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The Rat Fan Club
Rats in the News
Please let us know if you see any news items featuring
rats that aren’t posted here.
Thanks!
The Rat Lady’s Corner
Updates about Debbie’s activities and rats. (Updated 8/24/10)
8/27/10
Pack rats poised to rule the world, outlive
humans, cockroaches
Tucson
Citizen
For starters, pack rats are much cuter than roaches. People are
immediately inclined to squash a cockroach to pulp.
A pack rat, on the
other hand, ...
8/24/10
Struggling pet owners get help
with emergency veterinary bills
The Sacramento
Bee
A nonprofit group in Sacramento, Calif., is one of a few organizations that
provide financial grants to low-income
owners
of pets that have life-threatening conditions and a good chance of survival
when treated.
8/19/10
Ginormous Rats Invade U.K. Housing Complex
FOXNews
This giant critter, either a rat or a South American copyu, was killed in a housing complex in England. Horrified UK residents
claim their homes are
being ... (Rat Lady’s note: This animal is really big, and from the photo
you can’t tell for sure what it is,
but
it’s much too big to be a Norway rat.)
8/17/10
AOL News published an opinion piece about HeroRATs, the giant pouched African rats used to sniff
out
land mines and TB.
http://www.aolnews.com/opinion/article/opinion-support-your-local-hero-rat/19595717
8/16/10
French
Hotel Lets Guests Live Like Hamsters!
Click
here to to know how!
8/14/10
Pet rat show pulls in Lincoln crowd
The Lincolnite
The North of England Rat Society's Pet Initiative rat show,
held at Fiskerton Village Hall, saw dozens of
locals,
young and old, coming to
see the rats. ...
7/28/10
Rats Run Wild
In Collect Pond Park (VIDEO)
Huffington Post (blog)
The video's narrator sums it up best. "There's no drinking, no
bicycling, no dogs, no skateboarding. You will disturb the rats in
Collect Pond Park Rat Zoo. ...
7/28/10
Upcoming AVMA conference to tackle
pocket pets
The upcoming AVMA conference, to
be held July 31 to Aug. 3 in Atlanta, will provide veterinarians with the opportunity
to participate in a hands-on activity on how to handle pocket pets. Millions
of rabbits, hamsters, ferrets and guinea pigs are now being treated as pets
in the U.S., and the trend is expected to alter the course of
pet management in the country.
6/23/10
Rat-A-Rama 2010
Boise Weekly
And, possibly worst of all, rats influenced one of the worst
hairstyles in history: the rattail. But movies like Disney's
Ratatouille--the story of a rat ...
6/13/10
Cancer drug for pets advances to human trials
The Sydney Morning Herald
(Australia)/Australian Associated Press
EBC-46, a drug derived from the seed of a rain forest plant in Australia,
has been successfully used to treat cancer in some 150 cats, dogs, horses
and a ferret. A 10-year-old beagle with a deadly facial tumor recently was
treated with the drug and is recovering. QBiotics,
which developed the treatment, is looking to raise $10 million to fund
human clinical trials slated early next year in Australia.
6/4/10
California cops can enter homes when pets are in peril,
court rules
San Francisco Chronicle
California police officers are within the law when
they enter homes without a warrant after receiving a call about an animal
in distress, a state appeals court ruled this week. The court upheld an
animal-cruelty conviction against a Los Angeles County man whose lawyer argued that police
only had the right to enter if they believed a human was in distress.
Study:
Anti-Aging Supplements Best Taken in Middle Age
FOXNews
Middle aged rats showed improvements in their physical abilities
after receiving anti-aging supplements, while older rats
did not, the researchers said. ...
5/20/10
Hundreds
of rats found in hoarding case
Las Cruces Sun-News
... rats for food. "It's that or kill
them and put them in the dump," said shelter director Beth Vesco-Mock, who also said she'd never seen a rat-hoarding
... (Please note that I called and talked with the population director
at the shelter taking in these rats, and the rats released to reptile
breeders will be humanely euthanized with carbon
dioxide—Deb)
ICFF
2010: Future Perfect Brings The Whimsy With... Rats?
Fast Company
The Rat Lamp, as the name suggests, is a cluster of rats
(stuffed, thankfully) clawing fiendishly to a bulb as if it were the
Pied Piper of Hamelin. ...
(Warning: the stuffed rats are real taxidermied
rats)
4/29/10
Manon
Cleary’s Long History with the Patron Saint of Adams
Morgan—Rats
…my editor said, the rat is the patron saint of Adams Morgan. “It
is, and there’s nothing wrong with that,”
says the Adams
Morgan-based artist Manon Cleary, whose varied
and celebrated career has included 25
or 30 paintings depicting white rats.
4/20/10
Rat
Grandmas' Diet Linked to Granddaughters' Cancer
Scientific American
A high-fat diet consumed by female rats was associated with a
greater risk of breast cancer in her next two
generations of female
progeny, who ate a normal ...
