Only a desperate cat would take on a rat. They're big and mean. Sure, the cat can kill the rat, but the chance of significant injury would be high. And in the wild a significant injury is often a death sentence.

The title really misleads -- cats can be great at urban mouse control. But for urban rat control you need something bigger.

The prevalence of humane people giving them cat chow destroys the food hunger incentive to hunt.

>Cats typically prefer smaller meals of defenseless prey when available

I'm sure the authors are dog people, because their solution is remove cats rather than bigger cats. Dog people always seem to have an irrational hatred for cats.