Rat-baiting is a blood sport that involves releasing captured

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include ''Neotoma'' ( pack rats), ''Bandicota'' (bandicoot ...

s in an enclosed space with spectators

betting Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three eleme ...

on how long a

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...

, usually a terrier, takes to kill the rats. Often, two dogs competed, with the winner receiving a cash prize. It is now

illegal Illegal, or unlawful, typically describes something that is explicitly prohibited by law, or is otherwise forbidden by a state or other governing body. Illegal may also refer to: Law * Violation of law * Crime, the practice of breaking the ...

in most countries.

History

In 1835, the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

implemented an act called the Cruelty to Animals Act 1835, which prohibited the baiting of some animals, such as the bull,

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

, and other large mammals. However, the law was not enforced for rat baiting and competitions came to the forefront as a

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...

sport. It was very popular in Ireland even before 1835, because of the limited space in larger cities, Dublin and Belfast especially. Some families sought to profit from the large numbers of vermin plaguing the cities and country sides. Many countries adopted this sport after 1835, England having one of the largest participation rates. At one time, London even had at least 70 rat pits.

Atmosphere

James Wentworth Day, a follower of the sport of rat baiting, described his experience and the atmosphere at one of the last old rat pits in London during those times.

Rules

The officials included a

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...

and

timekeeper A timekeeper is an instrument or person that measures the passage of time. Person A timekeeper is a person who measures time with the assistance of a clock or a stopwatch. In addition, a timekeeper records time, time taken, or time remaining duri ...

. Pits were sometimes covered above with wire mesh or had additional security devices installed on the walls to prevent the rats from escaping. Rules varied from match to match. In one variation, a weight handicap was set for each dog. The competing dog had to kill as many rats as the number of pounds the dog weighed, within a specific, preset time. The prescribed number of rats was released and the dog was put in the ring. The clock started the moment the dog touched the ground. When the dog seized the last rat, his owner grabbed it and the clock stopped. RatBaiting

Rats that were thought still to be alive were laid out on the table in a circle before the referee. The referee then struck the animals three times on the tail with a stick. If a rat managed to crawl out of the circle, it was considered to be alive. Depending on the particular rules for that match, the dog may be disqualified or have to go back in the ring with these rats and kill them. The new time was added to the original time. A combination of the quickest time, the number of rats, and the dog's weight decided the victory. A rate of five seconds per rat killed was considered quite satisfactory; 15 rats in a minute was an excellent result. Cornered rats will attack and can deliver a very painful bite. Not uncommonly, a ratter (rat-killing dog) was left with only one eye in its retirement.

Rat-catcher

Before the contest could begin, the capture of potentially thousands of rats was required. The

rat catcher A rat-catcher is a person who kills or captures rats as a professional form of pest control. Keeping the rat population under control was practiced in Europe to prevent the spread of diseases, most notoriously the Black Death, and to prevent d ...

would be called upon to fulfill this requirement.

Jack Black Thomas Jacob Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for his acting roles in the films '' High Fidelity'' (2000), ''Shallow Hal'' (2001), ''Orange County'' (2002), '' School of Rock'' (2003), ''E ...

, a rat catcher from

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

supplied live rats for baiting.

Technique

Faster dogs were preferred. They would bite once. The process was described as "rather like a sheepdog keeping a flock bunched to be brought out singly for dipping," where the dog would herd the rats together, and kill any rats that left the pack with a quick bite.

Breeds

The ratting dogs were typically

working terrier A working terrier is a small type of dog which pursues its quarry into the earth. According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', the name dates back to at least 1440, derived from French ''chien terrier'' 'digging dog', which is from Medieval ...

breeds, which included the

bull and terrier Bull and terrier was a common name for bulldog and terrier crossbreeds of the early 1800s. Other names included half-and-halfs and half-breds. It was a time in history when, for thousands of years, dogs were classified by use or function, unli ...

Bull Terrier The Bull Terrier is a breed of dog in the terrier family. There is also a miniature version of this breed which is officially known as the Miniature Bull Terrier. Appearance The Bull Terrier's most recognizable feature is its head, described ...

, Bedlington Terrier,

Fox Terrier Fox Terriers are two different breeds of the terrier dog type: the Smooth Fox Terrier and the Wire Fox Terrier. Both of these breeds originated in the 19th century from a handful of dogs who are descended from earlier varieties of British terr ...

Jack Russell Terrier The Jack Russell Terrier is a small terrier that has its origins in fox hunting in England. It is principally white-bodied and smooth, rough or broken-coated and can be any colour. Small tan and white terriers that technically belong to oth ...

