Ten News EXTRA: Rodent Heroes and Super Dogs 🦸
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Episode 92 Description
Lots of animals are making a difference. Laine Farber from the Nature Nerds podcast tells us about the heroes of the rodent world: the incredible Giant African Pouched Rat. 🐀 Then we snuggle up with some comfort dogs helping wild fighters. 🐕
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Sources for this episode:
https://www.britannica.com/list/working-like-a-dog-7-animals-with-jobs
https://apnews.com/article/larry-the-cat-chief-mouser-10-years-036fa5e83422a0de41d91ab6fd91262e
TRANSCRIPT:
Various voices 0:00
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Bethany Van Delft 0:07
I'm Bethany Van Delft, it's June 5, and this is no ordinary episode of The Ten News. This is The Ten News gets extra. Heroes come in all shapes, sizes and species. That's right. Today we've got the scoop on incredible animals who are making a difference. Let's dive in. They pop out of trash and swim through sewers. Sometimes they even cook under an animated chef's hat. Have you guessed what I'm talking about yet? That's right, rats. Rats get a pretty bad rap. They are a problem in many communities around the globe. But when they're not out in the wild, causing problems for people and other animals, rats are actually intelligent animals that can be trained to do amazing things.
A Kid 1:09
No way.
Bethany Van Delft 1:11
Our correspondent Laine Farber, from Nature Nerds Podcast, has more on some of these radical rodents.
Laine Farber 1:22
They're cute, they're fuzzy, and they've got a powerful sense of smell that's helping save lives. I know what you're thinking. Another dog story. Not this time, my friends. Today we're talking about the heroes of the rodent world. The incredible giant African pouch rats. As their name implies, giant African pouched rats are big rodents native to Africa. At over a foot long and weighing up to six pounds, it's fair to say that these rodents are beefy. But it's not their size that makes them so special. It's their sense of smell and their intelligence. Specialists have been training hero rats to detect landmines since 1998. Bart Weetjens came up with the idea to train these special rodents after reading a sense study done with gerbils. It took many years of research and fundraising to perfect the training routine, but now these tiny rat superstars are saving lives as part of the APOPO organization. Giant African pouch rats are the perfect landmine detectives, because their sense of smell is so powerful. They're also highly intelligent and easily trainable. So how exactly do you teach a rat to detect landmines? Well, the lengthy process starts with clicker training. Just like training a dog, the rat hears the sound of the clicker and just given a tasty treat. Once they've mastered clicker training, they move on to scent training. The rats learn to distinguish the different smells of active and inactive explosives. After mastering lab training, they practice out in the field. And if they do well, they graduate from the program as a licensed hero rat. The training can take up to nine months, but the rats don't mind because they get lots of treats, playtime and exercise while they study. After graduating, hero rats can officially begin their job. The rats start their days bright and early. They're woken by their handlers slathered in sunscreen to protect them from the harsh UV rays and strapped into their tiny harnesses and leashes, then they head out into the fields where they use their super sniffers to detect explosives hidden beneath the ground. But don't worry, the rats are at no risk of being harmed, because they're too light to set off the weight triggered explosives. So we can all agree that rats in tiny harnesses, getting bits of banana in exchange for doing a good job is so cute, but it's also super important. The bombs that they're detecting were left behind in various countries after war. These leftover bombs have hurt and even killed many innocent people who live in these countries. Hero rats are saving lives and with their help, hopefully soon, these countries will be safer for the people that call them home.
Bethany Van Delft 4:24
That's an incredible story and really shows how smart these animals really are. Wildfire season is kicking into high gear in many parts of the US to help fight fire. We'll need all paws on deck. That's right. I said paws. If you weren't a dog person before you might turn into one after you hear about these hard working pups who help out in the fight against wildfires. Laine Farber is back to tell us more about dogs making a difference.
Laine Farber 5:00
A very good girl named Kerith spends her days lending a PA to firefighters battling California wildfires. Kerith is a licensed therapy dog who works with firefighters in Northern California. With wildfires eating up the coast of California, Kerith hugs and kisses are more important than ever. But before we hear more about this Fuzzy Wuzzy doggo, let's take a closer look at wildfires. So what exactly is a wildfire? Well, it's an uncontrolled fire that burns in forest, grasslands and other rural landscapes. Wildfires have been happening for millions of years, and they actually play an important part in maintaining a healthy ecosystem. I know what you're thinking, how could fire possibly be good for plants? Well, the fire burns away harmful insects and diseases that could spread to other plants. And some trees even have seed pods that will only open when exposed to extreme heat. Wildfires become a problem when they happen frequently and go unmanaged. If a wildfire is not contained, it can burn down thousands of acres of land and harm or displace the animals and people that live nearby. Right now wildfires are happening at increased rates because of our changing climate. rising global temperatures caused intense droughts, reduced snowfall, and increased lightning activity. super dry ground plus crackling lightning equals wildfires Central. In the last few months, over 1.5 million acres of land has burned down in California. That's roughly 60 times larger than Disney World. The fires continue to spread and it's up to brave firefighters to keep them in control. This is a dangerous and super stressful job. Luckily, some firefighters has special furry friends to help them manage their stress. Cara the golden retriever has been visiting fire stations in Northern California for over a year. Her sweet puppy dog eyes and warm smile don't just look cute, they actually make people feel better. That's right. Spending time with specially trained pups like Cara can cause your brain to release special hormones that boost your mood and lower anxiety levels. So here's to the firefighters putting their lives on the line. And the good doggos who helped make their job just a little bit easier. Back to you Bethany.
Bethany Van Delft 7:43
Thanks Laine. After that amazing story. I'd like to give all of you Ten'ners a mission. Go give your dog a hug. Okay, so why can't a bicycle stand on its own? Because it's too tired. Does that sound like a joke your dad or another corny type person in your life might say? Well Ten'ners Father's Day is coming up. And we want to hear your best dad or just totally corny joke to air right here on the show. To submit the ultimate dad slash corny-corn joke. Grab your adult and give us a call at our new phone line. 877-Ten-News and leave us a message that's 877-t-e-n-n-e-w-s or you can email us at hello@thetennews.co. Up next it's time for...
What, what, what's the big idea?
Trivia on The Ten. There are tons of animals that have important jobs around the world. But in the British Prime Minister's residence, one special cat is hard at work doing what is it A) being the tie breaking vote when parliament is deadlocked, B) appointing mayors of British towns or C) catching mice around the house. Did you guess it? The answer is C. The chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office is an official position appointed to the Prime Minister's household. The job actually dates back to the 1500s to the reign of King Henry the Eighth, who kept cats around to keep rodents out. Today, the position is held by Larry a rescue cat who scored the ultimate Pest Control position in 2011. The job comes with perks for the kitty in charge, like meeting foreign leaders, unlimited cat naps, and of course free mouse meals. Time's up. That's all for today's episode. Thanks for listening to The Ten News. Look out for new episodes on Tuesdays, Thursdays and extras on Saturday. The Ten News is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts and is distributed by iHeartRadio. The Ten News creative team is giving official titles to all their pets and includes Kate Hill, Tracey Crooks, Pete Musto, Andrew Hall, Jenner Pascua, Stephen Tompkins, and Sarah Olender. Laine Farber contributed to this episode. Our production director is Jeremiah Tittle. Our executive producers are Donald Albright and show creator Tracy Leeds Kaplan. I'm Bethany Van Delft, and thanks for listening to The Ten News. Hey Ten'ners. What would the name of a movie be if it casts mathematician rats that traveled through the to find treasure. Pi-rats of the Caribbean I told you you don't have to be a dad to be corny.
