25 Sep 20
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-54284952
Magawa the mine-detecting rat wins PDSA Gold Medal
An African giant pouched rat has been awarded a prestigious gold medal for his work detecting land mines.
Magawa has sniffed out 39 landmines and 28 unexploded munitions in his career.
The UK veterinary charity PDSA has presented him with its Gold Medal for "life-saving devotion to duty, in the location and clearance of deadly landmines in Cambodia".
There are thought to be up to six million landmines in the southeast Asian country.
PDSA's Gold Medal is inscribed with the words "For animal gallantry or devotion to duty". Of the 30 animal recipients of the award, Magawa is the first rat.
The seven-year-old rodent was trained by the Belgium-registered charity Apopo, which is based in Tanzania and has been raising the animals - known as HeroRATs - to detect landmines and tuberculosis since the 1990s. The animals are certified after a year of training.
According to Apopo, Magawa - born and raised in Tanzania - weights 1.2kg (2.6lb) and is 70cm (28in) long. While that is far larger than many other rat species, Magawa is still small enough and light enough that he does not trigger mines if he walks over them.
27 Sep 20
@ponderable saidThe rat probably prefers food, but the charity benefits from the publicity.
My question would be: Does the rat care (about medals and such)?