When neighbors discovered that a nearby L.A. resident had a serious rat problem they didn't call animal control. They called producers of the television show Hoarders. What the show's people found was 1,000 rats.

Turns out the resident's daughter brought a pregnant rat to him, unbeknownst, we presume, that rats can quickly have as many as 20 babies that can then start breeding with each other within 30 days.

The San Jose Mercury News (via LA Observed) describes the resulting chaos:

When the rat rescue people moved in, they found themselves walking on droppings and insulation torn out of the walls that formed a creepy carpet an inch and a half thick. “There were cages in the house, but the doors were all open,” recalled [animal rescuer Lauren] Paul. “When you walked into the house, you were standing in crowds of rats. They were all around you.”

The rats were gathered by animal rescuers and shipped via 18-wheeler to Andy's Pet Shop in San Jose where, of course, the girls were separated from the boys.

Show producers wouldn't reveal the name of the hoarder or location of his residence.

L.A., it seems, is somewhat of a capital of rat houses.

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