from Hacker News

In Defense of the Rat

by ivm on 3/30/25, 2:15 PM with 40 comments

by cogman10 on 3/30/25, 3:25 PM
It's interesting that a major part of the rat problem in NYC stems from poor waste management. Even more interesting, a major reason it's so bad is because in the 50s instead of keeping the old metal trash cans, they opted to instead put plastic bags on the streets.
These sorts of regressions in the name of progress fascinate me. For example, cities that tore up their light rail systems for roads and private vehicles.
by sivers on 3/30/25, 6:04 PM
My pet rats are here next to me as I type this.
I used to live in a basement apartment, next to the trash room. Rats were often blocking my door, and I could hear them walking in the ceiling right above me as I slept. I hated them so much that I happily killed as many as I could, with no remorse.
Last year, my boy (age 12) asked for a pet rat. I thought he was kidding, but he showed me YouTube videos of pet rats being adorable. So I said OK.
We adopted two twin brothers, which he named Cricket and Clover. They look almost identical but I can tell them apart by their personality. Full of energy and wants to climb to my shoulder? That’s Cricket. Mellow and wants to cuddle in my armpit? That’s Clover.
Rats, like cats, use a litter box. They’re very trainable, so they can come when called. They’re attached and affectionate. They have personality, which then makes us more attached and affectionate, too. Go search for videos of pet rats, and you'll see.
Many times a day, I go cuddle them and kiss their bellies, and they lick my nose. They’re wonderful.
As much as I love these rats, my deepest joy is that I'm loving what I used to hate. Cuddling what I used to kill.
by Qem on 3/30/25, 2:34 PM
Rodents are a closely related group to primates. They are grouped in the same superorder: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euarchontoglires
So between a random rat and your cat or dog, the former is likely a closer relative.
by mystified5016 on 3/30/25, 2:43 PM
Rats are good critters. They're clean like cats and smart like dogs. They can learn complex tricks if you care to teach them and will engage in mutual grooming with their favorite human.
They are very good pets if you know what to expect
by 01HNNWZ0MV43FF on 3/30/25, 2:25 PM
I've met someone with a pet rat who is quite well-behaved
by verisimi on 3/30/25, 3:34 PM
I can't think of an animal that has had a worse press than the rat. Except perhaps the flea.
In my view the reality is that they are really no different from something like a squirrel.
by sillysaurusx on 3/30/25, 5:15 PM
Could someone list some downsides about keeping a rat as a pet? There must be something. But thus far the comments have made it sound like the ideal pet other than them dying in a few years.
I’m thinking forward to when our daughter Kess is a little bit older (she’s almost two). It’d be nice to start her on something that she can actually take care of herself with supervision, without it being a family animal like a dog. I was thinking of some kind of lizard before this thread came along.
by delibes on 3/30/25, 2:52 PM
A friend had a pet rescue Wistar rat (albino lab rat). Super fun and friendl :) but they only live about 3 years :(
by bcoates on 3/30/25, 5:09 PM
Clever comment by the illustrator in the headline image:
https://genius.com/Gil-scott-heron-whitey-on-the-moon-annota...
by kleton on 3/30/25, 5:36 PM
> Can we learn to live with them?
"We" don't have to. It's a uniquely Anglo problem to remove street cats and dogs. One that we could immediately stop. You would have a hard time finding a rat in Istanbul.
by librasteve on 3/30/25, 4:49 PM
if you like rats and coding, then https://docs.raku.org/type/Rat may be for you
by dhosek on 3/30/25, 5:16 PM
In the 90s, I stumbled upon a rat in my living room when I came home from work.
I figured I had a choice: put out traps and poison to try to kill it or give it a name and declare it a pet.
I named him Raskolnikov.
by metalman on 3/30/25, 3:15 PM
rat?,bat!, splat, how bout that