Rat Terrier The Rat Terrier is an American dog breed with a background as a farm dog and hunting companion. They share much ancestry with the small hunting dogs known as feists. Common throughout family farms in the 1920s and 1930s, they are now recognize ...

Black and Tan Terrier The Black and Tan Terrier was a broad breed or type of terrier that was one of the earliest terriers breeds. Although it is now extinct, it is believed to be the ancestor of all modern Fell Terrier breeds and the Welsh Terrier, a breed rec ...

Manchester Terrier The Manchester Terrier is a breed of dog of the smooth-haired terrier type. It was first bred in the 19th century to control vermin, notably rats, at which it excelled. So efficient at the task was it that it often appeared in rat-baiting pits ...

Yorkshire Terrier The Yorkshire Terrier (often shortened as Yorkie) is one of the smallest dog breeds of the terrier type and indeed of any dog breed. The breed developed during the 19th century in Yorkshire, England.Staffordshire Bull Terrier. The degree of care used in breeding these ratters is clear in their

pedigree Pedigree may refer to: Breeding * Pedigree chart, a document to record ancestry, used by genealogists in study of human family lines, and in selective breeding of other animals ** Pedigree, a human genealogy (ancestry chart) ** Pedigree (animal ...

s, with good breeding leading to increased business opportunities. Successful breeders were highly regarded in those times. In modern times, the

Plummer Terrier The Plummer Terrier is a working terrier. It was originally bred by Brian Plummer to hunt vermin, especially rats. The breed, while unrecognized by any kennel club, is known for its rugged determination and hardiness. Origins and history I ...

is considered a premiere breed for rat-catching.

Billy

A celebrated bull and terrier named "Billy"Fleig, D. (1996). History of Fighting Dogs. pp. 105–112 T.F.H. Publications. Homan, M. (2000). A Complete History of Fighting Dogs. pp. 121–131 Howell Book House Inc. weighing about 12 kg (26 lb), had a proud fighting history and his pedigree reflects the build-up over a period of years. The dog was owned by Charles Dew and was bred by breeder

James Yardington James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

. On the paternal side is "Old Billy" from the kennel of John Tattersal from Wotton-under-Edge,

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, and was descended from the best line of all Old English Bulldogs. On the maternal side is "Yardington's Sal" descended from the Curley line. The pedigree of all these dogs can be traced back more than 40 years and numerous old accounts exist about them. The October 1822, edition of ''

The Sporting Magazine ''The Sporting Magazine'' (1793–1870) was the first English sporting periodical to devote itself to every type of sport. Its subtitle was "Monthly Calendar of the Transactions of the Turf, the Chase and Every Other Diversion Interesting to the ...

'' provided descriptions of two rat pit matches with Billy, quoted as: Rat Killing Dog

Billy's best competition results are: Billy's career was crowned on 22 April 1823, when a world record was set with 100 rats killed in five and a half minutes. This record stood until 1862, when it was claimed by another ratter named "Jacko". Billy continued in the rat pit until old age, reportedly with only one eye and two teeth remaining.

Jacko

According to the '' Sporting Chronicle Annual'', the world record in rat killing is held by a black and tan bull and terrier named "Jacko", weighing about 13 lb and owned by

Jemmy Shaw Jemmy Elton Shaw, also known as Jimmy Shaw and James Shaw, was a 19th-century pioneer fancier of the early dog show days, a promoter of dog fighting and rat-baiting contests, a breeder of Old English bulldogs, bull terriers and toy terriers and a ...

. Jacko had these contest results: Jacko set two world records, the first on 29 July 1862, with a killing time of 2.7 seconds per rat and the second on 1 May 1862, with his fight against 100 rats, where Jacko worked two seconds faster than the previous world record holder "Billy". The feat of killing 1,000 rats took place over a 10-week period, with 100 rats being killed each week ending on 1 May 1862.

Tiny the Wonder

Tiny the Wonder was a famous mid-19th century English Toy Terrier (Black & Tan) that could kill 200 rats in an hour, which he achieved twice, on 28 March 1848 and 27 March 1849, with time to spare.Museum of London
/ref> For a period of time Tiny maintained the record for killing 300 rats in under 55 minutes. Tiny only weighed five and a half pounds with a neck so small, a woman's bracelet could be used as a dog collar. From 1848 to 1849, Tiny was owned by

, the landlord of the Blue Anchor Tavern at 102

Bunhill Row Bunhill Row is a street located in St Luke's, London Borough of Islington, London. The street runs north–south from Old Street to Chiswell Street. On the east side are the cemetery of Bunhill Fields and the open space of the Honourable Art ...

