Rats

A rat is a common, non-magical animal found throughout both the Muggle and wizarding worlds. Despite their mundane nature, rats feature in the wizarding community as common pets, as a source for potion ingredients, and most notably, as a potential Animagus form for a witch or wizard.

• Classification: Animal
• Typical Use: Pet, Potion Ingredient
• Distinction: Non-magical creature, but closely associated with magic through its use in potions and as an Animagus form.

Rats in the wizarding world are physically identical to their Muggle counterparts. They are small rodents often kept as pets by wizards. Establishments like the Magical Menagerie in Diagon Alley sell various types of rats, including common brown rats and more exotic black ones. Their behaviour as pets is often depicted as unremarkable. Ron Weasley's pet rat, Scabbers, was noted for spending most of his time eating and sleeping. To improve the health and vitality of a pet rat, magical products such as Rat Tonic are available for purchase.

Despite being non-magical themselves, rats play several roles within the magical community.

• As Pets
  • While the official Hogwarts letter states that students may bring an owl, a cat, or a toad, this rule appears to be flexible, as Ron Weasley was permitted to bring his pet rat, Scabbers, to school for several years. Before Ron, Scabbers was the pet of his older brother, Percy Weasley.
• As Potion Ingredients
  • Various parts of a rat are used in the art of Potions. Rat spleens, for instance, are a required ingredient for the Shrinking Solution, a potion brewed by second-year students in Professor Snape's class. Rat tails are also a known potion ingredient.
• As an Animagus Form
  • A witch or wizard can learn to transform into a rat if it reflects their inner traits, making it their Animagus form. This transformation allows them to perfectly resemble the animal, with no outward signs of being human. The most significant example of this is Peter Pettigrew, whose unregistered Animagus form was that of a common brown rat. This disguise allowed him to hide from the Ministry of Magic and his enemies for twelve years while living as the Weasley family's pet.

• Scabbers
  • The long-time pet rat of the Weasley family, passed from Percy Weasley to Ron Weasley. He was described as dull, balding, and missing a toe on one of his front paws. Scabbers was revealed to be the Animagus form of Peter Pettigrew, the Death Eater who betrayed James and Lily Potter. His true identity was exposed in the Shrieking Shack by Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. The missing toe corresponded to the finger Pettigrew severed to fake his own death after framing Sirius Black.
• Rats in the Room of Requirement
  • While searching for Ravenclaw's diadem in the Room of Requirement, Harry Potter observed rats scurrying among the mountains of forgotten and hidden objects, indicating their presence within the hidden spaces of Hogwarts Castle.

• In the film adaptations, Scabbers is often depicted as more alert and active than his book counterpart, and he is shown interacting with his environment in ways that subtly hint at his concealed intelligence (film).
• The transformation sequence of Peter Pettigrew from his rat form back into a human in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is a notable visual effects moment in the film series (film).