Rat lovers gather for rodent holiday

SALEM, Mass., April 7 (UPI) -- A group of Salem, Mass., rodent enthusiasts have marked World Rat Day with a gathering that included rat beauty contests.

The North Shore Rat Club, which formed in January, held their second meeting Saturday to coincide with the rat-celebrating holiday, the Boston Globe reported Monday.

The 20-some club members brought their pets -- a total of about 60 rats -- to the home of Christine Madruga, where they held competitions to judge the cutest, friendliest and most unique-looking rats of the bunch. Owners were treated to slices of a cake decorated with a giant marshmallow rat and party favors that included rat blankets and bars of soap with rubber rats preserved inside.

Club members insisted that despite their bad reputation, rats make excellent pets.

"They're very sweet creatures," said Madruga, the club's founder. She said the group started as a way to share her love of rats with like-minded pet owners.

"There are so many misconceptions," said Madruga's husband, Joshua. "Rats are the friendliest creatures I've ever owned."