, St. Luke's, London Borough of Islington; the pub is now named the Artillery Arms. Tiny was a star attraction at the Blue Anchor Tavern, with crowds gathering to watch the action in the rat pit. Shaw preferred to acquire the rats from

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

as opposed to sewer rats to decrease potential health risks to Tiny. Shaw was able to keep up to 2,000 rats at his establishment. This is a commentary about Tiny from a poster published from those times: :"The 5 1/2 pounds of black and tan fury! This extraordinary Black and Tan has won 50 interesting events, including the following matches: 2 matches of 6 rats when he weighed 4 1/2 pounds, 20 matches of 12 rats at 5 pounds of weight, 15 matches of 20 rats at 5-pound weight, 1 match of 50 rats ands 1 match of 100 rats in 34 minutes 40 seconds on Tuesday, March 30, 1847. Tiny beat Summertown bitch "Crack" of 8 pounds, 12 Rats each, September 14th. Beat the dog "Twig" at 6 1/2 pounds on November 7th. On Tuesday, March 28, 1848, he was matched to kill 300 rats in 3 hours. He accomplished the unprecedented test in 54 minutes 50 seconds, which took place in the presence of a crowded audience at the Blue Anchor, Bonhill Row, St. Lukes. May 2, killed 20 rats in 8 minutes; May 23 won a match of 50 rats against Mr. Batty's bitch "Fun," 8 pounds. August 15, won a match against "Jim," 50 rats; September 5 won a match of 12 rats, 2 minutes 30 seconds. November 4 won a match of 100 rats, 30 minutes 5 seconds; January 31, 1849, won a match of 100 rats, 20 minutes 5 seconds; March 27 killed 200 rats 59 minutes 58 seconds."

Jack

Jack was a Black and Tan Terrier owned by Kit Burns in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in the mid- to late 19th century. Jack was a prized ratter, and Burns claimed that Jack killed 100 rats in 5 minutes and 40 seconds. Burns had Jack

taxidermied Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body via mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proc ...

and mounted him, alongside other prized dogs, on the bar of his tavern called the Sportsmen's Hall, located at 273 Water Street. Burns' first-floor

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

could hold 100 spectators who were charged an admission of $1.50 to $5.00 depending on the dogs' quality, nearly a skilled labourer's daily wages. The rat pit was about 8 ft square with 4-ft-high walls. On the New York City waterfront rat baiting was quite lucrative with a purse of $125 not uncommon. This created a high demand for rats with some rat catchers earning $0.05 to $0.12 per rat. Kit Burns' rat-pit activities are described by author James Dabney McCabe in his book ''Secrets of the Great City'', published in 1868, at page 388, as follows: :"Rats are plentiful along the East River and Burns has no difficulty in procuring as many as he desires. These and his dogs furnish the entertainment in which he delights. The principal room of the house is arranged as an amphitheatre. The seats are rough wooden benches and in the centre is a ring or pit enclosed by a circular wooden fence several feet high. A number of rats are turned into this pit and a dog of the best ferret stock is thrown in amongst them. The little creature at once falls to work to kill the rats, bets being made that she will destroy, so many rats in a given time. The time is generally made by the little animal who is well known to and a great favorite with the yelling blasphemous wretches who line the benches. The performance is greeted with shouts oaths and other frantic demonstrations of delight. Some of the men will catch up the dog in their arms and press it to their bosom in a frenzy of joy or kiss it as if it were a human being unmindful or careless of the fact that all this while the animal is smeared with the blood of its victims. The scene is disgusting beyond description." On November 31, 1870,

Henry Bergh Henry Bergh (August 29, 1813 – March 12, 1888) founded the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) in April, 1866, three days after the first effective legislation against animal cruelty in the United States was passed ...

the founder of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals raided the Sportsman's Hall and arrested Burns under an anti-

cruelty to animals Cruelty to animals, also called animal abuse, animal neglect or animal cruelty, is the infliction by omission (neglect) or by commission by humans of suffering or harm upon non-human animals. More narrowly, it can be the causing of harm or suf ...

law passed by the New York state legislature four years prior. The Sportsman Hall stayed permanently closed after the raid. Although little of the original structure remains, Sportsman's Hall occupied the land where the Joseph Rose House and Shop, a four-unit luxury apartment house, now lies and is the third oldest house in Manhattan after

St. Paul's Chapel St. Paul's Chapel is a chapel building of Trinity Church, an episcopal parish, located at 209 Broadway, between Fulton Street and Vesey Street, in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1766, it is the oldest surviving church building in Man ...

and the Morris-Jumel Mansion.

