Three-weekly bin collections are being blamed after a couple spotted a rat climbing up their washing line.
Jean Campbell saw the rodent eating from a bird feeder as she looked out of her kitchen window on Sunday afternoon.
Her partner Archie Macintyre, a keen bird watcher, photographed the rodent round the back of their flat at Colonsay Terrace in Oban’s Soroba housing scheme.
Mr Macintyre, a chef, said: “We are horrified. They are going to have to nip it in the bud. There are a lot of kids about.
“That was the first time I have seen anything like it in Soroba. The wife let out a scream and I ran through to see what it was. At first I thought it was a squirrel as it was going for the feeders on the clothes line. Then I realised it was a rat.”
He added: “When the bins went to three weekly uplift, it was quite obvious this day was going to come. Everybody was saying that rats would appear. We have had the seagulls. It’s not on. There is rubbish pouring out of the bins at times.”
Ms Campbell said: “I feel physically sick. In 38 years in my home I have never seen as much as a mouse. This has only happened since the three weekly collections came in. By the end of the second week the streets are littered with bags.”
Argyll and Bute Council introduced three weekly bin collections instead of fortnightly to Oban in November 2016. Soroba, with its high density population, has been badly hit by the move.
Mr Macintyre added: “We have the grandkids up from time to time. We can’t let them out the back to play now.”
He contacted the council’s environmental health team yesterday and was told that no officers were available to deal with his complaint. He was told he required the pest control department and there would be a £78 call out charge.
He said: “It’s not on. What do we pay our council tax for?”
George Berry, a member of Oban Community Council and a resident of Colonsay Terrace, said: “The main concern at Colonsay Terrace is that the bins back on to the children’s play park.
“You never saw a rat before – this has only happened since the bins fiasco. We had no problem with vermin until this happened.
“Something has to be done now.”
A spokeswoman for the council said: “We sought public health advice from the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) when we were considering the three-weekly model. We were advised that that there should not be any increased risk to public health as long as existing common sense standards are followed, such as wrapping waste and keeping the lids of bins firmly closed.
“We would ask residents to help us by taking these measures and to ensure that any food put out for wild animals is done so carefully, with any spillage from feeders being cleaned up. Discarded and leftover food may well attract rats. Anyone who has concerns about vermin should contact our Pest Control Service for advice.”
