Injured rat ? (with pic)

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Locut0s

Locut0s

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
22,205
44
91
Was just walking up the street when we saw a group of girls kneeling down to look at something. When we got up close we saw that it was a mouse/rat just sitting on the grass beside the road. He was just sitting on the grass in broad daylight and allowed us to get right up to him. He eventually did scamper off when we touched his tail with an envelope we were carrying. Didn't want to actually touch him physically. I'm guessing he was injured or sick. Cute though. Oh yeah and no pics of the girls, not pic worthy.

7948339c.jpg
 
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lxskllr

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
60,056
10,544
126
I'm not a big fan of rats, though that's one of the better examples I've seen. Their faces are too narrow, and I don't like the skin tails.
 
Locut0s

Locut0s

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
22,205
44
91
Azraele said:
It's possible it's a lost pet. Some people do keep rats as pets.
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zinfamous said:
Rats are quite smart. Captive ones are really docile as well.
Click to expand...

Yeah they are very smart and can make good pets. Didn't think of this possibility. It would explain why it was just sitting there, it would have been stunned and wouldn't know what to do out in the open.
 
Colt45

Colt45

Lifer
Apr 18, 2001
19,720
1
0
mice have fuzzy tails, rats don't. (although there's surely some exceptions)
 
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0roo0roo

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,795
84
91
Locut0s said:
Wat?
Click to expand...

Toxoplasmosis makes rats no longer fear cats ..which gets them eaten ..spreading toxo to the cat where it likes to reproduce. just wondering if such a calm rat was the result of such an infection.

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/radiolab/episodes/2009/09/25
the 3rd story is a fun take on it.


Once in the rat, Toxo's goal is to then be eaten by a cat so it can be fruitful and multiply, but as I mentioned, this can only take place in the cat's gut. Toxo's goal is to get the rat eaten by a cat. Toxo could get the desired effect through a whole sort of seemingly obvious ways; e.g., Make the rat hard to run so it is easier for a cat to catch it. Instead it takes a far more interesting approach: Toxo generates cysts in the brain of the rat. These cysts take over the fear center of the brain, but specifically the fear of predators. Common fear sources for rodents (e.g., bright lights, open spaces, etc.) still operate perfectly well in an infected rat, but now they are no longer afraid of cat piss. That alone would be cool enough, but Toxo takes it one step further. When Toxo is going about futzing with the fear center of the brain it also goes into the sexual excitement part of the brain. It hijacks the incoming Fear of Cat Piss™ and instead diverts the signal to the Barry White™ center of the brain.

"Somehow, this damn parasite knows how to make cat urine smell sexually arousing to rodents, and they go and check it out. Totally amazing." - Dr. Sapolsky

The rat is now sexually attracted to cat piss! (This is a fetish that gets you eaten by your predator and rats clearly do not have any safe words with cats.)
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/06/04/how-cat-poo-parasite.html

nature is fucking weird.
 
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Locut0s

Locut0s

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
22,205
44
91
0roo0roo said:
Toxoplasmosis makes rats no longer fear cats ..which gets them eaten ..spreading toxo to the cat where it likes to reproduce. just wondering if such a calm rat was the result of such an infection.

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/radiolab/episodes/2009/09/25
the 3rd story is a fun take on it.


Once in the rat, Toxo's goal is to then be eaten by a cat so it can be fruitful and multiply, but as I mentioned, this can only take place in the cat's gut. Toxo's goal is to get the rat eaten by a cat. Toxo could get the desired effect through a whole sort of seemingly obvious ways; e.g., Make the rat hard to run so it is easier for a cat to catch it. Instead it takes a far more interesting approach: Toxo generates cysts in the brain of the rat. These cysts take over the fear center of the brain, but specifically the fear of predators. Common fear sources for rodents (e.g., bright lights, open spaces, etc.) still operate perfectly well in an infected rat, but now they are no longer afraid of cat piss. That alone would be cool enough, but Toxo takes it one step further. When Toxo is going about futzing with the fear center of the brain it also goes into the sexual excitement part of the brain. It hijacks the incoming Fear of Cat Piss™ and instead diverts the signal to the Barry White™ center of the brain.

"Somehow, this damn parasite knows how to make cat urine smell sexually arousing to rodents, and they go and check it out. Totally amazing." - Dr. Sapolsky

The rat is now sexually attracted to cat piss! (This is a fetish that gets you eaten by your predator and rats clearly do not have any safe words with cats.)
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/06/04/how-cat-poo-parasite.html

nature is fucking weird.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that!
 
DrPizza

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
167
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
rats are afraid of cat piss? I could dump the cat's litter box in key areas around the barn and get rid of any that have survived the wrath of 2 adult cats + 5 growing kittens?

It was so cute watching momma cat teach her kittens how to torture a rat the other day. I delighted at the rat's squeals.
(Rats cause a LOT of damage. I'll be spending most of a day at some point this summer fixing damage they've done in the barn.)
This would be no different than someone who's been stung by multiple mosquitos taking delight in listening to a bug zapper, well, except for the fact that it's not mosquitos being zapped. But at least they believe they are.
 
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