How big can rats grow (5 photos)

Dozens of tabloid newspapers told gullible citizens about supposedly mutated rats the size of rabbits, which every now and then jump out of basements and manholes, as well as monstrous rats the size of dogs, no less, spotted in the subway.





Such articles were actively circulated, eagerly read, rumors spread quickly. Fear has big eyes, so there were witnesses who allegedly saw huge rats. Most people, of course, did not believe these tales.



But in general, rats can actually grow larger than average. A standard brown rat (a brown rat that has lived alongside humans for hundreds of years) can reach 25 cm in length, excluding the tail, and weigh about 250-500 grams.





Overgrown rats, much larger than the norm, are also not that rare. Hand-reared decorative rats, which originate from the same gray brown rats, in a pet store can grow to 600-900 grams (males) - this is what I myself have seen and weighed. Domestic pets can surprise even more: they can gain up to 1 kg or even a little more (rarely, but it happens).



It is noteworthy that giants are more common among hairless rats, and not among traditionally woolly ones. Hairless ones, apparently, have some additional deviations in the body (in addition to the lost fur coat), allowing them to gain solid size and weight.



In general, in some cases, brown rats can grow up to a kilogram and a little more. A little more is, for example, 1040 grams, not 10400. Such monsters are not found in the basement or at home.