My godfather lives in a rough area in Chicago called Englewood. He has a crib thats super dirty. Theres a McDonalds bag older than me near his front window that always has bugs crawling all over it. And the bag is there everytime I go over there. Hes one of the junkiest dudes ever, and always stinks and pees on himself cuz hes old and cant hold it. I love him but its the truth. Then on top of this he has this big *** rat named Smoky that lives wit him and just roams around freely. Its not a rat he bought, its a wild rat that came in his house and never left. Hes fine wit this rat living there and doesnt do sh-t to loose it. He calls the rat dude a pet. I think it could kill him but hes not scared. Are rats dangerous?
2007-10-02 14:10:21 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
If it is wild, it might possibly be carrying an illness that *might* be transmitable to humans, but not affect rats. At worst case senario, if your godfather accidentally stepped on the rat and it nips him, he would get whatever it has, IF is has anything at all. Rats are not visious, the naturally run from large things rather than attack, so the chance is incredibly slim.
I would worry more about his ability to care for himself. It sounds like he may not be too happy living there by himself with no one to take care of him and clean when he's older. But no, the rat isn't something main to worry about.
2007-10-02 14:27:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
um...i have a bit of a bias (i've had pet rats since i was six years old) but i don't think that a rat could kill him. If you really are that concerned, i suggest that you livetrap it. You bait the traps (gourmet food works REALLY well...or anything with a strong scent) and then they catch the rat wth out harming it. Killing the rat with a snap trap is animal cruelty and, at least in my eyes, constitutes as torture as the rat will not die for a number of days and will be subject to no end of pain. sticky paper is disgusting as it ofter causes rats and other animals to suffer immensly and die of thirst..an incredibly inhumane death. poison often causes rats to die from internal bleeding, so that, again, they suffer immensly. What i suggest that you do is also HELP YOUR GODFATHER CLEAN HIS HOUSE! if you walk past that mcdonald's bag time and again, why not just PICK IT UP YOURSELF?????
a side note: if your godfather named the rat, he's probably slightly attached to it, so i don't think that killing it would make him happy
2007-10-02 14:22:32 · answer #2 · answered by mari the AWESOME 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Pet Rats arent dangerous but the one HE has might be because it's a wild house rat not a fancy rat u get the pet shop.
2007-10-02 14:15:38 · answer #3 · answered by K.c 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
If you let any animal's waste sit too long it can make you and your pet sick. Just be consistent about cleaning the cage. Otherwise you have nothing to worry about. I'm assuming she came from a pet store. She should be free of disease and parasites. You really should consider getting your rat a friend, they need the company of their own kind.
2016-03-19 04:38:34 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Pet" rats like you buy in a store are usually not dangerous, but ones that roam around in yards and homes, usually are. Maybe this one has became domesticated with this old mans kindness, or maybe he's planing on ruling the world one day, who knows? I say live and let live, so what if the old man pees on himself and is nasty as hell, if the rat makes him happy, and does not hurt him or anyone else.
2007-10-02 14:19:27 · answer #5 · answered by sweetpeasmum 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
pet rats arent dangerous
2007-10-02 14:29:26 · answer #6 · answered by ♥less 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No pet rats are not dangerous there are no more harmful then a stray dog hanging around and maybe your godfather wants him there since he isnt doing anything to get rid of him i would leave it up to your god father to get rid of it
2007-10-02 14:23:38 · answer #7 · answered by sarah_see_123 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, wild one s can be tamed too, but from the sound of the environment they both live in..... I don't think I'd want to handle the rat.
2007-10-02 19:29:29 · answer #8 · answered by Elaine M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