Giant rat caught in China

[emad]

A giant rat with one-inch-long teeth has been caught in the southern Chinese province of Fujian.

By Malcolm Moore in Shanghai
18 Feb 2009

The rat, which weighed six pounds and had a 12-inch tail, was caught at the weekend in a residential area of Fuzhou, a city of six million people on China's south coast.

The ratcatcher, who was only named as Mr Xian, said he swooped for the rodent after seeing a big crowd of people surrounding it on the street.

He told local Chinese newspapers that he thought the rat might be a valuable specimen, or a rare species, and had to muster up his courage before grabbing its tail and picking it up by the scruff of its neck.

"I did it, I caught a rat the size of a cat!" he shouted out afterwards, according to the reports. Mr Xian is believed to still be in possession of the animal, after stuffing into a bag and departing the scene.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/4688453/Giant-rat-caught-in-China.html

[Shell Beau]

1. That gives me chills.

:scared:

I have nothing against rats but that one is freaky.

[Lost in CT]

2. If they Chinese wouldn't eat the cats the rats wouldn't grow so big.

Just saying.

[ghostsofgiants]

3. Master Splinter!

Shredder was behind this, I know it!

[XemaSab]

7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Rats?

:shrug:

[ghostsofgiants]

9. The Ninja Turtles' sensei was a rat.

[XemaSab]

10. You don't have to tell me

I watched that show every day when I was in like, 6th grade. :D

[ghostsofgiants]

14. I was much younger (maybe kindergarten?), but so did I.

:D

[JVS]

4. Oh man. That guy is going to start breeding super-rats!

:scared:

[Fire Walk With Me]

18. Fear not. They'll be locked in sweatshops, sewing Kathy Lee Gifford's clothing line.

[SoxFan]

5. Damn. I was hoping...

[HopeHoops]

6. That was MY thought!!!

[kentauros]

8. Too bad it wasn't in Sumatra...

:P

[skygazer]

12. My first thought

:rofl:

[Deep13]

11. "Mr. Xian?"

I was under the impression that Chinese surnames were usually monosyllabic.

[deoxyribonuclease]

13. It's monosyllabic

Xian ( 咸 ) is pronounced "shien" with a rising tone.

Link to pronunciation here:
http://www.mdbg.net/chindict/chindict.php?dss=1&wdqchi=%E5%92%B8&wdqchim=3&wdrst=0

[geardaddy]

15. That is monosyllabic.

Pronounced roughly "syen"

[crispini]

16. .

:scared:

[Lorien]

17. What's Cheney doing in China?

I guess that Mr. Xian has whisked him away to another undisclosed location.

[undeterred]

26. Actually, Hillary Clinton is going there soon.

But she is not a rat nor could she be mistaken for one.

[Sultana]

19. HMF

:wtf:

:scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared:

[stuntcat]

20. I like it!

:loveya:

[NewJeffCT]

21. I didn't think Rodents of Unusual Size (ROUS) existed

I guess I was wrong.

[unsavedtrash]

22. Looks like a Nutria

http://www.outdooralabama.com/watchable-wildlife/what/mammals/rodents/n.cfm

from an image search

[stuntcat]

23. yah!

yah!

Look at him with his red sucker!! :loveya:

[PeaceNikki]

24. Hey, HEyHEY... how's China going?

:puke:

[HamdenRice]

25. Yum! Dinner will be served shortly!

And this is not a slur on Chinese cooking. It's just that it looks like a muskrat, rather than our old friend rattus rattus, and muskrat is quite tasty. I've eaten it in Africa.

The tail seems way too short compared to its body to be a regular rat. Also, Chinese cuisine does indeed eat embrace almost everything that isn't poisonous.

[ACTION BASTARD]

27. Feh. I've seen bigger rats under the 1 train over by the 72nd street in NYC

Only difference is that a NYC rat wouldn't let itself be taken alive.

[Sultana]

28. They are suicidal?

:D

[Sequoia]

32. I wonder if David Letterman might mention the giant rat.

Since he brings up rats during summer when they're running amuck in New York City.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

29. Not a rare species...My brother-in-law saw rats the size of cats in DC...

moving office furniture around in the main Interior Department building.

[Lavender Brown]

30. Were there four giant turtles nearby?

:scared:

[BeachBaby]

31. I KNEW I shouldn't have opened this thread.

:scared: :puke:

[Writer]

33. How do we know that's not an opossum? n/t