4/14/10
BC
rat, Matilda, spared Calgary death sentence
Vancouver Sun
... discovered a second dead rat, Bruce said. "One
resident . . . did confess that they had purchased these rats
frozen from a pet store,
which is perfectly ...
4/11/10
Steve
Hickoff: For the love of a rat
Foster's Daily Democrat
Rats are smart; savvy; they are survivors. Ask any New England big city dweller. The rat named Templeton
(a thinker with a robust
appetite as you remember, ...
3/22/10
A
sweet problem: Princeton researchers find that high-fructose corn syrup ...
Princeton University
The first study showed that male rats
given water sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup in addition to a
standard diet
of rat chow gained much more weight than those with
access to table sugar...
3/15/10
Rats!
Fans Say They're the Perfect Companion Pet
ABC News
By SUE MANNING AP Writer AP History and Hollywood cast them as vermin
responsible for plagues, famine and famous movie lines like "You dirty
rat! ...
3/7/10
PETA
protests lab course
The UTD Mercury
By Lauren Buell Animal rights activists protest
the use of rats in a senior-level course March 3 on the southeast
corner of campus. ...
3/1/10
Peanut
butter cures black plague
Daily Telegraph
It follows a pilot study at Taronga Zoo to see if
native bush rats could drive off black rats. "The Aussie
battler, the native bush rat, won the fight," she ... (the headline for this is quite
misleading)
2/26/10
The
new face of toile
Frederick News Post
(subscription)
The Frederick-based artist began painting
repulsive, frightening or otherwise unpopular animals after reading about
the Karni Mata Temple in which thousands of rats scurry the
floors. The temple, located in India, serves as a tribute to the rat goddess Karni Mata, and, ...
2/11/10
Broadway
couple celebrate their love of rats with new magazine
Lehighvalleylive.com
Mil recently released the first issue of her own magazine, The Rodent
Reader Quarterly: A Magazine of AristocRATS,
Artists o' RATS
and Insane RAT love. ...
(To subscribe: www.rodentreader.com/the_rodent_reader.htm)
Zoo
plays a role in recent revival of the wood rat
Tampa Tribune
... a species of rat has returned to its native habitat after
being pushed to the brink of extinction more than 25 years ago.
Seven Key Largo wood rats born ...
2/8/10
ITV
fined £1600 for cruelty over 'rat risotto'
AFP
... said: "I saw one of these rats running around. I got
a knife, I got its throat, I picked it up."
The RSPCA said that
killing a rat as
part of a TV stunt ...
1/31/10
'Wild
Child: And Other Stories' by TC Boyle
Los Angeles Times
By Mark Rozzo
In "Thirteen Hundred Rats,"
one of the 14 stories in the latest collection from the seemingly
inexhaustible T.C. Boyle, a recent widower finds himself the owner of a
python. He's allergic to cats and dogs, those more cuddly
and condoned companions of the grief-stricken. But then something really
unexpected happens. The white rat he's purchased for his new pet's
sustenance proves unusually adept at eluding its fangs. The rodent's
improbable athletic performance elicits astonishment,
sympathy and, eventually, love. The widower spares the rat -- supple
as suede, a tiny creature quivering with hope and optimism -- and decides
to give the soulless python the heave-ho. "The situation was
novel," Boyle's narrator declares, "to say the least."
Animal
parts: High style or just plain beastly?
Globe and Mail
Jan. 29, 2010 3:16PM EST When she cycles along London's winding streets,
Reid Peppard keeps her eyes peeled for road kill
– pigeons, mice and rats that have met ... (Note: Although
the article says Peppard only uses road killed
animals, a photo at http://www.juxtapoz.com/Features/reid-peppards-creature-couture
shows her rat coin purse is made from a domestic rat. Further pictures on her own website at http://reidpeppard.blogspot.com/
show items made from albino rats, again, obviously domestic rats. Eeewww!)
1/25/10
PETA
Calls On University of Texas at Dallas to End Deadly Experiments on Rats
...
PETA (press release)
An interactive computer program that
simulates all aspects of the UT-Dallas rat experiment has been
developed with funding
from the National Science ...
1/19/10
PetCo Blamed for Case of Rat Bite Fever
Courthouse News Service
PHOENIX - A man says he was hospitalized with rat-bite
fever he got from a rat he bought from PetCo.
12/9/09
Students
turn rodents into (basketball) team players
Spartanburg Herald Journal
A rat drops a ball into a hoop as part of an experiment Wofford students are doing that has the rats
playing basketball. ...
12/8/09
In
Cancer-Ridden Rats, Loneliness Can Kill: Isolation and Stress
Identified as ...
Science Daily (press release)
Social isolation and related stress could contribute to human breast cancer
susceptibility, research from a rat model
designed at the
University ...
12/7/09
Rats!
