HeroRATs Rats Who Save Lives

HeroRATs: Rats Who Save Lives

Land mines are a serious problem in Mozambique (moh-zam-BEEK), a country on the continent of Africa. These weapons are buried underground and are set to blow up when people step on them. Land mines were used during almost thirty years of wars in Mozambique. The wars ended many years ago, but millions of land mines were left behind. Every year, thousands of people in Africa are hurt or killed by the remaining land mines. Huge areas of land cannot be used because of these dangerous, hidden weapons.

Some unlikely heroes are helping to solve the problem-rats! Bart Weetjens, an engineer from Belgium, came up with the idea. Since childhood, Bart has loved all kinds of rodents--rats, mice, hamsters, gerbils, and squirrels. Rats have a very keen sense of smell. Bart realized that rats could use their powerful noses to find land mines so humans could safely remove them.

Dogs have been trained to sniff out land mines for many years. Bart figured out that rats would be cheaper and easier to train than dogs. At first, people thought his idea was crazy, but Bart didn't give up. He quit his job and began training his favorite animals as part of a program he calls HeroRATs.

Castro is one HeroRAT who is coming to the rescue in Mozambique. He uses his cute, twitchy nose to find land mines. When he is at work, Castro races across a field, sniffing every inch of dirt. When he smells a land mine, Castro scratches at the ground to alert his human partner. For his hard work, Castro receives a yummy treat of bananas and peanuts and a scratch on the head.

Castro is a specially trained African giant pouched rat. These rats are common in many areas in the southern half of Africa. The rats are unusually large--about three feet long from their nose to the tip of their tail. They weigh about three pounds (1. 36 kg).