Radical Rodents: Surfing Mice from Down Under

• peach
  March 15th, 2008 at 9:09 am

  Wow -someone took a lot of time making little tiny surfboards.

• badgirl
  March 15th, 2008 at 9:09 am

  Hey daddy. They look very well-fed and positively scared
  to death. Of COURSE they’re gonna stay glued to the boards!
  Either that or drown.

• Marco
  March 15th, 2008 at 10:52 am

  While I applaud your concern, badgirl, I just wanted to say I’ve had lots of pet rats through the years (yes–those are rats, not well-fed mice) and that’s exactly the kind of thing they’d find fun. Far from drowning, they’re excellent and enthusiastic swimmers and quite the little thrill seekers. In the video, you can clearly see them jump off of the boards (not glued on) and run toward the camera with what looks to me like a “That was fun! Let’s do it again!” attitude.

• Cnidaria
  March 15th, 2008 at 11:39 am

  The well fed look is actually puffed up fur in response to fear. Their entire posture shows how terrified they are.

• Edward
  March 15th, 2008 at 1:00 pm

  I enjoy seeing well trained and well cared for animals perform. It can be a credit to the trainer and the pet. That being said, this is torturing animals for the amusement of humans and I find it repulsive.

• andy cochrane
  March 15th, 2008 at 1:35 pm

  any time i see an animal on a surfboard (last month i think it was a cat, yes?) i can’t help but think that they are staying on due to feeling trapped, not out of pleasure. what do i know, i don’t speak any animal languages so i can’t ask them, but based on body posture i don’t think these rats look happy. that’s just me.

• Johnny Cat
  March 15th, 2008 at 3:00 pm

  I too have owned rats, and this is not torture. It’s called fun. I am serious, people. There is a void in your soul if you have nothing better to do than cry about perceived torture, when the little critters are actually guiding the boards on clear set paths through the surf.

  Fun, Fun, Fun!

• VonSkippy
  March 15th, 2008 at 4:12 pm

  Our house rats (two sisters) love water, they’ve learned to turn the kitchen sink faucet on all by themselves - now if they’d just learn to turn it off when they’re finished.

• Benny Lava
  March 16th, 2008 at 6:27 pm

  Hey, if humans enjoy surfing, why wouldn’t animals? To assume that we’re the only species that knows how to have fun is preposterous. And I agree, rats love water. If they didn’t enjoy being on the board they could easily hop off and swim to shore.

• s.m
  March 18th, 2008 at 1:25 pm

  Terrified animals run away when given the chance, not lick their paws on the sand.

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