This may not be new to many people living in the Windsor area, but a list of the top 25 cities in Ontario for rat infestations suggests the city has a rat problem.
Orkin Canada released its annual list Tuesday, and Windsor's position in the top 25 most rat-infested cities did not change. It still places in sixth place.
Orkin Canada does not give out how many calls it will receive for competitive reasons, but Chris Ortner, the branch manager for the Windsor region said calls increased in 2018 between 15 per cent and 20 per cent.
Photo courtesy of Orkin Canada.
Earlier this year, the City of Windsor's 311 call centre released a list of its top complaints in the fourth quarter of 2018, and it said it received 398 calls about rodents.
Orkin tabulated all the calls it received across Ontario between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2018.
Not too surprisingly, the size of a city's population appears to correlate with the number of calls exterminators receive. Toronto remains in first place, and the rest of the Greater Toronto was well represented on the list.
Orkin has recommendations for those who want to avoid infestations, including trimming trees in your yard, cutting off the water supply by getting rid of standing water, closing gaps in homes and sheds, and keeping your property clean.
Here is how the list broke down.
1. Toronto
2. Mississauga
3. Scarborough
4. Ottawa
5. Sudbury
6. Windsor
7. Hamilton
8. North York
9. Brampton
10. Burlington
11. Oshawa
12. Oakville
13. Etobicoke
14. Timmins
15. Barrie
16. Cambridge
17. Markham
18. London
19. Kitchener
20. North Bay
21. Whitby
22. Thornhill
23. Richmond Hill
24. Concord
25. Pickering