Cannibal rats ‘the scale of cats’ might trigger illness outbreak in UK metropolis, professional warns
Experts have warned ongoing bin collection strikes – which has brought ‘cat sized rats’ to roam the streets of a UK city – could bring about the outbreak of a rare bacterial disease
Massive “cat-sized rats” lurking city streets in mountains of uncollected waste pose risks of disease outbreak, experts have warned.
Ongoing bin collection strikes in Birmingham have led to over 17,000 tonnes of rubbish being left on the streets. Birmingham City Council have declared a major incident as members of the Unite Union have been on all-out strike since March 11 over disputes over pay and job losses.
Locals have claimed to have spotted massive “rats the size of cats” lurking their streets alongside stray cats and foxes which rip through bin bags in search of food.
Experts are increasingly worried the presence of these massive rodents which could lead to local contracting the disease Leptospirosis.
According to the NHS, the disease is spread through the urine of infected animals, most commonly rats, mice, cows, pigs, dogs and in this instance massive overgrown rats.
The NHS has warned symptoms of the disease include high temperature, headache, body aches and pain, diarrhoea and yellowing of the skin – which may be harder to see in individuals with darker complexions.
Mat Stewart, a waste expert at Sunskips highlighted Leptospirosis risks becoming a growing issue and noted: “If you ingest or get urine into your system from a rat, you could catch Leptospirosis.
“It could happen if you’ve been down to chuck your waste on to everybody else’s waste and you’ve touched something, or you’ve had bags outside that a rat may have been on.”
He added: “You have to make sure you’ve got good hygiene when you get home.
“Wash your hands or wear gloves and do whatever you can to keep safe.”
Mat also fears warmer weather will only make these issues worse. Alongside the massive overgrown rats locals are currently dealing with, flies and maggots may be the next unwanted Birmingham visitors locals will have to live amongst.
“With this sort of temperature, give it a while and it’ll be flies next,” he said.
“The flies will start, then the maggots will form, the maggots will hatch, the flies will come, and that’ll be the next thing.” He added: “Following that it’s odours, and then people get really emotional and emotive.”
The Daily Star previously reported on rat catchers from the UK’s second biggest city who are attempting to exterminate their new unwanted neighbours. These massive rats could start to display cannibalistic behaviour as Lee Maddocks, Director at Richards Pest Control on Australia’s Gold Coast has warned just how big these massive rats could get.
“Rats are getting bigger,” he said. “This is largely due to increased access to high-calorie food waste, warmer winters, and competitive behaviours like cannibalism. These factors support longer lifespans and more robust physical growth.”
