By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-04-05 03:16:25 | Updated at 2025-04-05 10:03:25
6 hours ago
Ronin, a rat trained to sniff out explosives, has earned an entry in the Guinness World Records after finding a record 109 landmines and 15 items of unexploded ordnance in Cambodia’s northern Preah Vihear Province.
Belgian aid organisation Apopo revealed Ronin’s achievements on Friday, World Rat Day, which is marked every year on April 4.
Ronin, an African pouched rat, secured the record after being put to work in August 2021, beating all his peers. The five-year-old rat is the most successful in Apopo’s history, going back 25 years.
Ronin was described as “hardworking but also friendly and relaxed.”
Apopo’s Lily said: “Ronin’s success likely comes from his sharp focus, strong work ethic and love of problem-solving. His intelligence and natural curiosity help him stay engaged. Finding landmines is like a fun game to him, and no two days are the same.”
The rats are too light to detonate landmines and are able to track down the explosives in landmines faster than traditional metal detectors.
According to Apopo, there are more than 300 so-called HeroRATS working on various projects.
