From da BBC

Bin bags stuffed with Christmas waste could attract unwelcome attention from the UK’s burgeoning rat population, Keep Britain Tidy has warned.

The environmental group said rodents enjoy the festive period as much as humans – particularly the leftovers.

The group said there would also be more rubbish for the rats on High Streets because cleaners are also on holiday.

It has put up posters showing rats with the line “we’re getting closer” to tell people to help reduce rubbish.

‘Burger louts’

Keep Britain Tidy said there had been a staggering growth in the number of rats.

It estimates there is one rat per human in the UK – and that there will be more if we keep feeding them.

Spokesman Peter Gibson said the rat population would be making the most of the Christmas glut of leftovers – both outside people’s homes and near takeaways.

“Expect rodents to make their way out of the sewers and the shadows to dine out on kebabs, pizzas, chips and burger louts leave behind,” he added.

Rats can pass on to humans a potentially deadly disease, leptospirosis, through urine, droppings and bites.

Bin collections The rat population is estimated to have increased by one-third since 1998, with Scotland and the North West among the worst affected areas.

The Keep Britain Tidy group suggests avoid using paper plates and cups, buying drinks in large containers rather than small cans and bottles, trying to recycle where possible and make use of dumps.

“We have also talked to councils to try and get them to do more bin collections over Christmas – and some, especially in urban areas, have responded to it,” Mr Gibson told BBC News.

Some 60% of councils are organising extra bin collections on 28 and 29 December, and about 4% will do the rounds on Christmas Eve.

But for those who live in areas where no special provisions have been made, rubbish might be lying around for as long as two weeks before it gets collected on Monday, 3 January.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk/4117847.stm

Published: 2004/12/26 00:52:20 GMT

© BBC MMIV

Another reason Norway (brown) rats do so well (and are even ousting mice and other urban small ground mammals) is that they form families and have semi-monogamous relationships – whilst the male mouse deserts the nest after mating (and will even fight his own sons, a bit like a rodent chav 😀 ) the rat shares the parenting duties with his female partner! (I’ve seen a film of this on one of those wildlife shows, one would go out getting food (they drag it back to the nest for the offspring ) whilst the other would guard the nest..

In London they also get on Underground trains (at Stratford? 🙂 ), go to the West end, rinse the restaurants bin-bags and then get the train back home! I bet red ken gets annoyed as they don’t have a ticket 😀 )