GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 1

Rat Hoarder Case2009

Marlene GaitherEnvironmental Health Program ManagerCoconino County Public Health Services

District

Sedona Animal Control receives a complaint

• Neighbors contacted the City Animal Control about their neighbor’s rat problem

• Animal Control attempts to investigate, but she did not allow them inside her home

• City Animal Control did not know how to proceed because their Animal Ordinance does not address rats (how many pet rats an individual may have)

• No evidence of cruelty

Animal Control’s Next Step

• Sedona Animal Control contacts Coconino County Environmental Health Program for assistance concerning the rat problem.

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 2

Is it a Public Nuisance?

Arizona Revised Statute 36-601 Public nuisances dangerous to public health states:

A. The following conditions are specifically declared public nuisances dangerous to the public health:

1. Any condition or place in populous areas that constitutes a breeding place for flies, RODENTS, mosquitoes and other insects that are capable of carrying and transmitting disease-causing organisms to any person or persons … that poses a health or safety hazard to the public.

Initial Contact

• Visited house along with Animal Control• She was reluctant to come to the door to talk with us, and would not let us look inside • When asked about her rats, she admitted to having about 200 + in the house• She came up with excuses why we could not inspect inside the house so another time was scheduled

Concerns - Zoonotic Diseases

• Plague

• Leptospires

• Salmonella

• Rat-bite fever

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 3

Who is she?• She is a nice looking

women and dresses nicely;

• She is a sky diver;

• Well spoken, intelligent, charismatic; and

• Was once a professional Interior Decorator

How did it start?• She was 58 years old, lived alone

and lost her beloved cat• She replaced the cat with two

pairs of “Fancy” Rats (Rattus norvegicus) from a pet shop

• She let the rats run free in her house – they were her family!

• After several months there were so many she approached her neighbors for food to feed her expanding rat population

Her Plan

• To write a children’s book about rats because she believes rats are under appreciated

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 4

Initial Investigation Outside the House

• She was convinced that her rats had not escaped from the house

• We inspected the outside of the house and found

She had moved most of her belongings outdoors because of the rats

Evidence

• We noticed rat feces on the front door threshold and scattered down the sidewalk

• She claimed that the feces were from her shoes

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 5

Follow up - First Time Inside

• There are two parts of the house: the main living quarters and an attached apartment

• She only allowed us to inspect inside the apartment - not in the main part of the house

Apartment Area• We found rats running loose

everywhere• At first we didn’t see many,

then rats started to come out of the walls, cabinets, including mattresses that she had set up for the rats to nest in

• She had “given” the house to her pet rats and the population was growing exponentially

How many could there be in the house?

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 6

How Quickly can they Multiply? Rattus norvegicus

• A female rat can have offspring as early as 4 to 5 weeks of age;

• Female rats can have as many as 8 to 12 offspring with each pregnancy; and

• Rats can live up to 3 years.

Reference: Hansen, 2010

One male and one female rat if allowed to reproduce freely may have up to 1,000 offspring within a yearReference: Hansen, 2010

Notice of Violation Issued• A NOV was issued to her listing items to

correct in 10 days to prevent her pet rats from escaping:– Repair holes and penetrations so that her pet

rats could not escape from the house to prevent a public nuisance

• She claimed that rats had not escaped the house because they’re her family and she is taking care of them

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 7

Research and Contacts• Contacted:

– State Vector Control– National Humane Association

• Notified County Attorney’s Office • Visited various websites concerning

Animal Hoarders• Contacted psychologists contracted with

County – type of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Response from National Humane Society

• Recidivism rate for animal hoarders is 100%

• Individual needs psychological treatment

• Recommendation: Allow no more than 10 rats all the same sex or 10 that have been neutered or spayed

First Time Inside the Main House• She did not correct items on

NOV• As a result of the expanding

rat population inside her house some of the rats started to escape and some even invaded a neighbor’s home

• We inspected inside the main house and found it over-run with rats

• More drastic measures were now required

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 8

The rats had destroyed

everything in the house and

gnawed through walls, furniture and appliances

What was once a

beautiful home had

been destroyed by

herpet rats

The smell inside the house was

overwhelming

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 9

Action Plan• She conceded to

give up all rats except for 10 males, per National Humane Society’s recommendation and a date was scheduled to begin removal of her pets

Establishing Steps to be Taken• County Attorney: We must

give her due process• Give her time as long as

she is willing to work with us; however, if she stopped then move to an:

• Administrative Hearing, and if she does not comply, then seek a:

• Superior Court judgment

Rats Escaping into the Neighborhood

• We set up “Have a Heart Traps” in the neighborhood and at least three pet rats were caught, and

• Two rats were found dead in a neighbor’s house after they returned from a trip

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 10

FIRST Removal Day• Responding agencies:

– Sedona Animal Control,

– Coconino County Animal Management,

– Coconino County Environmental Health, and

– Scottsdale Any Rat Rescue

• Rats were discovered outside her house in a wood pile

• A second day was scheduled to continue with removal

We gathered about 300 rats that first day

The rats were

given to Any Rat Rescueand to

two animal

shelters in Flagstaff

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 11

Reaction to Removal

• She realized that the population had gotten out-of-control, but

• She had to inspect each rat we collected and gave each one a “kiss” before it was removed, and she had a name for every pet rat

