Windsor family says they're forced to live with mice in community housing unit

Unknowingly sleeping with a mouse, having the rodent jump out of her childrens' cereal box and cleaning up tiny droppings on the kitchen counter are all "disgusting" examples of what's been going on inside Samantha Fejko's community housing unit for several months.

And she believes the corporation isn't doing enough to keep the critters out.

It scares me.- Samara Malott, Samantha Fejko's 10-year-old daughter

Back in February, the single mother moved into her Central Avenue townhouse with her three children — ages 2, 10 and 13. Right away, Fejko said she noticed a mouse in the house, running across the kitchen floor.

"It's not fair," Fejko said, whose unit is owned by the Windsor-Essex Community Housing Corporation. "To have this happen and the way I'm being responded to is really unfortunate."

Mother makes dozens of complaints

Calls were made to the office immediately, she said, and management acted "quickly," at first. The subsequent calls for help weeks and months later weren't taken as seriously, Fejko said with frustration. 

"It became where they're not answering phone calls, they're not returning my messages," said Fejko, who said she was told by office staff that they were having a hard time getting in touch with pest control.

A pest control company has been inside her home on several occasions and placed traps, but the problem persists and at times appears to have gotten worse.

Problem started in February

Fejko sent CBC News phone records showing she made calls to the Windsor-Essex Community Housing Corporation on several occasions in July, September, October and November. In August, Fejko became so frustrated with many unreturned calls that she reached out to the city using 311.

"I would call multiple people in the office and leave messages with everybody," Fejko said, estimating she's called roughly 100 times since February.

So the obligation on my end is that we're going to try to help the resident out and get the problem solved.- Kirk Whittal, chief operating officer

The housing corporation has a different record of events. They agree the initial call from Fejko was made in February, followed by another call in May. Then there was a lull, they say, and another call wasn't received until September or October.

Mice issue falls below corporation's expectations

Chief operating officer Kirk Whittal admits it's not fair for the family to live in these conditions and it falls below his expectations. However, he said it often takes multiple visits to eradicate a pest problem.

"What I'm trying to say to you is that from our perspective, we're reacting and trying to do that. So the obligation on my end is that we're going to try to help the resident out and get the problem solved," said Whittal.

The pest control company will treat Fejko's home again on Thursday. And Whittal plans to have a conversation with them to say "OK, what's going on with this? Let's dig deeper and try to get this resolved."

Problem worse than they thought

Now the Community Housing Corporation, which operates 5,000 homes in the city, is "taking responsibility," admitting that it's a bit more "extensive" than initially thought.

Fejko said it's gotten so bad that her youngest daughter believes it's normal to have mice scurrying around. The breaking point for Fejko happened a few weeks ago when a mouse climbed into bed with her.

"I'm not able to sleep because I'm afraid something is going to crawl on me," Fejko said. "It's disgusting."

Young daughter scared to sleep

Fejko's 10-year-old daughter is struggling with the unwanted critters. Samara Malott loves to do crafts. That passion quickly wanes when she notices small pieces of chewed-up paper on top of mouse droppings in her room.

"It makes me extremely uncomfortable," she said. "It scares me. I don't even want to sleep in my bed anymore because I'm a deep sleeper and I don't know what happens."

It was never Fejko's intention to be so public with her story because it's "embarrassing." But after repeated attempts to try and have the housing corporation to fix the problem with no avail, she wants them to take it more seriously.

I'm not able to sleep because I'm afraid something is going to crawl on me. It's disgusting.- Samantha Fejko

Tenant considers legal action

If the situation doesn't improve soon, Fejko said she will take legal action. As a paralegal graduate, and someone who was recently accepted into the criminal justice program at the University of Windsor, Fejko believes she has the knowledge to at least start the process on her own.