Adopt a rat
When I entered my daughter's room to greet the flock of ten rat puppies that had just arrived at our home, all the animals froze. And they stayed there, as if pretending that it wasn't them at all. That their little hearts weren't bursting with fear was betrayed only by their bulging, bright red eyes, whose orbs followed my every move.
Only after a few days of acclimatization did they stop being afraid and show how sociable and curious they are. They began to greet every household member who entered the room with a group circus acrobatics show, including our dog, who with hidden jealousy made us understand that her sniffing was an expression of only good intentions.
They are increasingly eager to leave the cage, but they do not feel safe in the open. They like to hide in corners and nooks, and if they do go for a walk, they always stay close to the wall, like me and my peers at parties in the second year of high school.
They are surprisingly good at hygiene and physical fitness for their puppy age. They quickly identified where the litter box is, they carrot their teeth more than twice a day, and there is always a line for the wheel.
They stick to their rat rules. When they are given a new, unknown food product, they agree among themselves which of the rats will become the guinea pig and only when they are convinced that nothing is wrong with it after a few bites, will they start eating it. They will treat the new family member like a cat in the army and make a real path of health for it. Therefore, to spare the new one suffering, the whole family, including the new one, is placed in a special, temporary cage called a "silage", in which the old rats forget about hierarchy and instead of raising their new brother, they will work together to explore the new territory.
There’s no doubt in my mind that they need cuddles more than anything. They spend most of their day snuggled up together, and when you tuck them under your clothes, they’ll squirm, nestle, snuggle, and cozy up until they finally fall asleep. Warm, quiet, and dark—the perfect rat environment.
Sometimes they jump on your shoulder and then stare at you with those glowing eyes, as if they understand what you're telling them. It's interesting that in this day and age, in people whose brains are a thousand times heavier, it's often hard to find a similar expression.
Their breed is Wistar, an albino with white fur, short tails, and red eyes. They were bred in the early 20th century for laboratory research. They are smaller and calmer than their ancestor, the swarthy brown rat, which is common, especially in cities.
They are used for many purposes beneficial to humanity, such as drug testing, behavioral research, immunity testing, searching for new drugs, but also for other controversial purposes, such as testing cosmetics.
In Poland, it is permissible to perform procedures on animals only for the purpose of conducting research without direct commercial application, research in the field of forensic medicine and aimed at preserving the species, to ensure animal welfare or improve the conditions of breeding and raising farm animals, research on medicinal products, foodstuffs, feed or other substances and the protection of the natural environment in the interest of the health or welfare of humans and animals, education at the level of higher education or training for the purpose of acquiring or improving professional competences.
After the study is completed, animals that survived or did not participate in the study at all because their planned number exceeded the needs are euthanized. In Poland, there are foundations that save the lives of such animals.
My daughter works with one of these foundations, Labrescue. She has created a transitional home for rats waiting to be adopted. Usually, within two or three weeks, each animal finds its new, permanent home.
My daughter won't save the world, but I have no doubt that the world with smiling rats is a slightly better place.