Decline

Toward the latter half of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

's reign, criticism on the practice mounted. The animal welfare movement opposed the practice much like they did other forms of animal baiting. More favourable ideas of rats as living animals rather than vermin arose, alongside a new interest in their positive role in the maintenance of an urban ecosystem. (It was only after the decline of rat baiting that rats became associated with the spread of disease.) Additionally, when ratting moved from being a countryside pastime to the betting arenas of inner London, it became associated with the base vices of lower-class citizens. Baiting sports diminished in popularity and the dog exhibition shows brought by the gentry slowly replaced the attraction as a more enlightened form of animal entertainment. The last public competition in the United Kingdom took place in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

in 1912. The owner was prosecuted and fined, and had to give a promise to the court that he would never again promote such entertainment.

Ratting in modern times

Ratting and rat-baiting are not the same activities. Ratting is the legal use of dogs for pest control of non-captured rats in an unconfined space, such as a barn or field. Due to rat infestations, terriers are now being used for ratting to hunt and kill rats in

major cities The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or their metropo ...

around the world, including the United Kingdom, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. Although ratting with working terriers is far less efficient than using rodenticide or rat traps, the potential for the killing of nontarget species is zero.

In popular culture

*A rat-baiting scene is included in the 1979 film '' The First Great Train Robbery''. *In the movie '' Gangs of New York'' (2002), a scene involves rat baiting. *In the book ''Let Loose the Dogs'' (2003) by

Maureen Jennings Maureen Jennings (born 1939) is a British Canadian writer, most well known for the ''Detective Murdoch Series'', the basis for the television series ''Murdoch Mysteries''. She is credited as a Creative Consultant and occasionally writer for the ...

, as well as its

TV adaptation An adaptation is a transfer of a work of art from one style, culture or medium to another. Some common examples are: * Film adaptation, a story from another work, adapted into a film (it may be a novel, non-fiction like journalism, autobiography, ...

, the main storyline is that a murder occurred following a rat-baiting contest. *In Season 1, Episode 4 of ''

The Knick ''The Knick'' is an American medical period drama television series on Cinemax created by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler and directed by Steven Soderbergh. The series follows Dr. John W. Thackery (Clive Owen) and the staff at a fictionalized vers ...

'' (2014), there is a scene depicting rat baiting. A human, rather than a dog, is the one in the pit with the rats.

Gallery

File:Die Gartenlaube (1858) b 733.jpg,

References

Bibliography

* Barnett, A. (2002). ''The Story of Rats: Their Impact on Us, and Our Impact on Them''. Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, NSW. * Fleig, D. (1996). ''History of Fighting Dogs.'' pp. 105–112 T.F.H. Publications. * Hendrickson, R. (1984). ''More Cunning Than Man: A Social History of Rats and Man.'' Stein & Day Pub. * Homan, M. (2000). ''A Complete History of Fighting Dogs.'' pp. 121–131 Howell Book House Inc. * Matthews, I. (1898).
Full Revelations of a Professional Rat-Catcher
'' Kessinger Publishing. * Mayhew, H. (1851).
London Labour and the London Poor, Volume 3, Chp 1, Jimmy Shaw
'' London: Griffen, Bohn and Company, Stationer's Hall Court. London: Griffen, Bohn and Company, Stationer's Hall Court. * Plummer, D. (1979). ''Tales of a Rat-hunting Man.'' * Rodwell, J. (1858).
The Rat: Its History & Destructive Character
'. G. Routledge & Co. London. * Rodwell, J. (1850).
The Rat! and Its Cruel Cost to the Nation
'. Palala Press. * Sullivan, R. (2004). ''Rats: A Year with New York's Most Unwanted Inhabitants''. Granta Books, London. * Sullivan, R. (2005). ''Rats : Observations on the History and Habitat of the City's Most Unwanted Inhabitants.'' Chapter 9 Bloomsbury USA. * Zinsser, H. (1935).
Rats, Lice and History
'. Blue Ribbon Books, Inc.

External links

Scientific American ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...

,
Monkey, Dog, and Rats
, 20 November 1880, p. 326 (report of a competition to kill twelve rats between a monkey and fox terrier) {{Baiting