notbob wrote:
On 2009-09-28, HeyBub wrote:
Stuart wrote:

Rats carry and spread 35 diseases. In the middle ages, they wiped
out 25% of the population of europe.

Uh, no. It was the fleas on the rats that carried the Bubonic Plague
germ. And there were a LOT of rats.

Theories not fully accepted by all. Some experts dismiss the rat/flea
theory because it doesn't fully support the incredibly rabid spread of
the disease across Europe.


"The persecution of cats in Europe is often overlooked as a contributing
factor in the spread of plague. In years prior to the outbreak, cats had
been vilified and slain in mass, due to their growing popular association
with Satan and witches. Pope Gregory IX declared cats' association with the
devil in the early 1200s. The mass slaughter of cats preceding the arrival
of infected rats greatly reduced a potential predator of the rat, allowing
rat populations to flourish unnaturally. "