Reality stars charged over jungle meal
Columbus Dispatch
Get Me Out of Here! have been charged with animal cruelty after allegedly
killing and cooking a rat to eat during
filming. Chef Gino D'Acampo, ...
12/3/09
Folkmanis Pack Rat puppet
Boston Herald
Even children who don't consider themselves fans of real rats will
fall for this roly-poly 12-inch tall Pack Rat ($21.99).
With his movable mouth
and arms, ...
11/22/09
Stockings,
a rat, makes her movie debut
Poughkeepsie Journal
Lagrange resident Sandy Essington replied, stating her daughter, Dana, has
three rats — one of which is
very special. Antonia subsequently met the rat ...
11/2/09
The
Pet Pundit: Every critter deserves a good home
The Maine Campus
Since I was 12 years old, I've loved rats. I am well aware that to
many, a rat is not a conventional pet.
However I guarantee that
if you ever own one, ...
10/28/09
Junk
food junkies
Science News
Rats on a junk food diet behave like drug addicts. ...
10/23/09
What
Is the Most Disturbing Thing About This Picture of a Rat Stuck in a
Sidewalk Crack?
NYMag
Is it: (A)
that some modern-day Weegee saw this happening
and instead of trying to help, took a picture of it,
and then sent
it to Gothamist for people to ogle, …
10/19/09
Smart
Rat 'Hobbie-J' Produced By Over-expressing
A Gene That Helps Brain Cells ...
Science Daily (press release)
But even a super rat has its limits. For example with one test, the rats
had to learn to alternate between right
and left paths to get a chocolate reward. ...
10/15/09
Man
who killed pet rat faces animal-cruelty charge
Orlando Sentinel
He then placed it back into a tank with two other white rats, which
were found eating the dead animal. The rats,
along with a coiled-up
python, ...
Court
allows man to let rats rot
United Press International
PULASKI, Va., Oct. 15 (UPI) -- A Virginia judge is allowing a
man to let the hundreds of rat carcasses on his property decompose
naturally, provided he does ...
9/8/09
Bosavi woolly rat, new species of giant rodent,
discovered in ...
New York Daily News
Think the New
York subway
system is home to the biggest rats around? Think again. Scientists
have discovered
a new species of giant rat
in the Papua New ...
This
Week in Wildlife: Scientists Discover Giant Rat, Ziggy
...
Popular Science
The rat is almost three feet long, and is one of the largest rats
ever found. It looks like the newly discovered
rat-eating
plant may have met its match. ...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/sep/07/discovery-species-papua-new-guinea
Giant
Rat Discovered In Crater Of Volcano
Science Daily (press release)
Weighing nearly 3.5 pounds, and measuring 32 inches from nose to tail, the Bosavi woolly rat is one of the biggest
rats in the world. ...
8/9/09
Pet-lovers
make a rat-tling choice!
Times of India
“In the film 'Jaane Tu
Ya Jaane Na', the
female protagonist's brother was shown having a white rat as a pet,
and that seems to have
started off a veritable ...
7/24/09
In pictures:
Musical rats
BBC News - UK
Roland rat... a tiny tunesmith tickles the ivories - but on an
accordion rather than a synth. Rats
Domino... rodent
jazzes it up by plucking away on the … (These
photos are incredible!)
7/23/09
Report:
Infant died as result of rat bites
United Press International
(subscription) - USA
WESTWEGO, La., July 23 (UPI) -- The coroner's office in
Jefferson Parish, La., says a 3-month-old girl
died of blood loss caused
by numerous rat bites she ...
7/21/09
Rat
bites tied to loss of girl's toes
Columbus Dispatch - Columbus,OH,USA
... after authorities discovered that a 6-week-old girl who lived
with them in a Pike County mobile home
had lost two toes to what appear to be rat
bites. ... (As of
10/5/09 the
mother’s boyfriend gets a 2-year prison
sentence. Trials for the mom
and others still pending.)
7/19/09
Frozen
rat art project appals activists
Stuff.co.nz - Wellington,New Zealand
By LOIS WATSON - Sunday Star Times Animal rights activists are appalled a
fine arts student at
Canterbury University was allowed to freeze a rat to death ...
7/9/09
Animal hoarder in Montreal
had hundreds of rats.
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/090709/national/oddity_rats_seized
6/20/09
Pet
rats bring reading program tale to life
Peoria Journal Star - Peoria,IL,USA
“I've petted a snake before, but not a rat,” said Kylie,
10. “It's not scary.
I sort of like rats.
I think they're cute.”Kylie was taking part
in the ...
6/17/09
Rats
play odds in gambling task
BBC News - UK
One of the authors of the study, Trevor Robbins from the University of Cambridge,
explained that the rat
task was based on an existing clinical experiment ...
6/17/09
Rats!
This new zoo specimen is cute!
BrooklynPapers.com - NY, United States
Pretty hard when you're a RAT!, but dad
Armand and mom Vonjy are said to be proud as rats
can be.
