Hey Luke! I think rats were a really good choice for this disease. They reproduce quickly and some species of them lives in just about every part of the world. It would very difficult not to contract a virus that was spread through them. I think the water-borne idea is very interesting. I feel like it would not be the first place people look and therefore it would take longer to stop the spread of the disease. It would be difficult to control, and it would spread through populations very rapidly. I also think its really smart that you said people could live with the disease for years. This would allow them to spread the disease even further.