Why do people generally like squirrels but hate rats?

Question

Squirrels are rodents, visually close to rats. Are squirrels less likely to bring disease to humans than rats? Are rats more likely to be rabid than squirrels? At the turn of the 20th Century, squirrels were considered pests ... to the point that there was a bounty upon them. They disappeared in Washington DC, had to be re-imported. When did this attitude change and why?

Answer 1

I think it's because squirrels don't usually infest houses. It's been known to happen but not as often. Rats are gross. Live in sewers. They are scavengers. Squirrels eat nuts. Rats give me the heebie jeebies.

Answer 2

I think it's mainly because rats are associated with garbage and human leavings and with the plague. Almost where ever they exist, rats are a pest in a way that squirrels aren't. Rats are omnivores that love cooked food. They forage in dark alleys around garbage cans and they proliferate at dumps and in abandoned buildings. They destroy ground crops by digging nests under them and eating them from underneath. And, perhaps worst of all, they invade human dwellings, bringing a host of diseases both from their bites and the bites of the fleas and other parasites that they bring with them. They hide in the shadows and dart out, scaring people. Rats will attack sleeping infants. Rats are creatures of the dark. I hate them.

Squirrels are creatures of the daylight. They have cute bushy tails and forage out in the open for vegetarian food that people generally don't eat and they generally avoid close contact with people. I don't know when people realized that squirrels are good for the environment, but it's not surprising that they once were regarded as pests. Virtually every animal that didn't provide a direct benefit to people was once regarded as a pest.

But rats really are vermin. (Actually, almost all of what I've said is about the common brown rat. There are some species that aren't pests, that don't carry disease and that live far from human dwellings. But they're still rats and I still hate them.)

Answer 3

I think squirrels are probably tastier. This may play a factor in the equation. Squirrels eat acorns and rats eat garbage. The fact that rats have a parasitic relationship with mankind make them more unsavory. I have never been repulsed by a squirrel (only annoyed) although most people would probably be repulsed if they were confronted by rats (wild ones). I have also never heard an urban legend about a baby eaten by squirrels :)

Answer 4

With all due respect for the tree huggers that preceded me, I applaud your question. I have never understood the fascination with these vermin either.

I must give you a thumbs up and add your question to other great inquiries such as: What is the meaning of life? How big is the universe? What is the nature of God? to mention a few. I think the likelihood of getting a satisfactory answer to your question is about equal to getting answers to the others I have listed.

BTW, if you ever do get a logical answer to this question I would love to hear it.

Answer 5

because squirrels are cuter.but they can get annoying like digging in the trash.rats are usually associated with sewers because that where they are mostly are.so that means they are dirty.

rabbits are rodents too but they are not dirty like rats are.

Answer 6

maybe because rats are big and ugly and squirrels are cute and tiny?