Ryders Alley Trencher-fed Society

Ryders Alley Trencher-fed Society
Region served
United States
Official language
English


Ryders Alley Trencher-fed Society (R.A.T.S.) is a New York City group founded in the 1990s[1] that conducts organized rat hunting with dogs. The group was named by founding member Richard Reynolds after Ryders Alley in Manhattan, which was once rat infested, and the trencher-fed pack assembled to hunt.[2][3][4] The group often hunts in Lower Manhattan locations like Theatre Alley where garbage is accessible to vermin.[5][6]

The group responds to calls from citizens, including homeless whom they call their "intelligence network".[7] In 2017, New York City councilmember Eric Ulrich called upon the group to eradicate rats in Ozone Park, Queens and awarded them for their efforts. The dogs each received a "Vigilante Award" from the New York City Council, a dog bone, and beef jerky treats.[8][9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Leah Bitsky (March 23, 2017), "Meet the fearless dogs solving NYC's rat problem", New York Post
  2. ↑ Corey KILGANNON (November 21, 2013), "In Manhattan Alleys, Dogs on Rat Hunts Find Bags of Fun", The New York Times
  3. ↑ WILL NEWMAN (December 9, 2014), Spending a Night with New York's Finest Rat-Hunting Club, Vice.com
  4. ↑ Emma Patti Harris (August 11, 2014), "The Rat Catchers of New York", The Dark Room (Photo essay), The Baltimore Sun
  5. ↑ Corey Kilgannon (December 7, 2013), "Brits can keep their foxes; New Yorkers do rat hunts", The SeattleTimes
  6. ↑ Mitch Moxley (2013), The Rat Hunters of New York, Roads & Kingdoms, retrieved 2017-10-02
  7. ↑ Cezary Jan Strusiewicz and Richard Reynolds (January 13, 2016), "6 Creepy Realities Of The (Shockingly Real) Rat Hunting Game", Cracked
  8. ↑ Emily Davenport (August 28, 2017), 'Vigilante dogs' honored in Ozone Park for literally sinking their teeth into the local rodent population, Qns.com
  9. ↑ Katie Honan (August 29, 2017), 'Vigilante' Dogs Sniff Out Rats Running Wild in Queens, DNAinfo, archived from the original on October 3, 2017

Further reading

  • "Homeless Cats Recruited to Fight Rising Tide of Rats – There's a new sheriff in Washington D.C. alleys: adopted feral cats. But as rodent-killing machines, New York's terriers are even better.", Official website, National Geographic Society, September 29, 2017
  • Rat Catchers of New York, CBS News, July 25, 2014
  • Rat catchers of New York (Photo essay), Reuters, August 11, 2014
  • "Dog owners gather in Manhattan side streets for the New York rat hunt", The Telegraph (Photo essay), United Kingdom, August 11, 2014
  • "Chasse aux rats dans les rues de New-York" [Rat hunt in the streets of New York], L'Express (in French), Paris, August 14, 2014
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