Rats detecting land mines

Rats are amazing animals, don't know why they are so hated. One of my dreams is to have a Borneo rat but how i..

Chris LXXIX said:

Rats are amazing animals, don't know why they are so hated. One of my dreams is to have a Borneo rat but how i..

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More amazing than everyone but the experts realize. Visual acuity equal to or greater than a human, a sense of smell equal to or better than many dogs, very refined auditory sensitivity, extreme tactile sense in their feet, able to adapt to almost any environment, sandy desert, swamps, forests, grasslands, sewers, arboreal and hole dwelling, can switch from nocturnal to daylight to full diurnal, capable of adapting or mutating to be resistant to nearly all bacteria and many viruses on the planet and so on... and they don't stomp hard enough to trigger land mines.
Give them the ability to detect low flying aircraft, raptors, and they have it all covered. They are already developing a resistance to Warfarin, can smell and hear snakes and other predators, and they learn to avoid many types of traps.

The Snark said:

More amazing than everyone but the experts realize. Visual acuity equal to or greater than a human, a sense of smell equal to or better than many dogs, very refined auditory sensitivity, extreme tactile sense in their feet, able to adapt to almost any environment, sandy desert, swamps, forests, grasslands, sewers, arboreal and hole dwelling, can switch from nocturnal to daylight to full diurnal and so on... and they don't stomp hard enough to trigger land mines.

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And they eat everything with no problems (well, sharks also i think) but i think would be unfair to have them in a cage, no matter the size, those animals need to live free. There's in India some people who praise them as semi gods in a temple btw

Chris LXXIX said:

...There's in India some people who praise them as semi gods in a temple btw

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Karni Mata, Hindi. Temple in Deshnoke, Rajasthan

These are pouched rats. They're also used to detect tuberculosis, as well as last I heard, being trained to find survivors in disaster zones while equipped with cameras. I used to own one many years back, and he was by far the best pet I've ever had. He was also far more intelligent than I was used to (I likened him to owning a monkey) and very destructive. If you didn't keep his mind occupied and give him enrichment activities, he would destroy anything he could, including his cage. I trained him to do tricks, walk outside on a leash, and to use the toilet to go to the bathroom with barely any training whatsoever. He learned FAST. He also could lead ME back to his house while out on a walk (not just down the street, but blocks away), walked all the way home on his own when he was done, up the private driveway, up the doorstep, down the stairs, and right to his cage on his own. I'd have the leash and harness on him, but he clearly did all the leading.

In his later years, he started acting more like a baby than an adult, chasing his tail and trying to hump things. It was weird, and while I thought the behavior was cute, it was probably a sign he had something wrong mentally. He died shortly after with no other warnings.

They're legal to own in the USA again a few years back, but CDC still has a ban on importing, and pretty much no one has them anymore. If they did, I'd be on that fast with all my money, lol.

Pouched rats. Now and then I hear about a bitter rivalry that goes off around here and more so, in Cambodia. Some people consider pouched rats as just another animal to be eaten while the other contingent views them as pets and companions.

The Snark said:

Pouched rats. Now and then I hear about a bitter rivalry that goes off around here and more so, in Cambodia. Some people consider pouched rats as just another animal to be eaten while the other contingent views them as pets and companions.

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I wonder.. now that you mentioned Cambdia, what kind of T's species they eat there? I assume those were Haplopelma lividum or "Haplos" in general but can't figure out exactly.. you know, that huge pile of fried T's they have in their street markets.
That's a sort of human limit for me (not only because i'm in the hobby, eh) because i will probably even eat a snake, just for curiousity, as a tourist in some nation (at the end, here we eat eels) but a T, there's almost nothing to eat, no?

Chris LXXIX said:

I wonder.. now that you mentioned Cambdia, what kind of T's species they eat there? I assume those were Haplopelma lividum or "Haplos" in general but can't figure out exactly.. you know, that huge pile of fried T's they have in their street markets.
That's a sort of human limit for me (not only because i'm in the hobby, eh) because i will probably even eat a snake, just for curiousity, as a tourist in some nation (at the end, here we eat eels) but a T, there's almost nothing to eat, no?

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All of SE Asia munches them. Wifey says yuck to deep fat fried. The way to go is toss them in a camp fire then fish them out real quick. Suck the goo out of then which is somewhat sweet. Kids like to crunch munch the legs, sometimes used to dip nam prik pepper sauce.. I've mostly seen Minax on the menus and markets. The big blue are too valuable. They get half assed mounted in display boxes and sold to dipsnake rectum brained tourists who discover it's illegal to possess them as they go through airport customs.

The Snark said:

All of SE Asia munches them. Wifey says yuck to deep fat fried. The way to go is toss them in a camp fire then fish them out real quick. .

