Why New York Has So Many Rats - NYC Revealed

New York has long been known as one of the rattiest cities in America with some estimating close to 2 million rodents roam its streets. Both city workers and residents have been waging a never-ending battle against these four-legged fiends. Here is how New York City rats out its rodents.

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[sandinmytoes]

I’ve lived in Manhattan all my life and rats really are as common as you think. They usually come out at night and they’re not scared of people walking by. They’re basically New Yorkers lol.

[shinbakihanma]

There's definitely far more than just 2 million rats in NYC. There's also rumored be one really BIG ONE who lives in the sewers with a group of turtles.

[DoomFinger]

During the height of the pandemic I noticed for the first time how bad the rat and cockroach situation is in Manhattan. Because the city was in lockdown there was hardly any foot traffic on the sidewalks or cars in the street so they all came out of their hiding places and roamed the city. It was utterly disgusting.

[vsaldivar]

I was in New York in November down in Manhattan, I’ve never seen so much trash thrown out on the side. I’d say fixing the trash problem would definitely help with the rat population

[atruebond]

The fact that this is about rats and done by Cheddar. The irony is not lost on me.

[jaystrickland]

The issue with NYC's rats is that so much of NYC's trash disposal revolves around plastic bags of trash on curbs. Other cities of much smaller size are able to use trash systems that greatly reduces the food available to the rats.

[danielbalboa]

We had a bad rat problem here at my house ...one day I saw a rat kill another rat and it freaked the hell out of me...but my son had a great solution...we got a cat..within the first night they booked it, just the mere presence of a cat terrified them...they ran rampant through the house for more than a year and in one day were gone

[meanhe]

I’ve never seen an actual wild rat running around out in the open, and I’ve lived in 7 different states. It’s crazy that some people are ok with the risk of living with these rats that infest there city, knowing the disease and illness they can cause, not to mention the sheer repulsiveness of them, the smell, the pee, the poop, the property damage, it’s unimaginable!

[AtxMamasita]

I went to NYC in Dec 2019, I was surprised to see so many rats. New Yorkers are used to it and it doesn't phase them. Those suckers are big, too. I've never seen rats that big. I was surprised that in NY they place their trash bags on the curbs and not in containers, it's no wonder they have rats, they're feeding them.

[lugano]

Istanbul is a megacity of some 13 million people. I have been there a number of times and never saw one. I also have an American friend who also lived there for some five years. I asked her why one didn't see any rats on Istanbul's streets. She answered with one word, "cats!" They have legions of feral cats who, to use Mafia parlance, "take care of business." Rats are a non-issue there.

[empirestate]

There are literally mountains of trash on the sidewalks and in the alleyways. Trash cans are overflowing, and litter is ubiquitous. It's a rat's paradise!

[MTcell]

I've just scratched New York off my bucket list.😂

[eddiesaninocencio]

I grew up in the South Bronx in the 70's we had many alley cats, I never saw a malnourished cat, all were healthy because of abundant rats.

[seyimatt]

Absolutely disgusted by the state of NYC. I've only been here for 5 years, but the level of apathy towards the invasion of rats - not just out in the streets - but in peoples homes, trains and social spaces, is abhorrent. Nobody deserves to live like this. The city needs to invest in large bin shoots (like we have in the UK) - making it harder for rats to access trash, they need much more regular collections as well as frequent cleaning. And the cities residents need to do a better job taking care of their spaces and the spaces around them, raise their voices and contact their local district leaders to do better. I like that Chicago released thousands of cats to help with their issue, but that alone would not be enough, as these rats are the same size as cats haha.

[isaiah]

I remember when I went to NY for the first time and being an Atlanta native I thought the rat stuff was all just talk. I thought that until I was going back to my hotel after playing basketball and saw like 20 rats come out of a mattress that was on the sidewalk. I haven’t been back to NYC since 😂😂

[dinnertime]

Who ever did the graphics for this is a comedic genius

[DavedSitt]

There are thousands of them in my neighborhood in Brooklyn, and the scariest thing about them is their lack of fear of humans. They do not fear us at ALL. They scurry around in large groups and there’s nothing you can do about it….


There used to be an abundance of stray cats which balanced it out, but all these organizations are getting rid of the cats and not the rats.. they capture cats, get them spade/neutered and release them. So these rats are thriving

[napoleonibonaparte]

Can’t wait for the New York version of Ratatouille.

[ycplum]

I live in NYC. When I patch holes, I mix in some steel wool. Rats don't like chewing through steel wool.

[GKelley-gnul]

the big problem is two legged rats invading our city