A woman from Belfast is pleading with the Council to come out and deal with a mice issue after she had to resort to throwing out some of her children's Christmas toys.
The mother of four kids under five said she has struggled with her mental health since she first spotted the rodents, and her doctor has also flagged "concerns" for her child's health, after they developed a "chronic cough over recent months".
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, told Belfast Live: "I’ve been waiting for two weeks already for Belfast Council to come out. They aren't coming until the 20th.
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"I have four young kids and they can’t even play with toys or anything as these mice droppings are everywhere, in there bedrooms and everything. They are everywhere.
"My kids' toys they only got at Christmas are also having to be thrown in the bin because of mice droppings. My youngest son at the age of 10 months can’t even crawl or learn to walk because of it.
"It’s a disgrace that I am having to live like this. I can’t even cook in the kitchen, they are running from under my cooker and washing machine and scaring my kids. It is awful.
"This is impacting everything as I don’t use the kitchen. I’m buying takeaways to feed my children and it’s leaving me with no money.
"I am honestly fed up with this and I don’t know what else to do. I’m not sleeping and have four kids to look after with this going on."
When asked about this woman’s issue, and why she has had to wait so long for resolution, a Belfast City Council spokesperson said: "Our free pest control service offers appointments in response to rats, mice, flies and cockroaches. An appointment can be made by emailing pestcontrol@belfastcity.gov.uk or by calling 02890270431.
"As one of the few Councils in Northern Ireland that provide the discretionary service, at times, due to demand, there may be a delay in receiving an appointment.
"We can confirm that this particular case has been reported to Council’s pest control team and we are responding to the enquiry as quickly as we can.
"Further advice on pest control measures can be found on our website: www.belfastcity.gov.uk/pestcontrol."
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