| | Alberta's Rat Control Program Main Page
Test your rodent knowledge! After reading the following "rat" facts and listed fact sheets, try Rat Quiz 1 and Rat Quiz 2.
...
 |  | Early Poster for Rat Control (1955)
Today, provincial legislation requires all Albertans take measures to control rats.
In the fall, rats are on the move, seeking food and shelter before winter sets in. They take up residence in what ever is available and close to the ground, such as rubbish, lumber, warehouses, outbuildings, and machinery. As long as they are close to food and sheltered from the weather and predators, a pair of rats will thrive and produce as many as 15,000 more rats every year. |
...
 |  | Large Incisor Teeth that Grow Continuously
Rats are very destructive. A rat's front teeth never stop growing, so to keep them short, they gnaw on almost anything including wooden beams, plastic siding, electrical wiring, insulation, and even concrete.
Rats can exist on an incredible diet that includes:
- Grain/forage
- Green vegetation
- Bread
- Fat, grease
- Candy, sugar
- Fish, meat
- Pet food
- Spoiled or rotten food
- Dead animals
- Sewage
|
 |  | Rats Often Carry Lice and Other Parasites
(Note the left ear)
Rats carry parasites and disease deadly to humans. In fact, each year, people in the US are still infected with the infamous Black Plague that killed millions during the Middle Ages. Thousands of livestock and poultry are infected, and die from rat-borne diseases.
Rat-borne Diseases
- Encephalitis
- Ornithosis
- Toxoplasmosis
- Newcastle
- Pseuso TB
- Salmonellosis
- Plague
- Leptospirosis
|  |
|
More Amazing Facts About Rats
- Rats came to Canada on sailing ships in the 1700s.
- There are two to four rats for every person in the US.
- Pet rats are illegal in Alberta.
- Alberta's Rat Patrol needs your help to stay successful!
- Rats destroy 1/5 of all the world's crops each year.
|
|