Gerard Brown, 52, is the program manager for the D.C. Department of Health’s rodent control division. He’s been in the pest control industry for 25 years, starting in private business and then joining the Department of Health nine years ago.
How did you get into the rodent control business?
It allowed me to have freedom, and I wouldn’t be pinned down a desk. I get to meet a lot of people and get to help a lot of people. Rodent control is a science. We just completed a three-day training academy with the guy I call the Michael Jordan of pest control. Three days talking about rats. How they communicate, calisthenics …
How do they communicate?
With their urine and droppings. They can say if this is a good place to eat, describe what kind of food is there, whether there’s an alpha rat in the area. Rats are genius. National Geographic recently did a documentary, “Rat Genius,” here in the District, but it could have been anywhere.
Halloween is coming up. Do you have any horror stories?
A big chain store had a problem, and I was just starting out. Rats dragged bags of Halloween candy under the floor, and there was a huge pile of empty candy bags. I was on the phone with my boss when all of a sudden a big fat rat just came up the aisle toward me. I didn’t know what to do. I started yelling, “He’s coming at me! He’s coming at me!”
What did your boss say?
“Just stay calm.” And [the rat] stopped coming at me. I figured this guy must of ate all that Halloween candy, cause he was just wallowing.
Was that the biggest rat you’ve seen?
The Michael Jordan of pest control says all of them are pretty much the same size. There’s really no such thing as a cat-sized rat. But when they are threatened, they make themselves big, their heads swell up.
