Free Republic

A young California man died from the same rare rodent-linked virus that killed Gene Hackman’s wife in February — with health officials discovering rat droppings at his workplace following his untimely death, according to a report. Rodrigo Becerra, 26, had fallen seriously ill and was prescribed antibiotics the night before he was found convulsing in his Mammoth Lakes home, where he perished from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare infectious disease linked to rodents, on March 6, his family told SFGATE. Becerra, who was just three days shy of his birthday when he died, worked as a bell hop at Mammoth...

Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) claimed Wednesday on CNN’s “News Central” ” that U.S. District Judge James Boasberg was a “great judicial hero” for finding probable cause to hold the Trump administration in criminal contempt for disobeying his order to halt deportations. Raskin said, “Judge Boasberg goes to great pains to restate the precedent going back to 1967, Walker vs. Birmingham, holding that you’ve got to comply with a court order, even if you know, they were in the wrong court, even if for some reason there’s a change. Look, Judge Boasberg, who was a President Bush appointee when he originally...

Hantavirus isn’t just in deer mice, according to a new peer-reviewed study from the University of New Mexico, which found the virus in a quarter of more than 1,400 small mammals tested across the state. Hantavirus is a rare but often serious rodent-borne illness, which first reared its head in the United States in the Four Corners region in 1993. From 1993 through 2022, New Mexico had 122 human cases and 52 deaths — more than anywhere else in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The illness recently made international headlines for causing the death...

The brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) is one of the most ubiquitous and familiar creatures on the planet — but also perhaps one of the least understood. According to Kaylee Byers, one of the lead researchers with the Vancouver Rat Project, "In some ways, we know more about life on Mars than how rats navigate life on Earth." "Rats have long been associated with filth, disease and death," said Bobby Corrigan, a world-renowned rodentologist and New York City's unofficial "rat czar."

Jan. 21 (UPI) -- Police and city officials in Houston said evidence in storage lockers is being destroyed by "drug-addicted rats." Mayor John Whitmire said at a news conference that drugs being stored in evidence lockers are attracting rats that feast on the illicit narcotics and cause damage to other evidence in the process. "We got 400,000 pounds of marijuana in storage that the rats are the only ones enjoying," Whitmire said. The mayor announced the start of an initiative in partnership with the Harris County District Attorney's Office to organize the 1.2 million pieces of evidence stored by the...

Rats and mice are a persistent problem in many cities, often requiring rodent control services. The cities with the most rats and mice are usually determined by factors such as sanitation practices, food waste access, and suitable habitats. These rodents can cause significant property damage and can be a serious public health concern in many urban areas, which may make you wonder, what city has the most rats or mice? Keep reading to see Terminix’s list of the 50 most rodent-infested cities from 2023 to see if your city made the list.What cities have the most rats and mice?Terminix shares...

Weaponry systems in Ukraine, many of which were supplied by European countries, have been rendered unworkable, not due to Russian interference, but because of damage caused by mice and other rodents. Seemingly, these creatures have developed a preference for cable insulation made of corn fiber over synthetic materials. This predilection leads to malfunctioning electrical installations, rendering the expensive equipment essentially worthless, and requiring rapid overhauling. Mice and rats have become a bane on the frontline for both Ukrainian and Russian forces, with these rodents capable of nesting almost anywhere, even in the exhaust systems of armored vehicles. The disadvantage of...

Members of Seattle, Washington’s Parks and Recreation department, along with city police, removed a community garden planted in Cal Anderson Park as part of the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 on Wednesday. City officials said in a statement that the "makeshift," temporary garden was being removed because of public health and safety concerns, as well as for maintenance reasons including reseeding and turf restoration. The efforts on Wednesday also included the removal of tent encampments located near the garden and outside the park along E. Olive Street, which city officials said was to ensure the public spaces remain clean...

This is the shocking moment a pro-Palestine activist let dozens of mice douse in red, green, white and black paint, were let loose in a McDonald's restaurant in Birmingham, terrifying customers. Footage shared on social media showed a man holding to fake number plates that read 'PAIISTN' and 'Free Palestine' as he arrived in his car at the chain's Star City restaurant yesterday. The man, wearing a Palestinian flag around his head, then opens the boot of his car and grabs the huge box of rodents, before walking into the fast food restaurant and flinging the Palestinian-flag coloured mice on...

There are few events in human history as ominous — both in name and impact — as the Black Death. The bubonic plague pandemic made its way across Eurasia and north Africa between 1346 and 1553. It's estimated to have killed up to 200 million people, or 60 per cent of the Earth's entire population at the time. Now, scientists believe they have pinpointed the origin of the Black Death to a region of present day Kyrgyzstan called Issyk-Kul, once a stopover on the Silk Road trade route in the 14th century. Its place of origin has been one of...

