Designer ferrets and dry ice: Inside D.C.'s long, weird war on rats
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Humane Rescue Alliance runs a "Blue Collar Cat" program for animals not social enough to live as indoor pets. Photo: Eva Hambach/AFP via Getty Images
D.C. has been fighting rats — and getting creative about it — for centuries.
Why it matters: Putting rats on birth control might sound out there — it's not. Washington has long experimented with unusual ways to tackle a very old problem.
Flashback: Rats have plagued the White House since its completion in 1800, drawn to the damp basement "even as great events took place on the floors above," according to the White House Historical Association.
The intrigue: Presidents have taken wildly different approaches — a detail pieced together by the association from historical accounts and old newspaper reports.
- Andrew Johnson went low-key, reportedly scattering flour by the hearth so rodents could "get their fill."
- First Lady Frances Cleveland opted for "a great use of poison."
- George H.W. Bush turned to Millie, the family dog, after a rat jumped into the White House pool while Barbara Bush was swimming.
The gold goes to: Benjamin Harrison's rat-catcher.
- The White House rodent hunter had "one of the prettiest litters of ferrets to be found in the country," per a Philadelphia Inquirer report in 1890.
- He leased out the fetching ferrets, natural predators, for $20 a day — roughly $700+ today — turning pest control into a hustle.
Flash forward: Modern D.C. hasn't gotten less creative.
- In 2018, the city placed dry ice in burrows, flooding them with carbon dioxide to suffocate rats underground.
- Animal control still deploys feral "working cats" (aka Blue Collar Cats) to rodent-heavy homes and businesses.
- And yes, there are rat-hunting dog crews that turn alley patrols into nighttime neighborhood events.
🌿 Anna's thought bubble: There's also a more peaceful — and surprisingly aromatic — option: mint!
- After rats chewed through my car wiring last winter (they love the soy-based coating), my mechanic, Moshe Katz, had a tip: "Rats. Hate. Mint."
- Katz has treated countless gnawed wires in his 25+ years in business — and not only did he quote way less than the dealership, but he offered some green advice.
How it works: Spray a mint oil-water solution (or products like Mighty Mint) around your engine and wheel wells every few weeks.
- If you park in an alley, plant mint nearby.
Upside: Your car smells like a mobile mojito.
Downside: The herbs aren't exactly edible. You may have minted a rat-free parking space, but it's not hygienic.