In our area, normal-sized rats live close. My husband blames the horse stables nearby. But I've read that humans and rats live in close proximity wherever they live—town or country.
In the news today, undercover investigators have warned smokers to avoid dodgy cigarettes after making a shocking discovery during a string of test buys.
The JTI company which carried out the investigation found the counterfeit smokes, made with the cheapest and poorest quality ingredients, had been contaminated by 2ft-long monster rats at dirty, unregulated factories. The experts were stunned to discover faeces and dead animals mixed in with tobacco.
To maximize their illegal profits, these factories sweep up discarded tobacco littering the floor and put it all in the cigarettes. I couldn't find recent information about where these cigarettes come from. Last year, Chinese counterfeits were seized and also cigarettes that had been shipped from St Petersburg.
The dodgy cigarettes are sold in shops, cafés, pubs and bookmakers. With money tight at the moment, people will take advantage of low prices whenever they can in any society. But few would willingly smoke rat droppings, no matter how desperate they are.
The sight made my day. When they left, I searched the internet for information. They were male fancy pheasants. I assume they escaped from a nearby bird yard across the field.
I wouldn't want to live in a world without wildlife. God made them all, despite our interference to produce different shapes and colors.