Now, before you start
making more rat jokes, ...
6/9/09
Clint
gives $500 to rat fund
Philadelphia Inquirer - Philadelphia,PA,USA
By Dan Gross SCREEN LEGEND Clint Eastwood recently donated $500 to Rat
Chick Rat Rescue,
a rodent-adoption service
run by South Philly's Maria Pandolfi, ...
6/7/09
Science
sheds light on Baltimore rats
Baltimore Sun - United States
More grossly interesting, or
interestingly gross, facts about rat life: There's only room for one
alpha pair
per burrow, so eventually
some rats leave home ...
5/16/09
Their
Calling Is Defending Rats, Yet These Folks Aren't Lawyers
Wall Street Journal - USA
So, rat lovers have a tough job. Researchers who use federal funds
are asked to adhere to basic
guidelines for rodents, such as avoiding overcrowded cages. ...
5/12/09
Rats supposedly being trained to predict the stock
market. Very silly!
http://theridiculant.metro.co.uk/2009/05/rat-traders-getting-rodents-to-predict-the-stock-market.html
5/9/09
Oh,
rats: The maligned pets
Aizona Daily Star – USA
An article about Brandi Saxton who publishes It’s a Rat’s World
magazine.
4/30/09
Cowpox
Outbreaks in France and Germany Linked to Pet Rats
Associated Content - Denver,CO,USA
According to the report ‘all 4 patients reported scratches caused by rat
claws, not bites, while handling the rats as pets.’
In 3 of the 4 cases, ...(Note: cowpox is not a serious disease in
humans [it has been used to vaccinate against smallpox]
and it really is strange that rats are still
considered exotic animals when they are truly domesticated.)
4/16/09
Run,
rodent, run … a tradition endures
Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville,KY,USA
Flood's Ratalina Jolie
beat out seven other rats yesterday in the featured race during the
annual Running of the Rodents, a tradition at Spalding University ...(the video is lame, you can barely see
the rats)
4/6/09
Researchers
hope changes in desert rat can help other animals
KSL-TV - Salt Lake City,UT,USA
By Ed Yeates SALT LAKE CITY -- Because of climate
change in the Mojave Desert, the pack rat is eating an extremely
toxic plant that would have killed its ... (includes news video of pack rat in captivity)
4/3/09
Science
Museum rats predict UConn to win NCAA
title
Richmond Times Dispatch - Richmond,VA,USA
Last year rats playing basketball picked the winner of the NCAA Torunament. Can the rodents repeat? BY JUAN ANTONIO
LIZAMA Times-Dispatch Staff Writer You ... (includes video of rats playing basketball)
3/16/09
Rats
offer endearing qualities
Red and Black - Athens,GA,USA
Hairless rat and dumbo rat Spraynard and Robert Stack are living the good life
with owner Rachel Blair, who escorts them around the house in what can be ...
3/14/09
Rats
take fight to toad
WA today - Perth,WA,Australia
A native rat has shown it really is cunning as it battles to avoid
the cane toad. With the first sighting of a
toad within the WA border
recently, ...
2/27/09
Bristol
Zoo Welcomes Birth Of Malagasy Giant Jumping Rat
Zoo and Aquarium Visitor News
- Lorain,OH,USA
By Lucy Parkinson Bristol, UK - A baby Malagasy giant jumping rat
has been born in the Zoo’s Nocturnal House - Twilight World - after a
‘love match’ was ...
2/26/09
Rat
dumpers are caught on CCTV
BBC News - UK
Two people who dumped rats are being sought by an animal charity
after they were filmed with a full and then empty animal cage in Devon. ...
2/18/09
Giant
rat caught in China
Telegraph.co.uk - United Kingdom
A giant rat with one-inch-long teeth has been caught in the southern
Chinese province of Fujian.
By Malcolm Moore in Shanghai The rat, which weighed six ...
2/8/09
Oh,
rats, let go of my socks
Charleston Gazette - Charleston,WV,USA
I should probably pause here to emphasize that this is my home office I'm
talking about, and that technically,
Lucy and Ethel are fancy rats,
not packrats. ...
2/9/09
Rats
abandoned at Chester station find a new home
Chester Evening Leader - Chester,England,UK
A FORMER Chester pupil has rescued a domestic rat that was
abandoned at the city's railway station.
More than 40 rats
were abandoned at Chester Railway ...
1/22/09
RI
man spared jail term for abandoning 280 rats
Boston
Herald
A man who abandoned 280 white rats found dead and dying in crowded
carriers was ordered to pay $1,000
restitution and perform 50 hours of community service. …
12/14/08
The
Tale of Despereaux
Variety - Los Angeles,CA,USA
One of the rules of this storybook realm is that mice, rats and
humans speak the same language, so it's not long before Despereaux
forges a heartfelt bond ...
