Rats in the wild are scary because they are so invasive and can spread disease, but they honestly make pretty good pets. With a good home and regular meals, they can be affectionate and entertaining. And one of the reasons they survive in almost all conditions is that they are so intelligent. Esther Minic-Rosenthal has several rats, but she's never had one as willing and able to learn as Olive. While Minic-Rosenthal tells us Olive's story, watch to see all the neat things she can do. At about 1:40, you'll see she can recognize her own name in print! I am quite impressed. See more of Olive's tricks in several videos at Laughing Squid.
With an animal that clever and capable would you lock your bedroom door at night?
ReplyDeleteThey are clever wee beasties.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter had three of them, behaved like dogs when she came home.
Sadly for me, their smell gives me bad headaches.
5 years ago, even with the 4 cats I had back then, there was a mouse infestation in the attic.
The house was being renovated back then and so you could see them walking over the window frames sometimes.
Then the rats came, from where I don't know.
The rats killed and ate the mice, each and everyone of them.
And then the cats started hunting the rats, took then a few weeks because the rats were smart, but still, they had to come out for food and water sometime and the cats ... well they would sit and wait, immobile, for hours ... and then WHAM ! Another rat goes to rat heaven.
And 5 years later, every now and again, I still find half a rat in the garden, the now 6 rescue cats doing what comes natural.