In addition to the parasites outlined in this section, there are other parasites that are rarely seen in rats maintained in well-managed facilities.

Various sources and reviews on rat parasites include many agents that are rarely, if ever, pathogenic and questionably parasitic. Although interesting in many respects, significance of many of these agents is basically up to the beholder. For addi­tional information on the biology and identification of parasites in rats, refer to Baker (2006, 2007).

More on the topic In addition to the parasites outlined in this section, there are other parasites that are rarely seen in rats maintained in well-managed facilities.:

1. Wild rats are host to many nematodes that rarely infest laboratory rats, but there is ample evidence of wild rats serving as sources of laboratory rat infestations, generally through contamination of feed and bedding and occa­sionally through arthropod intermediate hosts, such as cockroaches.
2. CONCEPT 13.2 Hosts have mechanisms for defending themselves against parasites, and parasites have mechanisms for overcoming host defenses.
3. Parasites can drive host populations to extinction
4. Parasites can influence host population cycles
5. APPENDIX ONE Systematics of Major Parasites Groups
6. ABOMASAL PARASITES
7. Enslaver Parasites: A Case Study
8. Parasites Can Change Ecological Communities
9. Germs, parasites, insects and nematodes
10. A laboratory experiment tests the role of parasites
11. Parasites have mechanisms that circumvent host defenses
12. Early observations suggest that parasites cause amphibian deformities
13. CONCEPT 13.4 Hosts and parasites can have important effects on each other's population dynamics.
14. Immune systems, biochemical defenses, and symbionts can protect hosts against parasites
15. CONCEPT 13.5 Parasites can alter the outcomes of species interactions, thereby causing communities to change.