November 12th is a day that many people will want to mark on their calendars. Why? Well, because it happens to be Fancy Rat & Mouse Day. Although the name of this holiday might suggest that it celebrates rodents owned by the super-rich or rodents that are all dressed up, the fact is that this holiday celebrates a rodent known as a fancy rat.

The Fancy Rat is the domesticated form of Rattus norvegicus, or the brown rat. They’re called “fancy rats” because people fancy (feel a strong liking for) them. It’s also used to describe a hobby known as Rat Fancying. Now that we’ve solved that mystery, let’s find out where this holiday came from and how to celebrate it.

The History Of Fancy Rat & Mouse Day

To understand this holiday better, you first have to go back to around the turn of the 20th century. This is when Mary Douglas began the hobby “Rat Fancy” as a formal, organized way for people to enjoy their pet rats.

In 1901, she took her pet rats to an exhibition of the National Mouse Club at the Aylesbury Town Show in Great Britain. The Rat Fancy hobby enjoyed a brief period of popularity before it fell out of fashion in 1921 when Mary Douglas died.

Of course, the Rat Fancy hobby wouldn’t stay dead for too long. In 1976, it was revived when the English National Fancy Rat Society (NFRS) revived this hobby. Seven years later, an American version of the NFRS came into existence when the American Fancy Rat & Mouse Association (AFRMA) was founded. That same year, they created Fancy Rat & Mouse Day to celebrate this hobby. It has been observed by Rat Fanciers ever since.

Some Quick Facts About Rats And Mice

Let’s go over some quick rat and mouse facts that we think people might find interesting. It’s definitely a topic that some people will want to talk about with their peers while they’re enjoying Fancy Rat & Mouse Day, so let’s share some trivia.

• Rats and mice are mostly nocturnal.
• Rats can jump up to 3.5 feet.
• Rodents have a bite force of 7,000 pounds per square inch. That’s more than a crocodile.

Observing Fancy Rat & Mouse Day

One of the main ways that people observe this holiday is by taking the time to attend rat and mouse shows. It’s also a good day to watch fancy rat and mouse competitions. And, of course, people can buy their own mouse or rat and begin their journey into the hobby of Rat Fancying. We also encourage people to spread the word about this holiday using the hashtag #FancyRat&MouseDay online.