SINGAPORE: The default reaction people in Singapore tend to have when they encounter stray rats is to freak out, take photos or videos, and complain online.
In late November for example, there was widespread media coverage of a rat falling onto a table at an Orchard Road food court. The video of the hapless rodent lying on its side, legs twitching, went viral.
The food court was shut down for a day for cleaning and sanitisation. Investigations uncovered a rat infestation in the ceiling areas, as well as hygiene lapses in five of the food court’s stalls.
Rat sightings alone make headlines in Singapore. On Dec 1, it was reported that a rat was caught and removed from a cafeteria at Institute of Technical Education College West, after it was seen scuttling under tables and chairs in a video online.
And earlier in July, some Pasir Ris residents complained about seeing one or two rats outside nearly every evening, as well as rat holes in grass patches near drains.
But in our dense urban environment, with warm weather year-round, are we overreacting whenever we catch sight of pests?
RUN-INS WITH PESTS ARE INEVITABLE
I can empathise with the shock and haplessness of discovering critters in unexpected places.
One morning last week, I found my sofa covered in beige fur. Apparently, the stray cat that prowls around my neighbourhood snuck in through my kitchen’s back door and decided to spend the night snoozing on and shedding all over my couch.
And just a few days ago, I had just sat down to eat some toast when I heard soft tapping sounds coming from my kitchen, steps away from my dining table. I went to investigate, and I’m not sure who was more startled: Me, or the mynah that had sneakily flown in and was pecking at the few breadcrumbs on my kitchen counter.
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Indeed, run-ins with pests are practically inevitable in Singapore. Food and beverage establishments are aplenty, and centralised refuse collection centres at apartments invite pests to proliferate. They are, after all, some of the most common, hardy and adaptable species on earth.
In other cities like Bangkok and New York, people seem to have made peace with the fact that rats are everywhere. Nobody bats an eyelid when they scurry about in train stations, along sidewalks or near refuse bins.
At the same time, we can’t be totally blase and ignore the need for pest control measures. Aside from the “ick” factor of finding pests near, or worse, in our food – like in 2015, when a rat carcass was discovered in a buffet dish at a Singapore hotpot restaurant – they are vectors of diseases.
For example, rats can carry diseases such as leptospirosis, murine typhus and hantavirus. These are spread through direct contact, breathing in dust contaminated with rat urine or droppings, or via a bite from an infected rat or its fleas.
Rats also cause damage to infrastructure by gnawing on furniture, on wires (which could lead to short circuits and electrical fires), or on packaged foods, leading to wastage and contamination.
LEARNING TO LIVE WITH PESTS IN OUR MIDST
So how do we strike a balance between panicking every time we spot pests and resigning ourselves to their presence?
Perhaps we could consider what the difference is between a humdrum sighting and a severe infestation. For example, seeing a rat running around outdoors is normal, but seeing droppings inside your home and bite marks on your furniture is not. Each of us has a part to play in fighting pests by cutting out their food sources and shelter.
In the meantime, it’s important to keep things in perspective. Singapore prides itself on maintaining high health and living standards, and the public can report issues with pests through official channels.
Another thing to bear in mind: Insisting on the total eradication of pests is significantly more unfeasible than learning to live with them in our midst.
Tracy Lee is a freelance lifestyle writer based in Singapore.
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