They are called Hero Rats but they are not funny Disney Characters, as a matter of fact they’re not funny at all. Their job is utterly serious as they are the protagonists of an innovative technology developed by the Belgian NGO Apopo, to provide solutions for global problems.
Founded at the end of the Nineties, Apopo was created by Bart Weetjens, a university student with a great passion for rodents. It was Weetjens who understood that the Cricetomys gambianus, better known as African giant pouched rat, could become a useful resource for mine detection. Thanks to their strong sense of smell and their calm nature, they can be easily trained for mine detection. Although they are defined “giant”, they weight between 0.7 and 1.5 Kg which makes it unlikely they would set off a pressure-activated mine by scratching or pointing it.
Besides being extremely efficient, giant pouched rats are also extremely convenient. Training a hero-rat costs about six thousand Euros but other expenses can be covered with just five Euros a month. This kind of rats have a longer life expectancy, compared to other rodents. They are able to live up to eight years in captivity, optimizing the return on training investment.
Thanks to the program about 800 thousand square meters of land have been cleared and returned to the local population.
However landmine detection is not the only program developed by Apopo. Giant pouched rats are also trained for tuberculosis screening and Remote Scent Tracing research.
Today Apopo employs over 200 local staff in Tanzania and Mozambique and they have over 300 rats in various stages of breeding, detection training , research or operations.
You can decide to help Apopo by making a donation or adopting a rat. To learn more: hero rats.
