{"id":106929,"date":"2025-10-31T00:01:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-31T00:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/106929\/"},"modified":"2025-10-31T00:01:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-31T00:01:11","slug":"these-are-the-most-rat-infested-cities-in-the-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/106929\/","title":{"rendered":"These are the most rat-infested cities in the US"},"content":{"rendered":"

The rats<\/a> are going Hollywood<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Los Angeles<\/a> has claimed the top spot on Orkin\u2019s Top 50 Rattiest Cities<\/a> list, ending Chicago\u2019s<\/a> decade-long reign.<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s warm climate<\/a>, dense neighborhoods, and abundant food sources make it ideal for rodents<\/a>, the pest control company says.<\/p>\n

Changes in weather, urban infrastructure, and human activity are shifting rodent activity, increasing infestations in cities with moderate climates and expanding urban areas.<\/p>\n

Orkin determined its rankings by tracking new rodent\u2011service calls in owner\u2011occupied residences between August 20, 2024, and August 21, 2025.<\/p>\n

\"California<\/p>\n

California leads with four cities in the top 50: Los Angeles (1), San Francisco (4), Sacramento (19), and San Diego (24) (Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Chicago dropped to second place on this year\u2019s list, followed by New York City<\/a> in third and San Francisco in fourth.<\/p>\n

Last month, a dead rat<\/a> and a threatening note calling immigrants \u201cvermin\u201d were left outside Chicago Alderman Andre Vasquez\u2019s office amid heightened immigration tensions. Later in September, NYC\u2019s \u201crat czar,\u201d<\/a> Kathleen Corradi, who was appointed in April 2023 to reduce the city\u2019s rat population, notably left her position after a largely quiet tenure.<\/p>\n

California dominates the list this year with four cities in the top 50, including Los Angeles (No. 1), San Francisco (No. 4), Sacramento (No. 19) and San Diego (No. 24).<\/p>\n

The 2025 Orkin Rattiest cities list is as follows:<\/p>\n

Rodents thrive where food, water and shelter are readily available. As the seasons shift, animals like rats and mice are more likely to seek warmth and entry points in buildings, making prevention especially important in the fall.<\/p>\n

\u201cRats and mice are more than a nuisance\u2014they\u2019re opportunists,\u201d Orkin Entomologist Ian Williams said in a news release<\/a>. \u201cIf there\u2019s food, warmth and a way in, they\u2019ll find it. And once inside, their constant chewing and rapid reproduction can quickly turn a small issue into a large, expensive one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chicago<\/p>\n

Chicago is now the second rattiest US city, with New York City third and San Francisco fourth on this year\u2019s list (AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Homeowners in high\u2011risk cities like Los Angeles are encouraged to inspect their properties for small openings, repair leaks, secure trash containers and call pest\u2011control professionals when needed.<\/p>\n

Besides structural damage from gnawing, rodents are carriers of illnesses, including leptospirosis and salmonellosis.<\/p>\n

Rats can transmit leptospirosis through their urine and salmonellosis through their feces, contaminating water, surfaces, or food that humans contact. Both are bacterial infections affecting humans and animals, according to the CDC<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Orkin\u2019s suggests abiding by the four\u2011step prevention acronym to help against unwanted rodent activity, GNAW, which stands for Guard entry points, Never leave food unattended, Avoid clutter and Watch for signs of activity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The rats are going Hollywood. Los Angeles has claimed the top spot on Orkin\u2019s Top 50 Rattiest Cities…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":106930,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[3198,69945,9111,242,5815,85,46,1900,5708,69944,69946,29629,4674,141],"class_list":["post-106929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-chicago","tag-chicago-alderman","tag-cities","tag-environment","tag-human-activity","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-los-angeles","tag-new-york-city","tag-orkin","tag-pest-control-company","tag-san-diego","tag-san-francisco","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106929"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106929\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/106930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}