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I would imagine that this would be the most "authentic tasting" way to go lol. Anything fried ends up tasting more of the oil for sure. In the Amazon when the tribes prepare Therophosa I believe they wrapped them in leaves and prepared them over a fire. If memory is serving correct anyhow. I haven't watched that documentary in awhile. They also use the fangs as toothpicks haha. I think they remove the fangs entirely in Asia?

The Snark said:

All of SE Asia munches them. Wifey says yuck to deep fat fried. The way to go is toss them in a camp fire then fish them out real quick. Suck the goo out of then which is somewhat sweet. Kids like to crunch munch the legs, sometimes used to dip nam prik pepper sauce.. I've mostly seen Minax on the menus and markets. The big blue are too valuable. They get half assed mounted in display boxes and sold to dipsnake rectum brained tourists who discover it's illegal to possess them as they go through airport customs.

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Do you think that it's real the story that they (in Cambodia) started to eat T's due to all the mess created by Pol Pot, or that to eat T's were always part of their culture?

Eating Ts, pideys and bugs has been on the menu all over the world for millions of years world wide. Often a source of extra protein and entertainment for kids. It's very common to see hilltribe kids sitting around the campfire in the evening roasting bugs and spiders. And yes, campfires are very common. We built our mom in law a modern house with the amenities. She uses the well appointed kitchen as a storage room and cooks over a campfire just outside the door. Around here they have the added bonus of the limbs pruned from the lamyai tree. Ultra hard super high BTUs fuel. Mom makes a 6 foot high stack last all year. Why pay for cooking gas or electricity? The campfire or a communal fire is how they stay warm on the evenings in the rural areas. Very common to see a fire burning next to the country roads with people gathered around it, socializing. Heaters and fireplaces in rural homes are almost unheard of. Come to think of it, we don't have a heater. Light a fire out in the driveway when it gets really chilly. And of course, the ultra easy way to get warm in the mornings is vacuum the house. Your average heavy duty vacuum produces as much or more heat than a small electric heater and does other little jobs at the same time.

Roasting prepared foods in banana leaves is also very common and used today. Just about any local market sells folded banana leaves for that purpose. Wifey the night before last had some local concoction of some kind of small larvae, ginger and spices roasted in the leaves. She brings home something wrapped in banana leaves once or twice a week. Think about it. What else could you wrap a prepared food in that parboils-roasts the food, is fire resistant, keeps the food contained and doesn't instill it's own flavor? Today they use BBQ grills turning leaf wrapped delicacies occasionally like hot dogs

So taking everything into consideration, if someone manages to trap a chunky pouched rat or similar, we're talking gourmet dinner. BTW, dog tastes greasy. Think pork without the flavor from the feeds. Cats have a slightly bitter astringent aftertaste and smell bad when cooking. Rats that have been surviving on grain robbing and the local nuts and seeds usually have a smokey built in BBQ sauce flavor.

The Snark said:

Eating Ts, pideys and bugs has been on the menu all over the world for millions of years world wide. Often a source of extra protein and entertainment for kids. It's very common to see hilltribe kids sitting around the campfire in the evening roasting bugs and spiders. And yes, campfires are very common. We built our mom in law a modern house with the amenities. She uses the well appointed kitchen as a storage room and cooks over a campfire just outside the door. Around here they have the added bonus of the limbs pruned from the lamyai tree. Ultra hard super high BTUs fuel. Mom makes a 6 foot high stack last all year. Why pay for cooking gas or electricity? The campfire or a communal fire is how they stay warm on the evenings in the rural areas. Very common to see a fire burning next to the country roads with people gathered around it, socializing. Heaters and fireplaces in rural homes are almost unheard of.

Roasting prepared foods in banana leaves is also very common and used today. Just about any local market sells folded banana leaves for that purpose. Wifey the night before last had some local concoction of some kind of small larvae, ginger and spices roasted in the leaves. She brings home something wrapped in banana leaves once or twice a week. Think about it. What else could you wrap a prepared food in that parboils-roasts the food, is fire resistant, keeps the food contained and doesn't instill it's own flavor? Today they use BBQ grills turning leaf wrapped delicacies occasionally like hot dogs

So taking everything into consideration, if someone manages to trap a chunky pouched rat or similar, we're talking gourmet dinner. BTW, dog tastes greasy. Think pork without the flavor from the feeds. Cats have a slightly bitter astringent aftertaste and smell bad when cooking.

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I understand what you mean about campfires, but, wait, are you telling me that have you eaten cats and dogs? I'm in symbiosis with my little hunters, i would gladly eat alive a man if one day a "Fallout" happens, but not them
However here in Italy there's stories about, they say that cats meat more or less is like the rabbit ones. Ykes

Chris LXXIX said:

I understand what you mean about campfires, but, wait, are you telling me that have you eaten cats and dogs? I'm in symbiosis with my little hunters, i would gladly eat alive a man if one day a "Fallout" happens, but not them
However here in Italy there's stories about, they say that cats meat more or less is like the rabbit ones. Ykes

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I haven't strolled the aisles of the supermarkets in months. I'm allergic to their flourescent lighting and being chemically hypersensitive from a neurological condition I can smell the preservatives, orderants and other synthetic juices and goos. An hours stint shopping leaves me with a migraine and malaise for the rest of the day. What I can't handle is pork, pork and more pork that has replaced small animal consumption in most of SE Asia. Atherosclerosis heaven!