12/14/08
SF
courtroom goes to the dog, cat and rat
San Francisco Chronicle - CA, USA
A few minutes later, a cab pulled up and out stepped Pike, his dog, cat and
not one but two white rats. The whole
menagerie was ushered
through security and ...
12/12/08
Hoffman
and Broderick: Of Mice and Rats
Canada.com - Don Mills,Ontario,Canada
He feels it's his duty to be an advocate for rats. That's because he
supplies the voice for a rat named Roscuro
in
Universal's new animated
film, ...
12/9/08
A
hands-on pet experience/Caring Paws program
Philadelphia Daily News - Philadelphia,PA,USA
"But if a kid sees that another kid is not afraid to let a rat
walk on her head, things change quickly from
'Rats are gross'
to 'OK, I'll kiss the rat, too. ...
12/9/08
It's
'Rat Chick' to the rescue: They're 'underdogs,' she claims
Philadelphia Daily News - Philadelphia,PA,USA
But, so do the brass rat paperweight, the decorative bowl full of
stuffed-animal rats, the rat clock, the
rat artwork and the metal letters on the stairwell ...
12/7/08
Author’s
adventures with rats build schools
San Francisco Chronicle - CA, USA
"I decided my rat Stitch was a special rat, and I could
write a book about her to get the rest of the money," Stefan said.
Using a family camera and
...
12/5/08
Mobile
Phones Affect Memory In Laboratory Animals
Science Daily (press release)
- USA
Yes, at least it does so in rat experiments at the Division of
Neurosurgery, Lund University, in Sweden.
Henrietta Nittby studied rats that were exposed to ...
11/24/08
Featured
pet care video of the week: caring for pet rats
Examiner.com - USA
by Erin Paquette, DC Pet Care Examiner This week’s featured pet care
video has to do with pet rat care.
The video below (produced
by the Virginia Network) ... (Rat
Lady’s note: This video is okay for the time
allowed, although my advice is slightly
different, but I’m most disappointed it didn’t mention the need
of rats for companionship. Just
below this video, however, is one of an interview with me at the Superzoo trade show
about the goals of the
non-profit RATS!)
11/16/08
Rats
Pass the Taste Test
Science Now - Washington,DC,USA
First the researchers got a rat hungry enough that it would be
willing to nibble at some raw cocoa. Then they put
another rat in with
it so rat number 2 ...
11/15/08
Rats
left to die in the cold
Winsford Guardian - Northwich,England,UK
By Frances Kindon » A BABY rat
nearly lost its life to hypothermia after being dumped in Little Budworth with its
mother and seven siblings
by its cruel ...
11/6/08
Ryn: Three cheers for (eek!) rats
Tucson Citizen - Tucson,AZ,USA
Rats can be warm, cuddly and easily trainable. With a little bell
and a few broken dog biscuits, you can have a
rat eating from your hand faster than that ...
11/1/08
Rattie
Ratz group matches rats with owners
San Francisco Chronicle - CA,
USA
After decades of enduring demeaning
expressions such as "rat fink," "drowned rat"
and "you dirty rat," that
whiskered icon of filth
and disease has enjoyed ...
10/18/08
Surf's
up for rat-ical rodents
Times Online - UK
With the help of custom-built
foot-long surfboards, the two white rats have been making waves at Hawaii's Laniakea
Beach. Trained by
14-year-old Boomer ... (Be sure to
click the arrow for the second photo.)
10/12/08
From
The Sunday Times
Times
Online - UK
Can you identify these rats? In which books do they appear, and who
are the authors? 1He had a brown little face with whiskers and twinkling
eyes, ...
10/4/08
Animal magic
guardian.co.uk
- UK
Books define Firmin's life, expand his
imagination, infest his dreams and cut him off from his fellow rats,
who do not share his literary enthusiasms. ...
9/08
“A Tail of Discovery”, a story about rats in
the MENSA Bulletin, the magazine
of American MENSA.
http://www.artistinsane.com/mensa_article_9-08.htm
9/25/08
Rats
to cats and dogs, rodents are a furry favourite
The
Age - Melbourne,Victoria,Australia
Jaimey Unwin takes her rats
shopping, even bowling. This week they've gone to the Show.
Photo:
Angela Wylie JAIMEY Unwin's four rats are
more than pets to ...
9/24/08
Rats
can sniff out the new cat on the block
New
Scientist (subscription) - UK
Iain McGregor and colleagues from the University of Sydney, Australia,
found that rats would stop reacting
to the
smell of a cat that they had been exposed ...
9/22/08
Building trades
exterminate their rat
Buffalo
News - NY, United States
By Matt Glynn NEWS BUSINESS REPORTER Top, scissors are used to cut off
parts of the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades
Council’s inflatable rat, ...
8/27/08
Polegate's rat rescuer
The
Argus.co.uk - Brighton,UK
Emma Dickson spends her spare time caring for 70 mice, between 50 and 60 rats,
three gerbils and two guinea pigs. The 22-year-old runs Rodent Rescue from
a ...
