.
“I suspect the village is doing a reasonable job with what they’re facing,” he said.
