Pest control: Mum horrified as rat chews through her kitchen door in the night and creeps into family bedroom

A mum was horrified that a rat chewed through her kitchen door in the night and crept into the family bedroom - it was shot dead by a pest controller

A rat chewed through a couple's kitchen door overnight and sneaked into their bedroom as their baby slept.

The large rodent had been living in their house for a month without being seen until it chewed two large holes in the kitchen door in a single night. The rat crept into the couple's bedroom where Chloe, who didn't wish to reveal her last name, was sleeping with two-month-old Ronnie.

In the early hours of the morning on November 29, Chloe heard the rat in the room and fled immediately, locking the door behind her.

She said: "We didn't actually see it. We heard rustling behind the radiator in our room and it was gone. We just ran out. We had to put a towel on the door because we were worried it would chew through the door again."

The mum-of-one called her boyfriend Abe, who was out and asked him to come home. A pest control service attended the property and killed the rodent using an air pistol.

Chloe, of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, said: "I was actually so scared. I called Abe and told him to come right home. I didn't want it in the house. It's full of germs. I was worried it would get Ronnie sick."

According to Chloe, the rat had been living in the house for at least a month as she had been noticing items chewed around the house.

She said: "Things were getting eaten around the house. Abe didn't believe me because I saw it more often. The door it chewed through was wood. It was quite thick. I don't know how it did it."

The incident comes amid a rise in reports of rat infestations across the country.

Mark Telford, who attended Chloe and Abe's house, said that he has seen a massive increase in rat and mouse calls. Mark, 45, owns Tornado Pest Control Limited and says he has seen a 30% increase in recent months. He blames the issue partly on local councils letting rubbish pile up.

He said he usually has two weeks off around Christmas but wasn't able to last year. "We're tracking 30 per cent above previous years in rat and mouse cases," he said. "Over 60 per cent of our external rat callouts have been linked to poor waste management. This is usually linked to waste stacked up down back streets. This not only provides a food source but gives the rats harbourage points."