8/22/08
Rescuing
rats a full-time pleasure
BBC
News - UK
From a tiny house in Polegate, near Eastbourne, 22-year-old Emma runs Rodent
Rescue which gives a home to unwanted rats, mice and hamsters. ...
As
pets, girls say, rats are the cat's meow
Foster's
Daily Democrat - Dover,NH,USA
these sisters would reply, "Ooh, rats." Sierra and Hannah
Ashley have a cat and a dog. Seven months ago, they acquired two new pets. ...
8/9/08
Group works
to boost reputations of rodents
http://www.sbsun.com/search/ci_10151813?IADID=Search-www.sbsun.com-www.sbsun.com
8/4/08
RSPCA
investigate QLD couple over record rat seizure
Brisbane
Times - Brisbane,Queensland,Australia
Animal welfare authorities have confirmed a North Queensland couple is under investigation
after more than 600 rats and dogs were seized from a single ... Rats need homes!
7/31/08
Bob
Mount: Momma rat prevented chaos
Opelika
Auburn News - Opelika,AL,USA
Last week, I remarked that a tame Norway rat might have saved my
career and quite possibly most of my earthly possessions. I’m sure
that anyone who read the ... (a
rat gets the best of a snake)
7/26/08
Treynor boy's rat wins pet show at Westfair
Daily
Nonpareil - Council Bluffs,IA,USA
Small household pets are not being left out of the fun, including
12-year-old Tyler Patterson's rat, Cheddar. Cheddar was named Grand
Champion of the Small ...
7/25/08
Tails of Marin: It's
their year, so why not discover the joy of rats?
Marin
Independent-Journal - San Rafael,CA,USA
New Year celebrations are long gone, but the Year of the Rat is
still here, creating the perfect opportunity to celebrate this often
overlooked and ...
7/2/08
Know Thyself—Man, Rat or Bot
Newsweek
- USA
In the latest study, scientists tested for introspection in rats.
Jonathon Crystal and Allison Foote of the
University of Georgia trained rats to push one
...
6/27/08
Award-winning
book illustrator reveals her secret: rat pee
guardian.co.uk
- UK
Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears is in fact dedicated to Button and Mr Moo, the rats, now deceased,
which obliged the author by passing urine on cue. ...
Survivor
rats get last laugh on breeder
Scene
- Queenstown,New Zealand
Rat breeder Keitha Webb, 30, left 21 of
the critters without food and water for more than two weeks
when she moved from her Sidey Street home in ... (Only 6 rats
survived, but Webb eventually went to jail.)
6/18/08
Flagstaff
startup to test rodent-control technology on rice-field ...
Arizona Republic - Phoenix,AZ,USA
It will be the first such large-scale chemical-spay experiment on the
rice-field rats, which are prolific
procreators. A single female rat can have three litters of ...
6/15/08
Festival
calls for cozying up to rats
Philadelphia
Inquirer - Philadelphia,PA,USA
Rats aren't usually one of them. Yet acceptance was the central
message yesterday at the sixth annual Fab Rat
and Animal Friends Festival in South ...
6/12/08
Wanted:
Good homes for furry, whiskered creatures (OK, rats)
Minneapolis
Star Tribune - Minneapolis,MN,USA
"We had rats everywhere,'' Johnson said. "We had to get
the word out."
Rat adoptions have since whittled
that number to about 70, which is still more than ...
6/9/08
Vu
Ngoc Dang directs his latest drama
Thanh Nien Daily - Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam
Rats are always part of Dang’s films. One film, which won a prize at the
International
Students
Film Festival in Israel in 2001, describes the
emotional bond between a pair of rats ...
6/8/08
Rat
enthusiasts gather at Rat-A-Rama (With slideshow)
IdahoStatesman.com - ID,USA
BY ANNA WEBB - awebb@idahostatesman.com The sixth annual Rat-A-Rama was an event on a mission to dispel
unflattering
myths about the frequently benighted ...
5/31/08
Rat takes
the cheese ... trophy
The Register-Guard - Eugene,OR,USA
By Rebecca Taylor Leo the rat recovers from a near mishap during the
tightrope event on the final day of the Iron Rat
Competition
at Thurston High School. ...
5/28/08
Mother
sets up rat club for her 10-year-old son
Hunts Post - Huntingdon,England,UK
A MOTHER has set up her own club for rat owners after her son became
a fan of the pets. Iona Deards, from Buckden,
said
she had become fed up with taking ...
5/25/08
'Cool
Daddy Rat' and 'Bad Rats'
San Francisco Chronicle - CA, USA
Just in time for Father's Day comes the jazzy picture book Cool Daddy Rat
by Kristyn Crow,
illustrated by Mike Lester (Putnam; 32 pages; $16.99; ages 4-8). ...
