Giant rat shot dead with air pistol after chewing into Doncaster couple's bedroom

A mum has spoken of finding doors chewed through and the rodent slipping into a bedroom where she was sleeping with her two month old son.

The woman, named only as Chloe, said the rat chewed two large holes in the bottom side of her kitchen door and crept into the bedroom where she was sleeping with son Ronnie.

The invasion, in the early hours of November 29, led to Chloe calling her boyfriend Abe who was out at the time and asking him to come home.

A pest control service then attended the house, located the rat, and shot it with an air pistol.

Chloe told The Sun: "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."

"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."

She said the rat had been living in the house for a month as she had noticed items being chewed.

A trail of wood chip crumbs by the door were evidence of the rat’s chewing.

Mark Telford, the pest controller who attended Chloe and Abe's house, said that he has seen an increase in rat and mouse calls.

Mark, 45, owns Tornado Pest Control Limited and says he has seen a 30 per cent increase in recent months - blaming the issue on local councils letting rubbish pile up.

He said the rubbish provided a food source as well as safe haven from the outside world.

Mark said: "I usually have two weeks off around Christmas but I haven't been able to this year. We're tracking 30 per cent above previous years in rat and mouse cases. Over 60 per cent of our external rat callouts have been linked to poor waste management."