Britain heading for 'rat explosion'.

Britain is heading for a 'rat explosion' because the vermin are growing resistant to existing poisons, experts say.In pockets of the UK, the rodents have become almost completely immune to conventional pesticides, pest controllers said today. The
warning follows fears that the warming climate and growing mountains of
food waste left on Britain's streets is fuelling a new plague of rats.



'Rat explosion': The rodents have become almost completely immune to conventional pesticides in some parts of the UK


Fortnightly collections of rubbish - which lead to wheelie bins
overflowing with rotting food, the fashion for compost heaps and
failures by water companies to routinely bait sewers are also
contributing to the problem.In the last year, local councils
were called out to deal with 700,000 infestations - compared to 650,000
the previous year, according to the National Pest Technicians
Association.Some estimate the UK rat population is up 13 per cent, with numbers as high as 50 million.The
British Pest Control Association is aware of two unnamed towns in
Berkshire where most of the rats are resistant to the mostly widely
used poisons.



The trade body is due to meet with Department of Health experts this week to call for changes to the law on pesticides.It
wants new rules that will allow powerful rat poisons currently banned
outdoors to be used in gardens and public spaces under strict controls.Rats
have a history of developing immunity to poisons. Over the last few
decades they became resistant to the first generation of rodenticides -
which included the warfarin - forcing pest controllers to develop more
potent poisons, such as difenacoum.Now these toxins -which work by stopping the rat's blood from clotting - are also losing their potency.Richard
Moseley, of the BPCA, said: "In certain areas we believe there is
resistance to rodenticides that we have been using. Just as rats built
up resistance to the first generation of poisons, such as warfarin,
they are now developing resistance to the current generation."Pest controllers want a change in the law to let them use two poisons - currently only permitted inside buildings - outdoors..The
chemicals - brodifacoum and flocoumafen - are allowed as outdoor rat
poisons in parts of Europe, but are banned in the UK because of their
threat to pets, birds and wild mammals at risk.But the BPCA believes the fears are unfounded.It
says its members are being force to use increasingly large doses of the
existing poisons to kill rats - increasing the risks to wildlife.Although
the indoor poisons are more toxic, they would be used in much smaller
doses and could reduce the threat, Mr Moseley said.In some of
the worst hit parts of the UK, such as York, the number of reported
infestations has doubled in the last year. Salford reported a 40 per
cent hike in the number of call outs last year, while in Exeter the
number rose 66 per cent.Earlier this year the East Yorkshire
coastal village of Flamborough was dubbed "Ratville" after a
infestation of thousands of vermin.In other parts of the UK, the
scale of the rat problem may be hidden from the official statistics.
Many town halls have introduced charges of up to £80 for killing vermin
- and infestations are going untreated.Rats may have been given
a boost by the credit crunch. Some experts believe shuttered, abandoned
shops and half finished building sites are providing new, safe homes
for vermin. Rats grow to sexual maturity in just three weeks
and typically have four to six in a litter. A pair of rats can produce
a family of 200 within a year.Most problems are caused by the
brown or common rat. Adults can weigh up to 1lb and grow 12 inches.
They live for a year, and can produce up to six litters a year. Each
litter can have been six to 11 young.Common rats are brownish grey, although some black common rats have been spotted.They spread many diseases including Weil's disease and salmonella. They can contaminate food with urine, droppings and fur.Estimates of Britain's rats vary. Some people claim there are 60 million. But
a study by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Officers,
concluded there were usually 12 to 15 million at any one time.




Oh dear as if there is not enough going on at the moment.

Oh My god.....Rats ... ....and Mice.....are a big fear of mine....

They are everwhere..........................




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And a nice bottle of Chianti solves the problem(if only we could get over our strange western aversion to credit crunch protein)

hate rats......

They are best cooked..... !!






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They might be immune to poison, but they will never be immune to electricity.

Or a shotgun.................



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