A neighbor forwarded this article/additional information to me and I thought I would pass it along.  If we all work together, we can keep this from becoming a problem!

https://www.colonialpest.com/rats-neighborhood-come/

• If your food garbage is accessible, overflowing the can, you are inviting rats.
• If you have an abundance of bird feeders dropping seed on the ground, you are inviting rats.
• If you’re not so regular about cleaning up dog poop from your yard, you are inviting rats.
• If you leave overripe fruit or vegetables on the ground in your garden, you are inviting rats.