Over the last couple months, Forest Park has been experiencing a spike in the number of rats around town.
“We’ve had an outbreak of rats that’s literally without precedent,” Steve Glinke, director of the village’s department of public health and safety, told the Review in September. “Never have I seen anything like this,” he added, saying that residents are reporting rats in locations that historically haven’t experienced them.
Ryan Nero, commissioner of public health and safety, reiterated concern about the increasing number of rodents in the village during his commissioner’s report at the end of the Oct. 27 council meeting.
“We have distributed, maintained and replenished more rat control poison in the last eight weeks than we did all of 2024,” Nero said. “We are seeing some progress. But to move the needle as we get into fall, and you got gourds and pumpkins and that kind of stuff that go out for Halloween, and at Thanksgiving, extra food scraps, and things like that can compound the issue if it’s not addressed.”
Nero said the village has received about 75% fewer calls about rodents since August. But while the village typically issues no more than 15 court appearances a month for residents who have overgrown yards or debris collecting outside, since August, there have been nearly 150 citations for such offenses, or about 50 a month.
Factors that lead to an increasing rat population largely include the build-up of garbage.
Nero said that, since garbage is picked up on Thursday throughout the village, residents should try not to put out trash on the curb until Wednesday evening.
“If you see your neighbors putting trash out on Sunday night, that’s a problem, right? It only takes a conversation, and we have a lot of renters in town, and sometimes people just don’t know,” Nero said.
Glinke previously told the Review that the village offers to sponsor a free rodent treatment to residences heavily affected by rodents. He also suggests an ongoing treatment plan with Smithereen Pest Management Services for $150 for three visits, a 50% discount from the usual price.
Nero said staff frequently works with Smithereen six days a week and has 77 bait stations around the village.
“We’re a community 14,000 strong here, and yet, we are relying heavily on the acts of a few to manage a pretty significant issue,” Nero said. “We have to keep the village clean, respectable and really rat free.”
To curb the presence of rodents in your neighborhood:
- Wait until the night before trash pickup to put your garbage at the curb.
- Make sure your garbage isn’t overflowing and compost bins are rodent-proof.
- If you have a bird feeder, be sure to regularly sweep up seeds.
- Pick up dog poop so the rodents don’t have anything to feed on.
- Regularly mow your grass and manage weeds to restrict the options rats have to burrow.
- If you see rats near your residence, try to first have an idea about where they are nesting or eating before contacting the village.