Manor rallying to roust rodents

Frustrated by rats that are overrunning the Manor neighborhood, residents at last night's Board of Health meeting agreed to form a kind of posse to help rid the town of the rampaging rodents.

After months of inspections, the Health Department and exterminators have yet to identify the source of the rats, which have been sighted in yards and on local streets since April.

The rats were likely driven, possibly by construction, from their homes in another area and are taking up temporary shelter in Dedham wherever they find food, shelter and water, said pest control experts and environmental specialists who attended the meeting at the board's request.

Norway rats, the species plaguing the neighborhood, can move one to five miles if their habitat is disturbed, said George Williams, a pest control expert.

"Good people have pest problems.... there could be a reason, there could be no reason at all," Williams told residents.

About 80 residents who attended the meeting repeatedly demanded that the Health Department conduct door-to-door searches to identify which yards may be harboring rats. State and town officials explained that the town does not have the authority to check properties without permission from homeowners.

"The answer is frustrating, but the answer is no... they don't have a legal right," said Paul Halfman, a state Department of Public Health official. "That's trespassing at that point. You wouldn't want anybody trespassing on your property."

The Board of Health would need to gather physical evidence and obtain a search warrant, which could take months, Halfman said.

"We'd love to get everything done immediately ... but in some instances it's a process. ... We have to act responsibly," said Board of Health member Mary Ellard.

Meanwhile, John Meaney, an environmental specialist who helps deal with Boston's rodent problems, suggested that residents help the town by forming a sanitation watch group to monitor rat activity and approach neighbors who have overflowing garbage or unkempt lawns.

"The more details you can give - address, time of day - and watch the rat, watch where it goes, because sometimes it can be like looking for a needle in a haystack. ... You are the biggest tool, you are the eyes and ears of the community," he said.

Marianne Martin, a Holmes Road resident who has been vocal about the problem, agreed to help get the group started.

Health Director Catherine Cardinale said she and her staff have received only 21 complaints of rat sightings, but have inspected 140 out of about 600 private properties in the area, as well as nearby restaurants and state-owned land.

"To inspect another 460 homes would take so many man hours, the community really needs to get involved to help us," she said after the meeting.

Cardinale said that most homeowners have cooperated when she and other health officials asked to inspect their properties during door-to-door visits over the past two weeks.

EHS, the pest control company that the town has hired, found rat burrows on 11 of the 140 properties. On July 14, the board sent out sanitation code citations to the homeowners, requiring them to hire an exterminator, or clean their properties.

Three of the homeowners have yet to respond and will be asked to appear at a hearing in August. They could face fines if they do not comply with the department's orders, Cardinale said.

The department is also looking into how it can gain access to one unoccupied and one abandoned property on Lancaster Road.

Dedham's problem is relatively minor compared to Boston's, but in the city most rats can be exterminated without permission because they live in alleys and other public spaces, said EHS President John Stellberger.

"We are dealing with all of these individuals and their habits, that's why it's important for neighbors to kind of point the finger," he said after the meeting.

Norway rats begin reproducing as young as eight weeks old and a female can have a litter every three or four months, totaling up to 20 pups each year, according to Williams' presentation.

Pesticides and traps take time to work because rats are afraid of anything new in their environments and will avoid them if other food sources, such as birdseed, pet feces, nuts, berries, or dog food, are available.

They only need a quarter-sized opening to get into a house and have teeth stronger than most metals, which can chew through almost any material including lead pipes.

Daily News staff writer Lindsey Parietti can be reached at lindsey.parietti@cnc.com