rats, trash, and recycling
DC Health has established a comprehensive, sustainable and responsive rodent control and animal disease prevention program. CAG’s Rats, Trash, and Recycling Committee works with DC Health to identify infested locations, prioritize trash containment and collection actions, ensure the integrity of trash containers, and educate citizens and residents on mitigating actions.
The District of Columbia has a Rodent Inspection and Treatment department. This is run as part of DC Health. You can read more about it on the City website here. The City provides lots of information about rodent control, including useful tips for preventing rodent infestations in and around your property.
To prevent further growth in the rat population, residents are encouraged to follow these ten tips.
- Store garbage in metal or heavy plastic containers with tight lids.
- Place trash outside shortly before pickup; don’t leave plastic garbage bags out overnight.
- Remove weeds and debris near buildings and in yards; don’t give rats a place to hide.
- Store opened food in metal or glass containers with tight lids when storing in your home.
- Don’t leave extra pet food out; store it in a secure container.
- Sweep up food remains, litter, and trash inside and outside your home.
- Inspect your basement and house for cracks and holes; seal them with mortar.
- Make sure you have screens on windows; inspect windows and screens for holes.
- Keep outside doors closed; use metal trim to prevent rodents from gnawing and entering underneath.
- Don’t provide hiding places for rodents; store materials such as lumber and boxes on a rack with a clean, open area underneath. Get rid of unused materials and junk.
For help call the city at 311
You can call DC 311 but a better way to report is to file a written report on the DC 311 website. The following steps show how you can submit a request for rodent inspection and treatment on the DC 311 website. Go to this link to log in; if you don’t already have a DC 311 account, please click on ‘sign up‘ to create one. This link will take you to the DC 311 Home Page. Click on “Request”, select “Rodent Inspection and Treatment”, enter your home address, and fill in the Rodent Treatment Report. You will receive a report tracking number for your records and in case of repeat reports.