More Animal Hoarding Found

• During the rat removal we discovered that she was “hoarding” another type of animal besides rats: Tarantulas

• She had over 120 exotic Tarantulas in a special room in her house called the “Tarantula Room”

Apprehension• Animal Management left

traps with her during the initial trip to catch the rats that escaped outdoors

• However, she had released the trapped rats inside her home and did not fill any carriers with rats – suddenly she became nervous and upset

• She would only work with us up to a point

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 12

Follow up after Removal• She did not comply with our

stipulations• Rats had not been caged –

they were roaming free throughout the house

• We estimated at least 200 rats were still in the house and breeding so numbers continued to grow

• Another date was scheduled to pick up all but 10 male rats

Excuses• As the final collection date

got closer she came up with numerous reasons why she could not meet with us and left town for a funeral

• When she finally met with us to collect the remaining 200 rats she stated that she only had 10 males and had given away all the other rats; however, she would not let us inspect all the rooms in the house

• A follow up visit was scheduled to verify compliance

Follow up Visit- More Delays• She allowed us into her

house, but the number of rats still exceeded ten

• A second NOV was issued and another date scheduled to verify compliance

• If no compliance then acquire a Search Warrant and move to an Administrative Hearing

We suspected that she was hiding most of her rats

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 13

Final Follow up?• She did not allow us to inspect

the apartment because she claimed she had a new renter –we asked the renter if we could inspect the apartment for rats and he stated “no”

• We also spotted several cages full of rats in her sport utility vehicle that was parked in the drive way

• Conclusion- she was hiding her rats (she was not going to give up her family)

Next Step - Search Warrant • An Administrative

Search Warrant was obtained through the County Attorney to inspect the entire house and apartment unannounced – we were accompanied by Sedona Police Department

• We counted about 108 rats running freely throughout the house and apartment and the numbers would continue to grow quickly – pictures were taken and we reported our findings to the County Attorney’s Office

• A notice to appear before an Administrative Hearing Judge was issued to the Hoarder

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 14

Move to an Administrative Hearing• The hearing was held

and she attended via phone

• The Hearing Officer ruled in the County’s favor and ordered the Hoarder to remove all rats except 10 males within 10 days that must be verified by an inspection

10 days After AH• She relinquished ~ 153 rats

but most were juveniles –evidence that rats were breeding

• Inside the house rats were running around everywhere –we were right back where we started

• We reminded her of the Hearing Officer’s ruling of 10 male rats

• She admitted that it was hard for her to give up her “family”

• Another problem added to the equation – She was about to loose her home to the bank

Proceed to Superior Court• We realized that she would not or

could not get rid of all rats but 10, and

• She was facing foreclosure, and• There was evidence that she had

abandoned her house leaving the animals unattended, and

• The rat population was almost back up to 300 or 400 in the house so…

We requested a hearing with a Superior Court Judge before her rats invaded the neighborhood

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 15

Superior Court Judge Ruling• The Superior Court Judge

ruled in our favor to carryout the following:– Hire a pest control company

to assist with the abatement of the infestation (many rats were harboring inside walls, furniture, and appliances);

– Collect rats to be evaluated by a veterinarian; and

– Remove Tarantulas and Madagascar Hissing cockroaches

City of Sedona changed locks on all doors.

Final Removal

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 16

Rats were left without water and only a small supply of food – as a result the rats gnawed through plumbing to get to water and flooded half of the house

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 17

Rats were caught for evaluation

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 18

Vet Evaluation of Rats

• Ectoparasites on the rats and they were dehydrated and malnourished. Now there was evidence of cruelty.

Animals removed

• We removed and adopted out:

• ~120 exotic Tarantulas; and

• ~ 50 Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches

How long was the Process ?• Received complaint in November 2009

• Issued a NOV in January 2010

• Issued a second NOV in February 2010

• Obtained a Search Warrant in March 2010

• Held an Administrative Hearing in April 2010

• Held a Superior Court Hearing in May 2010

• Final nuisance abatement occurred the first of June 2010

• Final clean up inside house completed byJune 2011

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 19

We removed >900 adult rats from the house in

7 months

What Happened to the Hoarder?• We were told that she took at least 200

rats with her to Montana and has since moved to Massachusetts

Animal Hoarding Ordinance

• The next step - develop an ordinance that specifically addresses animal hoarding so that:

• These problems may be addressed more rapidly and efficiently; and

• Include “therapy” for hoarders in an effort to modify this behavior

GEH1201

NEHA 2012 AEC – June 2012 20

Special Thanks• Kris Billington, Sedona Animal Management

• Sabrina Ferrat and Jack Roberts, Coconino Animal Management

• Tim McNeel, Coconino County Attorney’s Office

• Jim Windham, City of Sedona Community Development

• Sedona Police Department

• Craig Levy, State Vector Control

References

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2008.Rat-Bite Fever.http:www.cdc.gov

• A. Hansen.2010.Rat Behavior and Biology.http://www.ratbehavior.org