The recent discovery of two beavers sighted along Matadero Creek in Palo Alto could be a sign of a major comeback for the species in the Bay Area. Naturalist Bill Leikam, who is the co-founder and president of the Urban Wildlife Research Project, captured trail camera footage of the semiaquatic rodents wandering along the waterway late last month, as the Mercury News first reported. He set up the cameras after he had been tipped off by a resident who claimed to have seen one while they were meditating on the side of the creek, and sure enough, there they were...

The latest scapegoat for climate change is your lovable dog and cuddly cat. According to CNN, pets are a negative impact in regards to climate change. CNN gave green advice on how to reduce your pets' "carbon pawprint," including feeding your canine companion "insect-based food" and adopting small rodents instead of dogs. Late last month, CNN published an article titled: "Our pets are part of the climate problem. These tips can help you minimize their carbon pawprints." The article went largely unnoticed until CNN promoted the article on social media – where it was widely ridiculed. CNN claimed that pets...

… Monkeypox, which causes a rash and fever and is fatal in a very small percentage of cases, isn’t nearly as transmissible as Covid-19. But unlike the novel coronavirus, it spreads easily to and from certain animal populations — rodents in particular. If the pox currently circulating in the U.S. spreads to rats, hamsters, or gerbils, and becomes endemic in those species, there might be no easy way to contain it. “I do share the other scientists’ concern of containment and the virus becoming endemic in our U.S. rodent population,” sys Stephanie James, the head of a viral testing lab...

Dr. Robert Malone, known as the inventor of mRNA technology used in the Pfizer and Moderna COVID vaccines, recently spoke with Steve Bannon on "The War Room" to shed light on the latest viral outbreak in China, which the government he claims is hiding the truth about its origins. In December, the Chinese communist government placed Xi'an city in northwest Shaanxi province under lockdown following reports of hemorrhagic fever cases. According to WION, there had been "multiple community transmission chains" including hemorrhagic fever cases in the area. China's state-run Global Times described it as a "grim and complicated epidemic situation."...

The Food and Drug Administration is grappling with field mice at its headquarters, an infestation exacerbated by food left behind in offices that have been largely unoccupied during the Covid-19 pandemic, the agency confirmed to POLITICO. Pest-control problems in Washington-area buildings were not unusual prior to the pandemic; indeed, mouse traps are frequently spotted inside the Capitol. And two former FDA officials told POLITICO that mice have long taken refuge inside the agency’s sprawling Silver Spring, Md., campus, known as White Oak. But the rodent problem worsened during the pandemic, forcing the agency to assign some employees returning to the...

Two police officers were caught off-guard when they were attacked by a pet squirrel as they tried to arrest his owner on Monday. According to the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office, two deputies were wrapping up a traffic stop east of Baton Rouge, Louisiana Monday night when they went to arrest an unidentified tow-truck driver. But when they searched the vehicle, a 'pet feral squirrel' leaped onto the back of one of the deputies, the Sheriff's Office wrote. As he ran in circles trying to get the squirrel off his back, jumping and grabbing at the rodent, his partner could be...

Animal welfare group PETA called for more humane ways to exterminate mice, as farmers in New South Wales battle Australia's biggest plague of the rodents in decades.

A shopper was left horrified after spotting a mouse devouring $22.99-a-pound veal inside a butchery display case at a Manhattan Whole Foods supermarket. Brittany Ellis shared the clip on TikTok Monday, where it has since racked up more than 2.2 million views. In the footage, Ellis can be heard asking, 'Why is there a mouse?' The rodent can be seen nibbling on a raw slab of osso bucco veal, which retails for a pricey $22.99 per pound.

New York City is in the process of hiring and deploying 10,00 workers for a newly created "City Cleanup Corps" after complaints over filthy conditions surged 150% between March and August 2020, and rodent complaints spiked as well according to Bloomberg, citing data from the city's 311 service request line.The push to restore some of the city's pandemic related cuts to the sanitation budget comes as Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a $30 million tourism push this week. With de Blasio departing City Hall later this year due to term limits, the cleanup job will have to be completed by...

IN 1722, A PET SQUIRREL named Mungo passed away. It was a tragedy: Mungo escaped its confines and met its fate at the teeth of a dog. Benjamin Franklin, friend of the owner, immortalized the squirrel with a tribute. “Few squirrels were better accomplished, for he had a good education, had traveled far, and seen much of the world.” Franklin wrote, adding, “Thou art fallen by the fangs of wanton, cruel Ranger!” Mourning a squirrel’s death wasn’t as uncommon as you might think when Franklin wrote Mungo’s eulogy; in the 18th- and 19th centuries, squirrels were fixtures in American homes,...