rat

a kind of animal – mammal – rodent – medium-sized with thick short rough (coarse) brown, dark grey or black fur (hair), cone-shaped face with medium-sized straight ears, clear round eyes, pointed snout (= mouth and nose part) with several whiskers (= stiff hairs round mouth part), stout body, short legs, long round bare tail; size: on average, 9-11 inches body length plus the 7-9 inch-long tail, and 300-600 grams in weight (male larger than female); feeds on (eats) just about anything – seeds, grain, insects, and the edibles from the human garbage dumps; lives for 2-5 years; about 56 “true rat” species (kinds) found almost all over the world

male ~~ buck

female ~~ doe

baby ~~ pup, kitten; pinky, fuzzy, hopper (?)

group ~~ pack; mischief; horde; rabble; swarm (?); colony (?)

voice (call) ~~ squeak; squeal

home ~~ nest; hole

movement ~~ scurry

The types of rats are (depending on the place they live in): field rats, house rats, sewer rats, temple rats, barn rats, desert rats

Some common rats are: common/Norway rat, black rat, brown rat, Polynesian rat

Some animals (rodents) with ‘rat’ in their names, but do not belong to the “true rats” are: pack rat, kangaroo rat, bandicoot rat

{Rats and mice are very closely related, and the only difference is the size – rats are much larger than mice!}

Special Features:

Rats are considered dirty, filthy and disease-carrying agents; however, several people eat rats and several others keep them as pets all over the world!

The ‘fancy rats’, which are the rats kept as pets, are the brown rats bred for the pet industry!

Rats are very prolific breeders, i.e. they give birth to many, many babies through out their lives.  The ‘multi-mammate rat’ is the fastest breeding mammal capable of giving birth to a litter of ten pups every month!

Rats are used in several scientific researches, especially in researches related to study the psychological aspects because it is found out that a rat’s psychology is almost similar to that of the humans!!

Rats enjoy a special place in the ancient cultures: a rat (or a mouse or a shrew) is worshipped as it is the special vehicle of Lord Ganesh in Hindu religion; in Rajasthan state of India, there is a Hindu temple where the rats have been worshipped for hundreds of years; the rat is the first animal in Chinese 12 year cycle of zodiac; and in several other cultures and religions, rats have been given either a positive or a negative place!

Rats are so popular in some societies that they are used in the logos of many sports and business establishments!

There are numerous comics, cartoons, and animated and feature films (movies) featuring rats as lead characters.

The oldest and the most popular story involving rats is the ‘Piped Piper of Hamelin’ which has been made into animated and feature films over and over again!!

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