Tiny Rats Are Saving The World By Sniffing Out Landmines In Africa (Photos)

If you thought German Shepherds were the only animals out there with nine-to-fives, you're wrong.

There are giant bomb-sniffing rats called HeroRats, and they're able to sniff out landmines. These massive rats are trained by a Belgian non-governmental organization called APOPO and could save thousands of lives every year.

According to Bored Panda, HeroRats can scour 200 square meters in just 20 minutes to find landmines. To put that in perspective, it would take a human about 25 hours to cover the same area using with mine detectors.

Their lightweight characteristics also help them do their jobs. Most landmines detonate after being applied with a force of 11 pounds or more, but rats usually weigh no more than about three pounds. For a rat, that's huge. But for this particular job, it's the perfect weight.

Since the rats are in the sun all day, sunscreen is applied to their ears to prevent skin cancer.

If a rat gets too old or sick, it retires and lives the rest of its life freely.

Check out the photos below for a closer look at them in action.

This isn't a rabbit. It's a rat, but it isn't just any rat.

This is a HeroRat. It gets its name from the job it does to save people's lives.

APOPO trained these giant rats to be bomb-sniffing lifesavers.

HeroRats can quickly cover land to find landmines.

They work way faster than humans can.

Their lightweight characteristics also help them do their jobs.

Since most landmines detonate after being applied with 11 or more pounds of force, these heroes are perfect for the job.

Despite the fact that these are probably the last animals you'd want to see scurrying across the floor in front of you, they are pretty impressive.

Hey, you never know -- you might want one of these furry little dudes on a leash next to you if the world gets any worse.

Oh, and they're highly reliable. As a matter of fact, no HeroRat has ever died on the line of duty.

After four to five years of working, each rat gets to retire and live the rest of its life freely.

If you plan on having your giant rat trained by APOPO, it'll cost about $6,590.

Citations: Heroic Rats Sniff Out Landmines In Africa Could Save 1000s Of People Worldwide (Bored Panda)