5/21/08
Hats
off to hero rats
Devon 24 - UK
MINES have been laid around Exmoor Zoo - not to
deter intruders, but to promote awareness
of the global land mine menace and a particular group of
rats that are helping to remove them....
4/28/08
All
eyes are on flash Harold
Sydney Morning Herald - Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
Harold, a two-year-old black-footed tree rat from Taronga Zoo, had been
gradually going blind,
but now has new $4500 inplanted lenses…
4/25/08
Rats
from infested house offered up for adoption as pets
The Associated Press -
Rodent enthusiasts around the state constitute "a huge rat
community," Price said. As of Thursday the group
had captured 29 live rats, including 10 babies. ...
4/18/08
Loopy
rat race marks 36th year
Louisville Courier-Journal - Louisville,KY,USA
Many of the rats were named in keeping with the theme: Won Ton
Suzie, Rickshaw Rat, Chop Stick and Top Suey.
Each of
the 11 rats was trained by teams ...
4/11/08
Hundreds
of rats, four starving snakes found in Rochester home
Seattle Post Intelligencer - USA
Authorities say a woman has been found living with hundreds of rats
and four malnourished snakes in a woman’s
home outside Rochester. ...
4/7/08
Rodents'
fans pipe up with their pets' rattributes
Boston Globe - United States
They think of a sewer rat, a junkyard rat," said Barbara
Leger, 41, of Salem, who has owned 13 domestic rats,
including
Tulip, barely 4 inches long (not ...
Includes
short video.
4/4/08
Science
Museum rats are hoops fanatics
Richmond Times Dispatch - Richmond,VA,USA
A basketball-playing rat heads for the goal at the Science Museum of
Virginia. Yesterday four trained rats played
to
predict the winner of the NCAA Division ...
Includes
a short video.
Rat-or-two-ey?
Dorset Echo - England,UK
By Fiona Pendlebury DOGS have a reputation for
being man's best friend but rats could be a strong contender
for the title. The highly intelligent creatures ...
Help
home a rat
Daily Echo - Southampton,England,UK
THEY have an unfortunate image as dirty, disease-ridden creatures . . . but
rats just want to be loved. As today
marks
the sixth annual World Rat Day, ...
3/26/08
The
smell of a rat to catch a rat
New Zealand Herald - New Zealand
The smell of a lab rat is being used to attract the millions of wild
rats that are threatening New Zealand's native species...
One
of the interesting bits in this article is that scientists walked some of
the lab rats on a leash outside to
attract a wild rat!
Rats
'learn to use tools'
NEWS.com.au - Australia
Six adult "degus" rodents, a kind of
small rat, were trained at a laboratory at the Japanese
government-funded RIKEN
research institute and all of them were ... (Actually, while a degu is a rodent, it is not closely related to rats.)
3/18/08
Trash-Talking
From the DC Metro?
New York Times - United States
This text followed: “Unlike some subway systems (which will remain
nameless), you don’t see rats the size of house cats
roaming the Metro. Why not? ...
3/6/08
At new North Shore Rat
Club, owners meet and share information
Salem Gazette - MA, USA
But they are incredibly proud rat owners — nine rats to
be exact. The couple recently formed a Salem-based group called
the North Shore Rat Club where ...
3/5/08
Crafty
rat burglar raiding new wheelie bins
Hastings Observer - Hastings,England,UK
By Sandra Daniels A SNEAKY rat has been making regular snack visits
to his local wheelie bin via a tiny hole at the back.
Devious
Mr Ratty was finally ...
11/10/07
Where
the Rats Come Out to Play
New York Times Blogs
- New York,NY,USA
In City Hall Park, rats scurry about during the day. “At first
I thought it was a squirrel,” said one man who was eating his
lunch on a bench. ...
2/25/08
Rats
galore at humane society
Belleville Intelligencer - Belleville,Ontario,Canada
What kind of a rat would dump 20 pet rats in a bucket in the doorway
of the local humane society? It’s a question
that’s
vexing workers at the Avonlough Road ...
2/24/08
Backstage
with the Oscar winners
Chicago Tribune - United States
One woman reporter thanked Brad Bird, winner of animated feature for Ratatouille, for helping change her
loathing toward rats.
2/23/08
Year
of the (wet) Rat parade for stormy SF
San Francisco Chronicle - CA, USA
A whole bunch of giant rats were getting gussied up…(be sure
to click on the photos to see the giant gold rat)
2/21/08
Rescued
rat is star attraction
Wiltshire Times - UK
2/21/08
Year
of the Rat, and why they're such great pets
Chilliwack Times - Chilliwack,British
Columbia,Canada
2/17/08
Silly Rat Jokes
http://www.thestar.com/living/Starship/article/304306
A great clip from the TV show Animal Cops San Francisco with an officer rescuing a young roof
rat from a glue trap.