The Snark said:

I haven't strolled the aisles of the supermarkets in months. I'm allergic to their flourescent lighting and being chemically hypersensitive from a neurological condition I can smell the preservatives, orderants and other synthetic juices and goos. An hours stint shopping leaves me with a migraine and malaise for the rest of the day. What I can't handle is pork, pork and more pork that has replaced small animal consumption in most of SE Asia. Atherosclerosis heaven!

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Oh, please, you have to tell me this, now
Myth or true story: Durian. It's real that smell like a rotten carcass? Do you have eat? Taste good? Overrated?

Chris LXXIX said:

Oh, please, you have to tell me this, now
Myth or true story: Durian. It's real that smell like a rotten carcass? Do you have eat? Taste good? Overrated?

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Durian odor is a co-something. I can't remember that word. It's odor sends a signal to the brain that is unique and un-categorized to someone who doesn't know the fruit. The brain makes a connection to a odor most people commonly know. The amount of particles in the air and how they are absorbed, the subsection of our mental library and so on. Thus to most people it smells like sewage.
But once your brain gets trained and a new catalogued entry is filed it doesn't even closely resemble the rank rotten smell. I'm a classic example. YUCK! Upon the first 10 encounters. Now I love the smell of it. To my brain it's like a very powerful fruit version of an extremely heady rose.
Durian experts can take this several steps farther. In the market the other day there were three stalls offering durian. A person with us was able, half way across a massive produce market, to tell where each type was grown just from the odor: That's a... from Chomphon area, thats a deep south-Malaysian and that's an Isan variety.

A properly ripe durian is fantastically delicious. We're getting the royal shaft right now as it's become a fad in China jacking the prices through the roof. Around $10 a pound in farmers markets! The problem is it's the richest food on the damned planet. Heartburn city for a lot of people, bloat time, enough gas to inflate a dirigible.

Wifey just told me the price has shot up. 2 seed glops for 250 baht. = about $18 to $25 a pound.

The Snark said:

Durian odor is a co-something. I can't remember that word. It's odor sends a signal to the brain that is unique and un-categorized to someone who doesn't know the fruit. The brain makes a connection to a odor most people commonly know. The amount of particles in the air and how they are absorbed, the subsection of our mental library and so on. Thus to most people it smells like sewage.
But once your brain gets trained and a new catalogued entry is filed it doesn't even closely resemble the rank rotten smell. I'm a classic example. YUCK! Upon the first 10 encounters. Now I love the smell of it. To my brain it's like a very powerful fruit version of an extremely heady rose.
Durian experts can take this several steps farther. In the market the other day there were three stalls offering durian. A person with us was able, half way across a massive produce market, to tell where each type was grown just from the odor: That's a... from Chomphon area, thats a deep south-Malaysian and that's an Isan variety.

A properly ripe durian is fantastically delicious. We're getting the royal shaft right now as it's become a fad in China jacking the prices through the roof. Around $10 a pound in farmers markets! The problem is it's the richest food on the damned planet. Heartburn city for a lot of people, bloat time, enough gas to inflate a dirigible.

Wifey just told me the price has shot up. 2 seed glops for 250 baht. = about $18 to $25 a pound.

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My wife bought some when we were in Thailand a couple months ago. We left it in the room and couldn't go in for hours. I gave it to a cleaning lady and she was very happy .

In fact, in a lot of the hotels, they have "No Durian" signs.

Najakeeper said:

My wife bought some when we were in Thailand a couple months ago. We left it in the room and couldn't go in for hours. I gave it to a cleaning lady and she was very happy .

In fact, in a lot of the hotels, they have "No Durian" signs.

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And trains, planes, public transports, some public places, many stores and shops, and so on. ???

I should mention, some people's brains never file a new card in their catalog and durian remains raw sewage stink forever.

The Snark said:

And trains, planes, public transports, some public places, many stores and shops, and so on. ???

I should mention, some people's brains never file a new card in their catalog and durian remains raw sewage stink forever.

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It is like more or less (Durian more i think) for sulfur water, that sort of rotten egg smell is unbearable for me.
Btw The Snark, i will give you this link because i think you will find something interesting.
This guy is an old acquaintance of mine, used to be great friends back then as kids, in school etc. He's now a sort of writer and Asia traveller.
http://www.monkeyrockworld.com/

Bringing this back to the original topic...


...is it possible to train pouched rats to detect durian, and bring to our friends/foes?