A landmine-sniffing rat will be retiring by the end of June after five years of service.
Magawa, an African giant pouched rat, worked to sniff out land mines and other hidden explosive devices in Cambodia for APOPO, a Belgian charity the acronym of which stands for a Dutch name that translates to “Anti-Personnel Landmines Removal Product Development.”
“To date he has found 71 landmines and 38 items of unexploded ordnance, making him APOPO’s most successful HeroRAT. Over the past five years he has helped clear over 225,000 square metres of land, allowing local communities to live, work, play and be educated; without fear of losing life or limb,” the charity wrote in a June 3 press release.
RAT RECEIVES AWARD FOR BRAVERY FOR SNIFFING OUT LAND MINES
APOPO trains “HeroRATs,” of which there are 45 active, to sniff out explosives left over from past wars and alert their human handlers of the danger so that bomb squads can neutralize them. The charity uses rats particularly because they are light enough to walk over explosives without detonating them.
Magawa’s efforts earned him a rat-sized gold medal from the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals, a veterinary charity dedicated to caring for animals, in September 2020. He is the first rat to win the award, joining a hall of noble dogs, horses, pigeons, and one cat, according to APOPO’s release.
Although Magawa is in good health, he is reaching the standard age of retirement, and he is beginning to slow down, APOPO tweeted.
Born in Tanzania in November 2013, Magawa trained at the Sokoine University of Agriculture, his birthplace, where APOPO breeds and trains all of its HeroRATs.
After his graduation, Magawa joined the APOPO team in Cambodia in 2016.
Magawa will have a similar daily routine in retirement to his active duty days: eating fruits and fish, getting regular health checks, and engaging in daily play and exercise time, said APOPO spokeswoman Lily Shallom.
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The main change is that Magawa will be running on a wheel and playing in his sandbox rather than sniffing out mines.