The rat
must be in shock because she does not even try to bite. It appears that the officer uses
alcohol to remove the glue
from the rat, but vegetable oil will remove the glue too.
http://animal.discovery.com/beyond/player.html?playerId=203719213&categoryId=210013720&lineupId=37046453&titleId=29691039
12/10/07
A Rat
rides on a Cat who rides on a Dog. (Also several other clips of these 3
animals who live with a homeless man in
Santa
Barbara, CA.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuuesBhOR9g
2/13/08
Don’t
use glue traps for rats, say animal rights activists
2/6/08
Some
people enjoy having rats as pets
Dallas Morning News - Dallas,TX,USA
2/6/08
Genetic
studies show that most populations of roof rats, also called black rats, (Rattus rattus)
originated in India.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080201093354.htm
2/4/08
A short
article about Year of the Rat stamp designs. Unfortunately no pictures.
http://www.courant.com:80/features/lifestyle/hc-stamps0205.artfeb05,0,2951726.story
2/3/08
A blog including photos of Year of the Rat items,
including a beautiful Hong Kong stamp.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/redlantern/archives/130935.asp?from=blog_last3
2/3/08
Red
rat-motif panties popular
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/2/3/nation/20030007&sec=nation
also
rat folklore
http://thestar.com.my:80/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/2/3/lifefocus/20189942&sec=lifefocus
and
http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/2/3/lifefocus/20199582&sec=lifefocus
2/3/08
In
celebration of The Year of the Rat, The San Francisco Chronicle featured 2
articles:
Little
known facts about rats (pet rats!)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/03/PK71UGEMH.DTL
Rats in
the movies
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/03/PK71UGEKS.DTL
1/31/08
Be
kind to rodents in Year of the Rat, plead animal lovers - Feature
Earthtimes - London,UK
In this article, spokespeople
for PETA explain, “The rat
is nice and lovable. It smells like perfume, laughs when tickled
and
posses a psychology similar to humans,” and call for a boycott on
companies that conduct experiments on rats,
particularly Mars, Inc.
1/23/08
Film
Ratatouille blamed for unwanted rats
Northampton Chronicle & Echo - Northampton,England,UK
A county animal charity has blamed a children's film for a big rise in the
number of unwanted rats.
1/22/08
The
movie Ratatouille is nominated
for 5 Academy Awards:
Animated
Feature Film
Original
Screenplay
Sound
Mixing
Sound
Editing
Original
Score
http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/20080122/120102108000.html
1/16/08
A wild rat is seen
jumping into a baby stroller in a park in Washington DC.
http://www.readexpress.com/read_freeride/2008/01/rat_jumps_into_baby_stroller_in_dupont_c.php
12/18/07
Scientists have
discovered a new giant rat in the jungles of New Guinea. Very cute!
http://www.smh.com.au/news/science/monster-rat-found-in-lost-world-jungle/2007/12/17/1197740165020.html
11/28/07
The
November 2007 issue of the BBC Wildlife
magazine has a wonderful article about wild rats! The article is very positive
about rats and presents them as interesting wild animals,
debunking some of the myths about them. The best thing about it though is
the photos…amazing and beautiful. One is a full page of a mother rat
carrying a baby who looks like she is smiling!
You can
buy a copy of the magazine at http://www.bbcwildlifemagazine.com/viewIssue.asp?id=880
10/1/07
Ratatouille Sparks
French Rat Craze
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=071001162855.g0dnu58t&show_article=1
8/07
Sheila
McGregor of Redding, CA writes, “I just got an ad in the mail today
from Designer Checks, and one of their
Disney-themed
checks and matching checkbook cover is “Ratatouille’s Just
Desserts,” rats from the movie happily eating desserts. With
pink noses!!!!!”
8/4/07
A
review of the book Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of
Feeling Good, including an
interview with author
Jonathan
Balcombe, with a good portion about rats.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=134&objectid=10455669
7/10/07
A study shows rats are
kind and generous and will work to provide food for other rats.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/10/science/10rat.html?_r=1&ref=science&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin
Rats in
Columbia learning to sniff out mines
become more bold when with raised with kittens.
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Rats-and-Cats-Trained-for-Detecting-Land-Mines-61028.shtml
7/24/07
A positive article about
rats in the New York Times!
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/24/science/24angi.html?em&ex=1185508800&en=4da6c888c62a83a3&ei=5087%0A
Rats on the Internet
A video of Dr. Jaak Panksepp explaining how he discovered rats laugh in
ultrasound. Includes rats
wrestling with his
hand. Fantastic!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myuceywaOUs
A giant African pouched rat using the toilet!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieAmdixoJ4w
A rat enjoying a vigorous massage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6TOtvo7iyI
A Rat coloring page
http://www.first-school.ws/t/cprat.htm
Two rats popping balloons. Watch how one rat runs away with the
last one to keep it away from the other rat!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DcXwZhX_a0
A sad and disturbing
futuristic story of how a wild rat falls in love with a lab rat through the
influence of an empty bag of Cheetos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KniV2OGwSms
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