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CHICAGO — Could birth control be the key to curbing Chicago's rat infestation? A new pilot program moving away from rat poison is launching on Tuesday in what has been dubbed America's "rattiest city."
The new program from the Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce has crews installing bait boxes with rat birth control in alleys behind several major thoroughfares in the neighborhoods.
In 2024, Chicago was named the rattiest city in America by Orkin for the 10th year in a row. Los Angeles was ranked the second rattiest city in the nation, with New York coming in third.
The group said the rat birth control does not pose a risk to dogs and cats because it will only be available in controlled amounts.
Alice Howe, one of the program overseers, said the "sausage-like" product contains cotton seed oil, which is the active ingredient that inhibits fertility in rats. Howe said this approach is being used in Baltimore and will be launching in New York and San Francisco.
The goal, Howe said, is to control the rat population without the toxins and poisons that pose a risk to many other animals in the city as well as water supplies.
Test results last year revealed Lincoln Park's beloved great horned owls died after exposure to rodenticide, or rat poison.
The Chicago Bird Alliance passed a policy calling for reducing the use of anticoagulant rodenticides. The group continues to advocate for local birds impacted by rat poisoning.
Results for the pilot program are expected in the four to six weeks or one to two breeding cycles, Howe said.
