The Rat whisperer of NYC
Is this a great country or what? Suzanne Reisman has seen a problem and turned it into business. You could call it “rata-tour-y.” Over many decades, the reviled brown rodent has burrowed deep into the Big Apple’s collective psyche. Thankfully, there has emerged a lone hero who braves Gotham’s vermin plague to educate the masses and reduce the fright factor: Suzanne Reisman, leader of the Garbage & Rats in NYC walking tour. Suzanne in fuzzy, faux rat ears like a bizarro Mouseketeer, takes guests through some of the city’s most rat-infested sites while spilling retch-worthy facts on the critters’ habits, à la a sanitation history lesson meets an urban wildlife safari. “They’ll kick through NYC’s garbage, find the undigested kibble,” she explained to the curious crowd. “I mean, dog poop is disgusting, but anyway, I do not ever pass by dog poop anymore without thinking, ‘Oh, it’s a rat snack.’” Since the tour opened in April, curious city visitors and locals alike have been clamoring to see the Big Apple’s trash-loving mascot.
“There has been a lot of interest,” Reisman told The Post of the popular, frankly skin-crawling experience, which costs $40 per person. “I sold out two tours and filled the waitlists during Jane’s Walk,” she said of a recent excursion coinciding with the annual festival of community-led walking conversations. “I wasn’t sure that people would show up for a Sunday night tour in the rain, but they did!” “Rats are just so linked to New York City, both in reality and in our lore,” said Reisman. “They’re sort of little monsters, but also sort of … cute.” On the two-hour foray through lower Manhattan, guests learned how the Norway rat hitched a ride here on Hessian ships in the late 1700s. They soon discovered a veritable island of garbage caused by nonexistent waste management policies that saw residents dump animal carcasses, feces and more onto streets and even into the East River. “The rats get off the ship. They take a look around and think, ‘Jackpot — we’ve made it,’” Reisman told rapt tour-takers and other revulsed guests. “They are just beyond super happy, and they are as much of a New Yorker, a successful immigrant New Yorker, as any other group.” From then on, rats and garbage would go hand in paw.
Reisman’s not the only tour guide noticing an uptick in interest. Fellow rodent watcher Kenny Bollwerk told The Post that he’s had so many requests for rat tours that he “can’t physically go every night.” The self-proclaimed “Rat Daddy,” who films his rodent-spotting exploits for his TikTok series “Rat Tok,” was forced to add more stops to the tour — most notably an “area next to Wollman Rink (Central Park) where the trash is thrown away, offering sweeping views of the skyline on Billionaires’ Row with rats feasting on the buffet below.” Reisman attributes others’ fascination in part — and somewhat ironically — to the city-wide anti-rat offensive, spearheaded by Rat Czar Kathleen Corradi. Along with lacing rat poison with contraceptives and rolling out rat-proof “Empire Bins’’ in Manhattan, the campaign has included a special program to educate the community on the garbage gobblers. Perhaps it’s no surprise that Riesman, busting with factoids, is a graduate of the academy and member of the “Rat Pack,” a city-sanctioned “elite squad of dedicated anti-rat activists.” “It just seems like the city itself is doing so much more to engage people between,” said Reisman. “So I think it’s like there’s also just more openness about this kind of thing and more discussion in general. And citizens in general are more interested.”
Rodent revelry
The one rat asked the other rat if he’s had the vaccine?
“Nope, they’re still testing it on humans,
Let’s see how that goes.”
What is the difference between a rat and a squirrel?
Answer: The puffy tail.
Moral: never underestimate the power of marketing.
What do rich folks and rats have in common?
They’re leaving New York City.
French scientists announced that they can finally successfully clone a rat!
Thank goodness! This will solve the huge rat shortage.
June 27th Birthdays
1880 – Helen Keller, 1989 – Alanna Masterson, 1998 – Shannon Purser, 1959 – Lorrie Morgan
1976 – Tobey MacQuire, 1988 – Ed Westwick, 1987 – Drake Bell, 1966 – J. J. Abrams