Posted on 02/28/2007 9:04:41 AM PST by tobyhill
actually,rats will not attack unless they feel they are in danger,they are not horrible monsters. the article states that it was suspected that milk had dripped onto the baby's lips and that is what spurred the rat on. the rat wasn't attacking,it was trying to get the milk off the baby and probably got a little too overzealous and started chewing. It happens easily,with Domestic as well as wild rats. I would know,i've been bitten many times on the nose and lips by my rats from where they're jsut trying to get a little cheese or milk off.
I grew up in a very upscale neighborhood, right on Long Island Sound.
The rats that I observed near the seawall were truly awe-inspiring (if that sort of thing inspires you). They were at least as large as my VERY large cat, but good old Mittens did 'em in anyway.
We should have had a rat problem but thanks to the cat (who was born in the wild, BTW) we never did. Mittens had a litter once, and taught all her kittens to hunt. They all grew up to be excellent ratters, and in fact, I now own one of her decendents, who keeps our house free of vermin.
Regards,
PS: If it interests anyone, I have found that the female cats are particularly good at this job. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has made this same observation, as well as hearing any theories as to why this might be.
I would think that female cats being good ratters gas to do withg the instinct to protect their young. Especially wild-born cats that have been wild-born for generations, teaching the kittens to hunt has porbably been passed down for many generations.
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