Iran battles plague of 'genetically mutated' giant rats

[nameless]

Iran battles plague of 'genetically mutated' giant rats - World News - SINA English


Tehran, the capital of Iran, is battling an invasion of "genetically mutated" giant rats.
Iran has sent in sniper teams to clear Tehran's streets from the massive rodents weighting up to five kilos plaguing 26 district of the Iranian capital, the city's environmental agency said.
"They seem to have had a genetic mutation, probably as a result of radiations and the chemical used on them," Ismail Kahram, Teheran city council environment adviser and university professor Ismail Kahram told Qudsonline.ir.
"They are now bigger and look different. These are changes that normally take millions of years of evolution. They have jumped from 60 grams to five kilos, and cats are now smaller than them."
The "mutated rats" have been running rampant in the capital, as cats are scared off by their giant size and traditional poison appear to have no effect on them.
To stop them storming of restaurants' backyards and scavenging public waste containers, the council has deployed ten snipers teams armed with infra-red sighted rifles.
"We use chemical poisons to kill the rats during the day and the snipers at night, so it has become a 24/7 war," the head of the environment agency, Mohammad Hadi Heydarzadeh, said.
Rats' carcasses are burnt or buried in lime.
So far 2,205 rats have been shot dead, but the war is far to be won and the council is planning to bring the snipers team up to 40.

 

[TerranceQuestion]

I saw that. Interesting. Reminds me of the rumored mutations from Montauk. Can anyone confirm a pic or video? I wonder what kind of Dr. Savana super science makes giant whatevers. Giant gorillas next? Giant wasps? New form of bio-weapon?

 

[starise]

I wonder how they can confirm that these rats are genetically mutated. If you radiate / use chemicals on humans they usually die from the exposure. In really bad cases there are no offspring. Mutations, if any, are mostly serious birth defects resulting from Radiation and chemicals.

I suppose they could have been given a specific growth horomones. Just look at the 16 year olds now compared to when you were that age. They have been eating the growth horomones in the food, or their parents did. No, I'm no scientist, and this is a SWAG, but it makes sense.

 

[TerranceQuestion]

Indian Monkey Man like case? Pics or its fake.

 

[mike]

They need bigger cats

 

[SlightlyAbovePar]

Holy cra** Mike! That's one big ...... Cat!

 

[Grifynne]

I wonder how they can confirm that these rats are genetically mutated. If you radiate / use chemicals on humans they usually die from the exposure. In really bad cases there are no offspring. Mutations, if any, are mostly serious birth defects resulting from Radiation and chemicals.

I suppose they could have been given a specific growth horomones. Just look at the 16 year olds now compared to when you were that age. They have been eating the growth horomones in the food, or their parents did. No, I'm no scientist, and this is a SWAG, but it makes sense.

I was thinking that too. I don't think radiation works like it does with super heroes. I figured they would die. Could someone be experimenting on them or maybe some kind of industrial or scientific waste is being dumped where it shouldn't be and inadvertently supplying access to a growth hormone or something similar?

I actually like rats, used to have them as pets. But wild rats are much different from fancy rats. I would love to see a pic or two of these 'mutated' creatures. They say they look different (aside from their gigantic size), I wonder what specifically is different? The photograph included shows a dead rat but it just looks like a big rat covered in mud and leaves (actually it doesn't look "bigger than a cat" to me but maybe it's the perspective).

Some rats can get rather large naturally. I skeeved out my neighbors when I was 12 or 13 years old. I had a dark brown pet rat that I used to take outside with me, and she was pretty big. She would follow me around the yard and sometimes climb up my leg. Neighbors were walking by one time and said "Oh, is that a ferret?" and I said "No, it's a rat." They said nothing else and walked briskly away. My dad used to call me Willard. lol

EDIT: Ok, I found this article and I think the photo at the bottom is a far better representation of the problem. OH EM GEE: Iran Snipers Deployed Against ‘Mutant Rats’ In Tehran

 

[starise]

I have accidentally come across mice and rats on occasion and they give me the creeps. I had one loose in a basement once and it seemed like it wanted to go up my leg. I have never danced like that in my life. I think I may have almost danced right out of my clothes. The thought of a furry little thing with razor sharp teeth that might be carrying a disease running up inside my pants leg is enough to cause me cardiac arrest.

I occasionally get into all kinds of different places. One of those places is a lab complete with rats. For some reason I'm ok around those.They are in cages and look docile, clean and white. I would still probably pee myself if I woke up next to one at night. If someone wants to take me out just put a rat in bed with me I would probably kill myself running through the wall.

I guess a tamed rat would be more like one of those fat over fed hamsters.Might even look cute in a rat kind of way lol. I think you have way more nerve than me. Lol.

 

[Grifynne]

I have accidentally come across mice and rats on occasion and they give me the creeps. I had one loose in a basement once and it seemed like it wanted to go up my leg. I have never danced like that in my life. I think I may have almost danced right out of my clothes. The thought of a furry little thing with razor sharp teeth that might be carrying a disease running up inside my pants leg is enough to cause me cardiac arrest.

I occasionally get into all kinds of different places. One of those places is a lab complete with rats. For some reason I'm ok around those.They are in cages and look docile, clean and white. I would still probably pee myself if I woke up next to one at night. If someone wants to take me out just put a rat in bed with me I would probably kill myself running through the wall.

I guess a tamed rat would be more like one of those fat over fed hamsters.Might even look cute in a rat kind of way lol. I think you have way more nerve than me. Lol.

