Rats make good pets. Other than that, rats are a pain in the butt.

According to a-z-animals.com, rats can reproduce quickly:

Part of the reason they’re a problem is their exponential breeding abilities. A single female rat can produce about 6 to 12 babies at once. According to experts, a breeding pair of rats can produce 15,000 offspring in one year!

Another fun fact about rats according to a-z-animals.com is:

rats are implicated as carriers of over 35 different diseases, ranging from typhus to the bubonic plague

Here are some basic fun facts about rats according to rentokil.

Rats have a good memory, rats are social animals, rats are very suspicious, rats are very clean and really hate getting dirty, rats are color-blind and have a poor eyesight, rats are excellent climbers, jumpers, and swimmers. Rats have sharp teeth, have an incredible tail function. There are more than 60 species of rat in the world and rats breed non-stop.

I can remember hearing about the rat problem in Chicago. The news talked about the rat infestation a lot and they still are. As you read, rats are "very clean" animals. Maybe that's why they make good pets? I'm going to go out on a limb right now and say that the rats in the subways in major cities are not clean animals.

As luck would have it, Lansing is only a four hour drive or less from 3 of the top 10 most rat infested cities in the United States.

Top 10 Rat Infested Cities In The U.S. according to a-z-animals.com.

10. Cleveland, OH - This is the first time for Cleveland to be in the top 10.

The accumulation of garbage and improper waste disposal are leading causes of rat infestation in the city

9. Denver, CO - Lincoln Memorial Park was shut down in 2020 due to the rat problem.

The accumulation of garbage and improper waste disposal are leading causes of rat infestation in the city

8. Detroit, MI - It keeps getting worse in the "D".

The absence of food waste to feed on made most rats in Detroit start scouring new areas and exhibit unusual behaviors. Sadly, the rodent problem in the state keeps getting worse because of the abundance of open garbage everywhere.

7. Philadelphia, PA - Rats are taking over.

The rat population in this city is ever increasing

6. Baltimore, MD - Rats love Baltimore, they climbed two spots in the rankings.

The brown rat, also called the Norway rat, is the most common of all the rats in the city, known for causing diseases and destroying properties.

5. San Francisco, CA - Rats love San Fran. There's lots of open waste.

the increase in the rodent population in this big city is also associated with the ban of certain rodent control methods in some parts of the city. Rats enter homes through broken underground pipes, drains, toilets, and other odd places. The demand for exterminators is so high that many exterminators have a waiting list!

4. Washington, DC - I'm not making any political comments or jokes, it would be easy.

A dense population, together with an increasing number of bars and restaurants has made it easy for these animals to thrive in the city. There’s a huge problem of excessive production of food garbage and inadequate trash disposal.

3. New York, NY - I'm surprised it's not #2 or #1.

With the dense population of the big city of New York and a surplus of waste on every subway, street, and corner, rats are visible everywhere (even in the daylight!). New York’s long-standing problem with rats can be linked to an ever-growing number of restaurants in the city, providing plenty of options for rats to survive on leftover foods.

2. Los Angeles, CA - Even big, "pretty" cities have rat problems too.

A growing population, overcrowding, homelessness, and improper waste disposal are all factors causing unsanitary living conditions in Los Angeles. It’s no surprise that Los Angeles has maintained its No. 2 spot for the most rat-infested cities since 2019.

1. Chicago, IL - This is no surprise to me that it's in the top spot.

With Chicago complaints topping the combined numbers from the other top three cities, the north and northwest areas of Chicago with high-density populations report more cases of rat infestations. A larger population translates to more food sources, more buildings, and therefore more rats inhabiting the city. It was reported that the abundance of garbage and inadequate disposal of waste is the leading cause of the rat problem faced in the Windy City.

These Ten Pests Are The Worst For Michigan Homeowners

This list was conducted by the Google searches conducted by Michiganders, and show the worst pests that are in the state of Michigan.

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