Rodent Control in Baltimore, MD

Rat Rubout is the Department of Public Works program that inspects a property for active rat burrows and baits any it finds. The code duties in the next table still apply inside the house.

• Request it by phone or app: Call 3-1-1 inside the city or 443-263-2220 from outside it, or use the 311 app or the online portal. The call center answers from 6am to 10pm, seven days a week.
• Sign the right of entry form: Rat Rubout workers need a signed right of entry form before entering private property. The permission lasts 120 days. The signer agrees to clean the yard, clear bulk items, stop feeding pets outside and use durable lidded cans.
• Bait only where a burrow is: A Rat Rubout worker inspects for an active burrow and places poisonous bait deep inside it only if one is present, then marks each treated burrow with a yellow flag and leaves a hang card.
• Keep pets clear of flags: Rat Rubout bait sits deep in the burrow, so a pet should reach it only by digging deep. If a cat or dog eats some, DPW says to call a veterinarian or poison control.

Rat Rubout treats burrows. For rats or mice already inside the house, the table below shows who arranges extermination.

Baltimore did not adopt the model property code's pest section, Section 309. It wrote its own duties into Sections 304 to 308, and the rows below show who acts.

Where more than one unit is affected, Section 308.5 does not name the occupant, and Section 301.2.1 makes the owner and operator responsible for structures and exterior areas unless a section provides otherwise. Section 308.2 also hands exterior upkeep back to the owner after a failure to register the property or a third environmental citation.

Sections 306.4 to 306.7 of the code decide how trash waits for pickup, and the Department of Public Works supplies the can. The Sanitation Guide that must be posted in each unit with City trash pickup names your trash day.

• Use the City can, lid shut: Section 306.6 accepts a watertight can with a tight-fitting cover: the City-owned can assigned to your address, or another can of 32 gallons or less. Keep it tightly closed to prevent pest infestation.
• No loose bags at the curb: The Department of Public Works says not to set bagged trash out for collection, because rats can easily chew through the bags. Bags belong inside the can.
• Out in the evening, back by morning: Under Section 306.7, a can may not go onto a sidewalk or along an alley before 6 p.m. the evening before collection, and it returns to the property by 6 a.m. the day after.
• One City can per building: DPW issues one trash can per residential structure, whatever the number of units in it, and collects up to 96 gallons of trash per structure. Above that, the address hires a private hauler.
• Landlords answer for the cans: Landlords are responsible for the City cans assigned to their properties. Report a lost, stolen or damaged can to 311 to start a replacement.

• Raise anything stored outside: Section 305.7 wants outdoor storage neat, with every stored object at least 1 foot off the ground to prevent rat harborage, unless the Commissioner decides that is unnecessary.
• No indoor furniture outdoors: Section 305.8 bars upholstered furniture not made for outdoor use, mattresses included, from yards, porches, patios and decks. The Department of Public Works says old furniture gives rats a home.
• Keep grass and weeds short: Section 305.2.2 caps growth at 8 inches on the lot and 4 inches along abutting sidewalks, gutters and alleys. Short grass removes rat hiding places, the Department of Public Works says.
• Pick up pet food and waste: Clear leftover pet food and animal waste from the yard daily. The Department of Public Works notes that animal waste holds undigested pet food, which rats eat.