Calling 311 About Rodents in Albuquerque: Who Handles What

Short answer: the City of Albuquerque doesn't send anyone to trap mice, and it doesn't recommend pest control companies. What it does is narrower. Its Urban Biology Division takes 311 complaints from tenants in multi-unit housing whose landlord hasn't dealt with an infestation, it collects certain dead rodents and rabbits for plague and tularemia testing, and code enforcement handles weeds and litter that give rodents cover.

Which of those applies depends on what you're dealing with, where you live and whether you own or rent. Here's how each one works, what happens after you call and what to do if 311 isn't the right door.

The city's rodent page is plain about it: the city does not provide rodent control services, and anyone with an infestation in or around their home should contact a pest control company. It also says it doesn't recommend or endorse any company.

That leaves homeowners with private pest control. For renters, the picture depends on the building. For everyone, the city still has a role in three areas.

• Untreated infestations in multi-unit rental housing, through 311
• Dead rodents and rabbits in certain areas, collected for disease testing
• Weeds and litter on private property, through code enforcement

The complaint process is for City of Albuquerque residents who live in multi-unit housing. The city's list is broad: large apartment complexes, small fourplexes, triplexes, duplexes, group homes, community centers, hotels and motels. Single-family homes, whether owned or rented, aren't covered, and the city tells those residents to call private pest control.

The steps are short. First, tell your property management about the infestation, preferably in writing. That means the owner, the landlord or the management company. If nothing is done within 10 days, call 311 and report the untreated infestation to the Urban Biology Division. Give good contact information so the division can follow up, and allow up to 72 business hours for the first contact.

Even if your situation doesn't qualify, the division will answer general questions about rodent infestations. That can help if you're not sure whether what you're seeing counts.

The city doesn't publish a form, but a useful notice is specific. Keep a copy and note the date you sent or delivered it. The same notice also matters under New Mexico's landlord law, covered in our rental guide.

• Your name, unit number and the property address
• What you've seen: droppings, nests, gnaw marks, live or dead rodents
• Where in the unit and when you first noticed it
• Photos with dates, if you have them
• A clear request that the owner arrange pest control
• The date of the notice and how you delivered it

The city's Insect and Rodent Control Ordinance, Chapter 9, Article 7 of the city code, is the legal backbone. It lets the city inspect buildings, lots and premises as needed to investigate and abate infestations or harborage, at reasonable times. If entry is refused, the city has to get a court order. The ordinance also has sections on enforcement, serving notices and orders, and a section titled "Extermination measures required, and harborage not permitted."

The city's public pages don't lay out a step-by-step timeline beyond the 72-business-hour first contact, so expect the division to reach out, ask questions and decide on next steps from there. Keep pest activity documented in the meantime. Don't clean up droppings by sweeping or vacuuming while you wait. Soak them first. Our hantavirus-safe cleanup article has the steps.

Plague and tularemia occur naturally in New Mexico. The city says most Bernalillo County cases come from the East Mountains, with some from the western foothills and North Albuquerque Acres. In September 2025 the New Mexico Department of Health reported a plague case in a Bernalillo County man, the second human case in the state that year.

To help track it, the city collects rodents and rabbits that died with no apparent trauma, meaning they weren't killed by a predator or hit by a car. Collection covers North Albuquerque Acres, neighborhoods east of Tramway Boulevard, the foothills and East Mountain communities up to the Bernalillo County line. Mice aren't collected or tested. Call 311 and don't handle the animal.

If you live in Sandia Heights, High Desert or Cedar Crest, this is the part of the city's program most likely to apply to you.

Overgrown lots give rodents cover. Under the city's Weed, Litter and Snow Removal Ordinance, owners must clear weeds taller or wider than 4 inches from their yards, from the property line to the curb and from the property line to the middle of the alley. Report a problem property to 311 or online through ABQ311. Our property rules guide covers the enforcement steps.

Rodents in a restaurant or food store inside city limits are a food safety matter. The city's Environmental Health Department takes complaints about poor sanitary practices at food businesses through its complaint form, and it tells people outside city limits to contact Bernalillo County. See the restaurant inspection guide.

The city's multi-unit process covers city residents only. If you live in an unincorporated area like the South Valley or Sandia Heights, contact Bernalillo County about property and housing complaints. In Edgewood, Moriarty or Belen, contact that town or county.

For health, the state handles it. The New Mexico Department of Health tracks hantavirus and plague and tells anyone with an unexplained sudden, severe fever to see a doctor. Mention any rodent contact.

Find your situation:

• Homeowner with mice inside: private pest control
• Renting a house: written notice to the landlord, then the state's tenant remedies
• Renting in a duplex, fourplex or apartment in city limits: written notice, wait 10 days, then 311
• Dead rodent or rabbit with no injury in the foothills, east of Tramway or the East Mountains: 311 for collection
• Weedy lot or littered alley: 311 for code enforcement
• Rodents in a restaurant in city limits: the city's food safety complaint form
• Outside city limits: Bernalillo County, or your town or county

• Mice in a Rental: What New Mexico Law Expects of Landlords and Tenants
• City Rules on Yards, Weeds and Trash That Bear on Rodents
• Plague, Fleas and Pets Around Albuquerque
• Cleaning Up After Mice Without Breathing In Hantavirus

Services: Commercial Rodent Control / House Mouse Control / Dead Rodent and Odor Removal

1. City of Albuquerque Environmental Health: Rodents
2. Albuquerque Code of Ordinances, Chapter 9, Article 7: Insect and Rodent Control
3. City of Albuquerque Planning: Nuisance Weed Removal
4. City of Albuquerque Environmental Health: Restaurant and food safety complaints
5. New Mexico Department of Health: Plague case in Bernalillo County (Sept. 2025)
6. New Mexico Department of Health: First hantavirus case of 2026 (March 2026)