Rat
catchers are asking for permission to use stronger poisons to deal with a
plague of super rats that have developed resistance to common vermin control
methods.
The
mutant brown rats, which carry life-threatening diseases, have been emerging
from their traditional havens in sewers and ditches and taking refuge in
people's homes.
The
problem has been made worse by recent wet weather, which has driven hordes of
rats from flooded drains.
Some
of the worst-hit areas are in the affluent home counties including Berkshire,
Hampshire, Oxford and Henley-on-Thames, home to the Royal Regatta.
The
Health and Safety Executive has been running a consultation after poison
manufacturers applied to use stronger poisons, including brodifacoum which is
currently restricted to indoor use, to control the UK's estimated 80 million
rat population.
Graham
Chapple from Newbury-based Rapid Pest Control told Sky News: "They're
super rats in that they've genetically mutated and developed resistance to the
poisons we currently use.
"The
recent wet weather and flooding we've had has seen them pushed out of the
sewers and we've had a lot more calls about people seeing rats in the loft or
spotting them during the day, which used to be relatively rare.
"They're
just looking for somewhere safe to do what rats do, which is breed
prolifically.
"The
mutations seem to be spreading reasonably quickly and I know they are having
problems in Birmingham, Scotland, Hampshire and other areas.
"It
is not so much that brodifacoum is a stronger poison, just that the rats
haven't developed resistance to it, so it will be much more effective."
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