San Carlos has a rat problem: Vector control offers assistance in controlling rodents

While many of the complaints originate in the White Oaks neighborhood, the problem persists throughout the city, she said.

From El Camino Real to Alameda de las Pulgas, the district has assisted residents in helping to resolve the rodent problem, Caldwell said.

But the district is not in the business of pest control so it does not kill rats but rather helps residents control them.

“Rodents will seek out environments where there is food, water and shelter. A successful rodent control program must eliminate these attractants throughout the area, not just on a few properties,” Caldwell wrote in an online post to San Carlos residents.

The district has known about the rat problem in San Carlos for at least a year and just started a pilot program in August to monitor roof rat populations to determine how large the population is and where they are concentrated most.

It’s a community-wide problem that requires a community-wide solution, she said.

To rodent-proof a home, residents should remove any food sources the rats might be accessing, such as unharvested ripe fruit and vegetables, unsecured garbage or compost, bird feeders left out at night, spilled birdseed or animal feed.

“Please cut back vegetation and remove any debris that may provide shelter for rats. Most importantly, inspect your home carefully and seal any openings where rats might be able to enter your home,” Caldwell wrote to residents.

If only a handful of individuals take action to rodent-proof their homes, rats will simply move next door or to the next block where they can find food, water and shelter, Caldwell said.

The district gave a presentation to the City Council last month on preventing rodents and Mayor Cameron Johnson mentioned the problem in a recent newsletter.

“It’s going to take a community-wide effort to combat these pests and I hope you will do your part,” Johnson wrote.

Caldwell said too that rats may be prevalent in other cities but that residents are not aware of the issue.

The district conducts rodent surveillance for hantavirus and other rodent-borne diseases yearly. Laboratory staff set humane live traps in local parks to collect rodents for testing. The caught rodents are anesthetized then measured and checked for parasites. Laboratory staff draw blood from each rodent for a hantavirus antibody test.

After recovering from anesthesia, each rodent is carefully released at the exact location where it was trapped to minimize environmental impacts, according to the district.

Go to smcmvcd.org to learn more.

bill@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 102