Orkin Names Canada’s Rattiest Cities

In October, Orkin Canada released its annual ranking of the nation’s rattiest cities.

According to the Mississauga, Ontario-based company, multiple lockdowns during the pandemic resulted in bolder rodent activity and migration to residential neighbourhoods last year. As pandemic fears wane and Canadian cities are back in business, food sources are abundantly available in urban areas again for rats and mice.

"With more available food, there will be exponential population growth. Food availability favours population growth, since there will be less competition for food, which also will result in high reproductive potential, high survival and healthy thriving populations," said Alice Sinia, Ph.D. entomologist with Orkin Canada, in a news release.

Orkin Canada experts reported that with food more abundantly available in commercial areas, some of the aggressive behaviours among rats and mice that were noted during the lockdowns, such as cannibalism, "street fights" and territorialism, will likely lessen. However, with population growth, there will also be increased activities and sightings.

City rankings were based on the number of commercial and residential rodent (rats and mice) treatments that Orkin Canada carried out from Aug. 1, 2021, through July 31, 2022.