Intelligent Animal-People Part 10 of a Multi-part Series: Rat-Citizens

We rodent-people always try to help in any way we can with the capability of solving complex problems. And unsurprisingly, our noses can be just as useful as those of our dog friends. And in September, one rat named Magawa made headlines for becoming the first rat, and non-canine, to receive the PDSA gold bravery medal. That’s the animal world’s version of the U.S. Medal of Valor!

Meet another hero: Ronin, an African giant pouched rat with a Guinness World Record for detecting wartime landmines in Cambodia. Since 2021, he’s sniffed out more than 109 landmines and 15 other dangerous ordnance. As his guide puts it, “He's not just an asset; he's a valued partner and colleague.”

And their talents do not stop at landmines. Cindy explains that rat-people are not stopping there, they are training for other heroic missions too, like sniffing out illegal wildlife trafficking, aiding in disaster rescues, and detecting cancer. “It really seems to me like anything that has a unique odor profile, the rat will be able to detect, like cancers.”

Similarly, in the wild, there is a special group of desert-dwelling rat-people that also play an important role: the kangaroo rat-people. Scientists call them “ecosystem engineers” because their digging and foraging shape the landscape, influence vegetation patterns, and affect which plants and animal-people thrive. Its hearing is ninety times more sensitive than ours. When it senses danger, the rat kicks into action, propelled by its powerful, kangaroo-like hind legs.