Chicago has taken a slightly different, but classic way of ridding troubled areas of the city of their rat problems.

The Tree House Humane Society has a programme called Cats at Work and has released more than 1,000 felines into commercial and residential areas to hunt down the pesky rodents. The furry felines work for a modest fee of food, water, shelter and wellness from sponsors who often become beloved members of the family for their hard work.

The furry felines are feral cats who cannot unfortunately live in a home or shelter environment, but by placing them in Cat’s at work colonies, The Tree House Humane Society says they are “able to make sure they’re living their best lives.”

Chicago has been named the “rattiest city” for six years in a row and is unfortunately infamous for its hard to tackle rat infestations.

During the cities “War on Rats” in 1977 a $1 bounty was offered for rats as the population of rats was estimated to outnumber its 85,000-human population in one borough.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns a spike in suburban rat populations has bloomed. Restaurants in urban areas have been forced to close cutting off a major food source of the rodents forcing them further afield into suburban areas for sustenance and some rats even resorting to cannibalism.