Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Rats Love Higher Learning
By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 2, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 2, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In 2005, a Columbia graduate student in statistics emailed us, noticing "a mean 10.2 and a median 8.0 rats per night" on West 108th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam. One solution was cats, another was rat snakes. But now it seems that the rats have moved to Columbia's campus. From the Columbia Spectator:
Columbia College Student Council President Seth Flaxman, CC '07, sent an e-mail to Senior Executive Vice President Robert Kasdin asking the administration to address the problem.
"There is a rat problem on campus and I'm not talking about the graduate students," he wrote. "Students are telling me there are more rats on campus at night than any of us have ever seen before ... I don't know what's causing this ratification, but I'm hoping you can talk to Facilities and lead us in our fight against the rat invaders."
The administration says there could be a number of factors, like the warm fall and winter causing an increase in rat mating and Columbia students being total slobs.
The city has faced problems with rodent control; in fact, it takes the city about 30 days to respond to a complaint - and the rat's gestation period is around 3 weeks.
Photograph taken on 14th Street and 7th Avenue by Joe Schumacher on Flickr
Tagged
broadway
campus
cats
college
Columbia College
Columbia Spectator
flickr
joe schumacher
media
news
News: NYC
photos
rat
rats
the city
vice president
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
6-year-old girl breaks leg after getting hit by falling bricks in Queens
The girl was walking with her mother in Maspeth on Thursday. The Department of Buildings cited the owner of a garage for “failure to maintain” it.
By
Charles Lane
Published Oct 23, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. ET
Mamdani extends ban on permits for new street fairs due to NYPD overtime
Critics say the moratorium harms businesses in neighborhoods without a tradition of street fairs.
By
Carol Chen
News
Mamdani extends ban on permits for new street fairs due to NYPD overtime
Critics say the moratorium harms businesses in neighborhoods without a tradition of street fairs.
By
Carol Chen
Inside the Midtown Bus Terminal rebuild: Decks over Lincoln Tunnel approach, a new park
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Black couple seeking Queens apartment sues over racist text from broker
By
Brittany Kriegstein
NJ early voting begins Saturday. Here's everything you need to know.
By
Mike Hayes
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .