Rats Run Wild on Henley, Plaguing Residents

Residents on Henley Street, in the area of Stockton Street, are trying to evict some new neighbors that seem to be taking over the neighborhood--rats.  

According to one of the residents, Maria Sterk, there were rats every now and then, "But in the last two months the rat problem has gotten worse."

However, no one seems to know why. 

Sterk and her neighbor, Diane Malik, said that Joanna Adamiak from the New Milford Board of Health recently paid a visit to the neighborhood to investigate the rat problem. According to both Sterk and Malik, Adamiak cautioned residents about keeping bird feeders in their yards because rats are very attracted to them. She also advised that all pet food and water dishes left outside for dogs and cats who are gated in the yard be removed as well. (Calls to Adamiak have not yet been returned.)

Bergen County Animal Control emphasized that they are not pest control, but advise homeowners to be aware that rats like to make nests in piles of undisturbed wood and lumber, in overgrown shrubbery and piles of rocks in a yard or garden. 

Aware of this, Sterk has placed rat traps throughout the border of hostas that grow along the edge of her property.

Nearby, the dumpsters for Welsh Farms sit unenclosed in the parking lot adjacent to Trenton Street. Upon inspection, the lids were closed and there was no trash on the ground surrounding them. Sterk does not believe that the containers have contributed to the growing infestation. She said that although they may be a factor, she does not believe they are the cause.

In addition to seeing rats running through the neighborhood, what is extremely concerning to Sterk and her neighbors are the increasing number of dead rats they are finding in their yards everyday, up to eight or nine a week.

"These are not rats killed by other animals," Sterk said. "There are no markings on their bodies indicating that another animal got at them." 

"Dead with no markings leads me to believe that someone is poisoning them," she said.

Sterk, whose two dogs spend time outside in her gated backyard, recently took them to the vet because one of them had a dead rat in its mouth. 

"I was afraid if my dog punctured the rat in anyway, they would ingest the poison," Sterk said. "And my vet was very concerned about this as well."

According to Lori Parker, a veterinarian at the Oradell Animal Hospital,  
there is a serious risk of dogs and cats who eat poisoned rats or mice becoming sick themselves.

Parker recommends preventing cats from going outside and leaving dogs unattended in gated yards. She also suggests watching dogs when on walks, as well. 

"If they eat a rodent an owner should contact their vet immediately," Parker said. "Depending upon the amount and type of poison ingested, your pet may need to get a test to test blood clotting ability since some rodent poisons are anticoagulants."

"Some say that [poisoning] is more common in outdoor cats that are smaller and tend to hunt rodents than in dogs, who are generally, although not always, larger and may have to ingest a number of rodents before having a problem," Parker said.

Observing the scene from his perch on the telephone wire high above Henley sits a hawk, a carniverous predator by nature and one welcomed by the residents for his ability to help control the rat problem whenever he feels, well, hungry. With keen eyesight, hooked beaks and taloned feet, hawks catch, kill, and eat a wide variety of other animals in order to survive. Birds, squirrels and even small pets are preyed upon by hawks. However, for now, Henley Hawk seems content to dine on rats. 

"My fear is that he's going to eat a poisoned rat," Sterk said. "And I would hate to see anything happen to that majestic bird."

If you know or suspect that your pet has eaten a poisoned rat, or ingested any toxic substance, contact the ASPCA Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 and click here to visit their website for further information. 

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