Rats 'the size of cats' are reportedly terrorising home owners and sneaking up on toilets to invade their homes, according to pest experts.
The swimming rodents can apparently tread water for days and hold their breathe for up to three minutes, meaning they can infiltrate people's homes in one of the most unlikeliest ways.
Pest experts are now warning people to 'rat proof' their homes so they can't gain entry, Yorkshire Live reports.
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Ian Helands, a pest control specialist, warned: "I have had more call-outs than ever from homeowners who have heard a noise, looked down into their toilet only to find a giant rat.
"No-one is safe. Rats are excellent swimmers with bendy bones and can squeeze into the smallest of spaces.
"They can hold their breath for three minutes and tread water for three days, and they are coming up waste pipes.
"They’re cunning and getting bolder and bolder. Basically, if they want to get into your home, they will."
There has also been an influx in the number of rats in the UK, with there said to be around 150 million, the most ever.
Mr Helands continued: "This has increased by 25% each year over the Covid pandemic.
"People are scared and they should be. There are more rats than ever and they are taking over. I have seen some the size of cats."
He confirmed what a lot of people had feared throughout the pandemic. As people were not working and occupying city centres, the rats have had to come into people's homes due to there being a lack of food.
Mr Helands, who runs Sussex pest control business Pests Be Gone continued: "There are ways of pest proofing your home.
"You can get rat gates for water pipes – these used to be used in very rural areas, such as near canals, but now we are recommending them even in built-up housing areas."
