for rat lovers! interesting story!!!
http://news.findlaw.com/ap/o/fe/1120...061502_18.html
Monday, Nov. 15, 2004 | Associated Press
Ohio Woman Runs Rescue Mission for Rats
ELYRIA, Ohio (AP) - Jennifer Mitchell's apartment is full of rats, and that's exactly how she wants it. Mitchell runs a rat rescue mission, caring for dozens of rats from people who get overwhelmed when their pet rodents have multiple babies.
Mitchell, of the northeast Ohio town of Elyria, represents a growing trend of rat enthusiasts across the nation, including some who gathered last week in Seattle for Ratapalooza 3. The event is billed as an educational expo for domestic-rat fanciers and breeders.
The Internet is filled with rat fan clubs, organizations, other rescuers and rat products such as toys or fleece-lined hammocks for rats.
"It's like there's a whole underground secret society of rat lovers," Mitchell said.
Her program was born partly out of love for the creatures and partly out of necessity when her fiance bought a rat they named Sadie, which bore 15 babies.
Now, Mitchell has 35 rats in her apartment. The animals are kept in cages when she's not playing with them.
Mitchell said rats are misunderstood and have suffered an image problem because of the 14th century's bubonic plague - rats carried the disease - and negative representations in movies.
Shika's Rescue Mission was started online. The program is named after Muushika, a companion rat to the Hindu elephant god whose duty was to ensure no creatures went unnoticed, or forgotten, the Web site says.
Mitchell's rats aren't wild but were "surrendered" for various reasons, including those who find themselves in a situation similar to what Mitchell did with a wealth of rats.
The program runs on donations but requires a $10 adoption fee to deter potential snake food buyers and defray costs.
"The automatic response from people is, 'Eeew, their tails are gross,'" Mitchell said as she let her pet rat, Sadie, snake around her neck.
But that didn't stop Jeanne Kent from driving from Columbus to adopt a rat from Mitchell.
"The tail is the best part of them," said Kent, a longtime rat lover. "When you fall in love with rats, it is just one thing you fall in love with."
Kent "limited herself" and adopted four brother rats. She has owned rats for nearly a decade, buying any merchandise that displays rats, from stamps to Christmas tree ornaments.
"They are the most deserving, most affectionate, most entertaining, easy to take care of, most misunderstood pets in the world," she said.
The owners, sometimes called ratties or ratzis, also may be misunderstood.
"My mother thinks I'm nuts, and she works in a pet store," Mitchell said.
---
On the Net:
Shika's Rattie Rescue: http://www.freewebs.com/shikasrattierescue
