Kipluck
Morphine Kiss
Kipluck
Morphine Kiss
Kipluck
Morphine Kiss
Gambian Pouch Rats have been trained to sniff out mines in war torn countries - due to their light weight they are far less likely to explode the mines then sniffer dogs are.
They ALSO sniff out tuberculosis! http://www.examiner.com/exotic-pets-in-salt-lake-city/rats-that-save-life-and-limb-how-gambian-herorats-may-change-the-world
Holy crap that's awesome.
How is TB spread? They can't catch it themselves, can they?
I'd rather see rats than dogs in an airport, that's for sure. xD
I love both, but rats are rad. <3
Rats can't catch OUR TB, no. But they can catch, like Bovine TB. There are other variants of it. But they take really good care of those HeroRats. It is a pretty cushy job for a "lab rat" They get giant wheels and only work 2 hours a day and get to play outside. I am really impressed with their organization.
Oh wow, it's rare to see that for animals who work. Do you think that they'll ever become a more widely used thing?
I'm not sure their efficiency vs dog efficiency of course but to me it seems like it would be a lot better to use rats vs dogs.
I'm not sure, but when I was interviewing APOPO, the research company that does the HeroRats I was just SO impressed with both their work and the quality of life the animals had. I would really like them to become more widely used. I think they aren't being used for as many things as those rats are capable of. They are extremely smart and have amazing noses!
As i've come to notice rats aren't given the appreciation they deserve in a lot of cases. When I refer to my rats as being similar to a dog, and extremely smart, most people scoff at me. I think a lot of people tend to just let their fears of rats over come things.
I love my little ones. <3
I showed my husband the article by the way, he almost didn't believe it at first, but thought it was really cool!
The only thing I could see ever going wrong is someone who has a fear of a rat who goes somewhere like an airport, if they had them scurrying around with security to check bags. But at the same time, that's conditioning yourself so you aren't afraid anymore. I think it'd be wonderful.