Well if I encounter a wild rat or mouse, I won't touch them. I'm worried about getting nipped and diseases. Those teeth are not carnivore teeth but they can really rip flesh. My husband made that mistake with one of our rats years ago. We had a big wire cage and one was a little more skittish than the others. I occasionally gave them cat treats (we had a cat at the time too lol) and the rat (Pepper) would scurry off with his, so he kinda grabbed it and ran. The treats were kinda flesh colored and round dome looking things. Well my husband got close to the cage and Pepper nearly took the tip of his nose off. That's the only time we were ever hurt by one of them, though.

Pet rats, when properly handled, are very docile. The key is to handle them often from a young age. If they are not handled often or left in a cage with no interaction then they will be very very difficult to manage (and you're more likely to get bit or have a rat escape and run away). Keep them out as much as possible and you'll have a sweet little pet. I had a basket of sewing supplies when I used to do crafty things and one of my rats used to wander on the table while I worked then curl up and sleep in the basket. She was such a sweetheart. The hardest part to deal with is the fact that they don't live very long.

Honestly, if they are tamed and frequently handled, they are kind of like tiny dogs. They will lick you and even groom your finger nails for you if you let them. You can apparently teach them things, although I never actually trained the ones I had (aside from taming them). Mine always rode on my shoulder, which skeeved some people out.

Actually, if you want to hear a funny story, I originally brought two classroom rats home for a weekend (it was a thing my teacher did, she let us take turns taking them home on the weekend). I loved them and wanted to get one but my mom was like "hell no!". So my dad and I went to the pet store one day, bought one, got it all set up at home then he told her it was a "Pintailed hamster". She bought it at first, but eventually she figured it out.

But man, I would hate to see what kind of destruction those mutated rats can cause. Small ones are bad enough with nibbling on wood and building materials. Those things could probably take down buildings. lol

 

[starise]

Hmmm...a pintailed Hampster - I'm not sure I would have fallen for that one

I was changing a light fixture out the other day and noticed the wire looked like it had been chewed. I sincerely believe that mice and rats are responsible for at least a few house fires every year. If one of those had bit the tip off my nose I think my next decision would be to relocate that critter somewhere else.

Where I grew up we always had outdoor pets. Later on I remember thinking it seemed strange to have a pet inside. My wife had cats before we married , but since then we haven't had the time to take care of anything.

Where I live we have several neighborhood dogs that end up at my place. I adopted one of them and it follows me around everywhere. I buy bacon snacks for it. The dog really belongs to my neighbor who is Amish and only feeds it dry dog food. I sometimes throw this dog a hot dog or some roast beef....no wonder it likes me so much. That and the belly rubs.

I think it would be cruel to buy a pet for inside now because we wouldn't have the time to devote to it. I have been at those houses where the poor dog is penned up all day and let loose in the evening. I have several other "adopted" pets though.

The thought of having a rat as a pet never even remotely crossed my mind. I think I have some kind of a natural aversion to them, or maybe it's more of a mental hang up. I could probably get past it if I tried.

 

[Grifynne]

I was changing a light fixture out the other day and noticed the wire looked like it had been chewed. I sincerely believe that mice and rats are responsible for at least a few house fires every year. If one of those had bit the tip off my nose I think my next decision would be to relocate that critter somewhere else.

He was MUCH more cautious about putting body parts near the cage like that lol.

Where I live we have several neighborhood dogs that end up at my place. I adopted one of them and it follows me around everywhere. I buy bacon snacks for it. The dog really belongs to my neighbor who is Amish and only feeds it dry dog food. I sometimes throw this dog a hot dog or some roast beef....no wonder it likes me so much. That and the belly rubs.

I bet that dog will be your best friend.

I think it would be cruel to buy a pet for inside now because we wouldn't have the time to devote to it. I have been at those houses where the poor dog is penned up all day and let loose in the evening. I have several other "adopted" pets though.

Ya, I agree. It's ok if you realize you don't have time for a pet. It's way worse to get one knowing that you can't devote the time necessary to care for and love it. I have dogs, but I work from home so I am with them pretty much all day, every day. I have seen people who get a dog and just tie it outside and ignore it. I do not understand that at all. It's why I would never ever have an outside dog. Plus a dog that is not given enough attention and exercise can start to display behavioral problems.

The thought of having a rat as a pet never even remotely crossed my mind. I think I have some kind of a natural aversion to them, or maybe it's more of a mental hang up. I could probably get past it if I tried.

I think if you spent time with a tamed rat (or a baby rat that you were taming), you would come to appreciate them as pets. A lot of people have that hang up though, and it's not unfounded since rats and mice can carry diseases and can cause a lot of crop and structure damage. They can have very endearing personalities when properly handled and cared for.

 

[Wade]

Some very good points my dear. you could even extend that to our feelings between domesticated dogs and cats and feral ones.

If rats had furry or fuzzy tails they might not have such an image problem

 

[Grifynne]

Some very good points my dear. you could even extend that to our feelings between domesticated dogs and cats and feral ones.

If rats had furry or fuzzy tails they might not have such an image problem

D'awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! See, don't ya just want to grab one and pet it and let it crawl all over you!?

 

[starise]

I'm not there yet.

 

[Grifynne]

I'm not there yet.

How about now?

 

[starise]

Awww..... Meebee..... I haven't been around these parts for awhile. Sorry I took so long to respond back.

 

[Grifynne]

Awww..... Meebee..... I haven't been around these parts for awhile. Sorry I took so long to respond back.

No worries. I have been MIA a bit more often as well. We're getting into the busier summer months where a week doesn't go by without a party, picnic, holiday or event to go to or plan for.