Video shows large rats scurrying through Uptown Waterloo at night

A viral video is circulating online that was filmed by a student who goes to Wilfrid Laurier University, shows large rats sneaking around uptown Waterloo late at night and it’s not just a couple of them.

The video was filmed by Olivia Masiuk and her friends during a night out last Tuesday. It was around 2 a.m. when they stumbled upon rats running out of garbage cans, along sidewalks, through the streets and inside tree planters.

“It was really shocking, like I made a joke out of it but to be honest with you, there is so many of them! It’s Waterloo, I grew up here, this is my hometown. I’ve lived here my whole life; I’m opening up a business with my mom here and I want the city to be clean. I want them to have a clean reputation and I don’t want to have New York-sized rats in Waterloo,” Masiuk told CityNews Kitchener, on Wednesday.

Masiuk added that before that day, she had never seen rats in Waterloo before but heard from friends that they are easy to find.

“You’ll see like crab legs out in the road, you’ll see lobster, you’ll see avocado, you’ll see fish, they’re pulling it all down into those holes and it smells so bad – it’s really gross,” said Masiuk.

She wonders if there are this many happily running out in the open, how many are underneath city streets?

“The first night we were there, there was so many. The second day we returned and there was so many. You just wait and you’d see them running across the street. People thought it was Photoshopped because there’s so many of them.”

In a statement, the City of Waterloo said, “Rodents in cities are not unusual.”

“The City of Waterloo works with our partners in the Uptown BIA and local businesses on education, prevention, and to address any issues with rats and mice if they arise. Garbage is a source of food for rodents, and we are working with the Uptown BIA businesses and the Region of Waterloo on progressive strategies to reduce access to food waste in the area.

Our municipal enforcement team encourages businesses to follow the Region’s rules for waste collection: to keep waste contained, not set it out too early, and to clean up any messes. They advise business owners who are concerned about pests to consult with a licensed pest control professional on the most effective approach to prevention and mitigation for their situation.”

The Region of Waterloo waste services told CityNews in a statement that garbage collection in that area happens six days a week, along with the Kitchener and Cambridge downtown cores.

“The Region of Waterloo collaborates with municipal partners and Regional by-law to address property standards issues, such as waste accumulation and early set-outs.”

CityNews Kitchener talked to some of the local businesses in Uptown Waterloo, all of which said they had never seen a rat in that area. Those businesses include Z-teca, Abe Erb, Starbucks and Four All Ice Cream.

“The goal is to keep making videos for fun and hopefully the city sees it and gets grossed out by it and does something about it,” said Masiuk.