One hot June night, dozens of people walked their dogs to an entertainment spot in Washington, DC, to begin their weekly mouse hunting trip.

“Good job, Henry!”, Marshall Feinberg, 28 years old, a dog trainer, shouted praise when the pioneer dog destroyed the first rat.

The sound of dogs barking, growling, and squeaking rats resounded amid the rat hunt at Adams Morgan, a nightlife entertainment spot in the US capital Washington.

Rats scurry through the alleys behind restaurants, bars and clubs, rummaging through trash cans for food. Washington is continuously one of the 5 most rat-infested cities in the United States. The rat problem is even more serious due to warmer winters, increased population, and outdoor dining areas being allowed to open since the Covid pandemic.

In 2022, the city recorded 13,400 calls to the hotline reporting rats, an increase of about 2,000 calls compared to the previous year. People now embark on a war against rats.

The stench of garbage and urine filled the air as the army of rat hunters advanced. Sausages, terriers, and greyhounds rummage through trash cans, chasing rodents.

Their owners are ethnically diverse, including people of color, white people, both young and old. Some live in the inner city, some live in the suburbs, some come here from neighboring states, after connecting with rat hunting enthusiasts through social networks.

Bomani Mtume, 60 years old, a retired police officer, has been taking his terrier Barto along since March, when the rat hunting campaign began.

“The first time we went hunting, the rats didn’t even run. They stayed in place, looking at the dogs,” he said. “Unfamiliar dogs also start to cooperate with each other. It’s great.”

Teddy Moritz, 75 years old, nicknamed “Death Grandma”, is very famous in the community. She invited her son and grandson from Delaware to Washington.

“Using dogs to hunt rats is an effective natural remedy,” she said, explaining that rat poison takes a few days to kill rats, while dogs can pounce on rats very quickly. “This method is crude but effective.”

Agile and resilient, Mrs. Moritz kicked the trash can to scare the mouse hiding inside from running out. As an experienced dog breeder, she has bred many sausage dogs and trained them to hunt rabbits and now mice.

In three hours, they destroyed more than 30 rats. “This is a great example of teamwork. Dogs and humans working together, trying to control rats to help the city,” Feinberg said.

Bobby Corrigan, a rodent researcher, said there is little scientific data confirming the effectiveness of rat hunting, but the practice dates back hundreds of years, when dogs were trained to hunt rats in farms. camp. “Today, using dogs as a tool to control rats is popular again,” he said, emphasizing the growing demand for dogs.

In addition, rat baiting has been shown to harm species such as hawks and owls, and trapping rats takes a long time. Rat hunting becomes a more humane choice. “Dogs break the mouse’s spine so quickly that they don’t have time to feel it,” Moritz said.

In addition to dogs, cats are also used to hunt rats, because they are natural enemies of rodents. Lisa LaFontaine, president of the Humane Animal Rescue Alliance, said the organization launched the “Blue Collar Cats” program for the city’s feral cat population in 2017, which has now helped connect 400 cats with business establishments.

“We created this program to give cats the life they still live, but the difference is that they are all vaccinated with the necessary vaccines,” she said.

In the town of Alexandrira, Virginia, about 20 minutes’ drive from Washington, Rue the cat chased away mice that often chewed on bags of bird food and fertilizer at Greenstreet Growers.

“It only kills a few, but the main effect is to scare the rats,” explains store manager Tim Williams. He estimates the store has reduced losses by 10% compared to before.

Rue is considered a good employee and has many followers on Instagram. “Having cats here brings two-layer benefits. Everyone likes to look at Rue,” William added.