
"HeroRATS: A Nose for Danger" with Cristophe Cox
From The Fur Real Podcast with Mark A Kyle by Mark A Kyle
April 28, 2026 · 57 min · Episode 136
About this episode
Mark A Kyle interviews Cristophe Cox about the innovative work of HeroRATs in detecting landmines and diseases.
What if the most powerful weapon against landmines and disease weighed less than three pounds and ran on banana rewards? Meet the HeroRATs. This week, Mark sits down with Christophe Cox — CEO and co-founder of APOPO — to tell the remarkable story of how a wild idea born in Belgium became one of the most innovative humanitarian organizations on the planet. From the organization's scrappy origins to deploying specially trained African giant pouched rats across minefields in Cambodia, Angola, and Mozambique, Christophe shares what it really takes to clear land that's been terrorizing communities for decades. But landmines are just the beginning. These extraordinary animals are also sniffing out tuberculosis in clinics across Africa — catching cases that traditional testing misses — and now being trained for search and rescue and wildlife trafficking detection. It's inspiring, it's eye-opening, and yes, it will make you see rats in a completely different light. ig@ apopo ig@ herorats ig@thefurrealpodcast ig@markakyle fb@ apopo fb@ Mark A Kyle tik tok@herorats tik tok@ thefurrealpodcast www.apopo.org www.furrealpodcast.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California…
People in this episode
Host: Mark A Kyle
Guest: Cristophe Cox
Topics covered
- landmines
- disease detection
- humanitarian efforts
- animal training
- tuberculosis
- search and rescue
- wildlife trafficking
Keywords
- HeroRATs
- landmines
- tuberculosis
- APOPO
- animal training
- humanitarian organization
- African giant pouched rats
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: APOPO
Products: HeroRATs
Places: Cambodia, Angola, Mozambique, Africa
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