Originally posted by Incendia vox
Britons should not eat rats under any circumstances, 98%+ are infected with Weil's disease they
should eat tasty grey squirrels instead.
Weil's disease is neutralised by cooking thouroughly. It is only a danger if you either get bitten or don't take precautions when preparing the
meat. As i said earlier, any cut, bruise, scratch or any other damage to your skin that comes into contact with the rat puts you at great risk of
infection. I'll give you the method and precautions i used when skinning, gutting and eating the rats i had.
Firstly after shooting the rat with a .22 air rifle i walked up to it and knowing rats can play dead i shot it with a small air pistol i carry when
rat shooting to make absolutely sure. Using latex gloves I then picked it up by the tail (rats have been known to climb their tails so be ready to
drop it) and put it with the others i had shot.
When i finished shooting i picked up all of the rats (again by the tail) and laid them in the field outside. Keeping my gloves on i first emptied
their bladders by stroking hard on their belly. I then took my small knife and cut them from the neck to the back end, making sure the cut was
shallow. Like with rabbits, pinch the skin and lift it up to take it away from the organs, the skin is very very thin.
I emptied out the entrails and completely disgarded all organs as i was not sure if they were safe to eat and i wasn't taking chances. I removed the
rest of th skin, making absolutely sure as i did it to kep the knife well away from my hand and to make sure that if i slipped it would not cut me.
Slicing yourself when skinning a rat means a sure visit to the hospital in my view.
The gloves i used to skin the animal were cheap latex ones which were thrown on a fire. When removing them make sure to turn them inside out and then
put them in something else. After that wash your hands very carefully. This may seem a little strong to some but the diseases rats arry are really
horrible.
After cutting off the head, feet and tail, the skin being gone i was left with a very small piece of meat. I did this with the rest of them, stripped
off the meat and fried it in a pan until done. I then shoved it in a stew and boiled it for a couple of hours.
It really was tasty and i didn't get ill. I haven't eaten any more since though, to much hassle for so little meat.
[edit on 30-12-2009 by ImaginaryReality1984]
