# "Ratzilla" caught in Stockholm family home -- giant 16" rat **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 28, 2014, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757 "2014-03-28T13:09:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/1 "2014-03-28T13:09:05Z")
Welp. They say you always have one not farther away than 6 feet from you. Hopefully most won’t be this size! Giant rat caught in a Stockholm kitchen. The animal was 40 cm (roughly 16") long --not counting the tail-- and weighed more than 1 kilo (2.2 lbs give or take). The bloody thing apparently chewed through wood and _concrete_ to enter the space under the sink in the kitchen. BBC news article here. Be warned – If you are scared of rats (or, generally, of any rodent of any type), do NOT click on that link. There are photos. Link protected under a spoiler tag [Giant rat: Swedes agog at 'Ratzilla' in Stockholm - BBC News](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26764929) My opinion? Ahem… _ **ARGH ARGH ARGH ARGH HOLY SHIT BLARGH AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!** _ Basically that _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![hotflungwok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/edb3f5/32.png) [@hotflungwok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hotflungwok)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/2 "2014-03-28T13:13:27Z")
Man the turtles are gonna be pissed. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/3 "2014-03-28T13:37:23Z")
Man, that’s 12 hit points and +4 Grapple. Hope they had something better than Leather Shield. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/4 "2014-03-28T13:42:10Z")
I wonder if there are any fire swamps nearby. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/5 "2014-03-28T13:51:20Z")
**Peter** : So the guy takes the dog into the vet. And the freakin’ vet tells him, get this, “It’s not a dog. It’s a rat.” A big, stinkin’ Mexican rat. True story. **Meg** : Dad, that’s just an urban legend. \*\* Peter\*\*: Hand to God. I’m telling you, it was a huge freakin’ rat. Five times as big as that guy’s steak. **Lois** : Oh, Peter, that rat gets bigger every time you tell this story! ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/6 "2014-03-28T14:00:41Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I wonder if there are any fire swamps nearby. I knew I’d be too late for the rodents-of-unusual-size joke… ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/7 "2014-03-28T14:12:42Z")
From the article: > [@](#): > > However, scientists do believe they (rats) could eventually **grow into the size of sheep** , Dr Jan Zalasiewicz, of the University of Leicester in the UK, recently told the BBC. And I hate to say it, but the older son looks a bit rattish to me. I’d keep an eye on him. Don’t want a Willard situation. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/8 "2014-03-28T14:42:28Z")
Big for a rat maybe but those pics are forced perspective. ETA, link: [Forced perspective - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_perspective) . ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/9 "2014-03-28T15:26:47Z")
Quote: However, scientists do believe they (rats) could eventually grow into the size of sheep, Dr Jan Zalasiewicz, of the University of Leicester in the UK, recently told the BBC. There already are “rats” that size. They are called capybaras and they live in South America. > **[Capybara](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capybara)** > > Sus hydrochaeris Linnaeus, 1766 > The capybara\[a\] or greater capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is a giant cavy rodent native to South America. It is the largest living rodent and a member of the genus Hydrochoerus. The only other extant member is the lesser capybara (Hydrochoerus isthmius). Its close relatives include guinea pigs and rock cavies, and it is more distantly related to the agouti, the chinchilla, and the nutria. The capybara inhabits savannas and dense forests, and lives near ... ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/10 "2014-03-28T16:55:19Z")
Think that rat’s big? Imagine the size of the cat that caught it! ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Ektar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Captain\_Ektar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Ektar)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/11 "2014-03-28T17:05:46Z")
The whole ordeal seems to have taken a particularly high toll on poor Justus. Yikes. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/12 "2014-03-28T17:11:00Z")
Norway rats don’t get that big, my first thought is that it must be one of those African pouched rats that have been making their way into the pet trade. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/13 "2014-03-28T17:35:03Z")
> [@](#): > > It was they who brought him tools to help establish that it was well and truly dead. > > Justus wielded the iPad Yeah, but nothing takes out a giant Swedish rat like a whack with a big ol’ PC. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/14 "2014-03-28T17:55:53Z")
One large, medium rare rat burger, please. With cheese. Rat burgers just squeel for cheese. Would you like flies with that? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/15 "2014-03-28T17:58:01Z")
I wish they’d play [_Food Of The Gods_](http://www.stomptokyo.com/movies/f/food-of-the-gods.html) on TV. ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/16 "2014-03-28T18:14:12Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > Norway rats don’t get that big, my first thought is that it must be one of those African pouched rats that have been making their way into the pet trade. I agree. It looks to be some type of pouched rat or perhaps a hybrid. A rat that large would be vulnerable to stray dogs, as well as raccoons,larger birds of prey and other wild life. There aren’t many evolutionary advantages to being large. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/17 "2014-03-28T18:16:57Z")
I love the part about the family cat avoiding the kitchen. I can just see it. Cat enters stage left, humming “How I love them mousies, mousies what I love to eat”, spies Ratzilla: **"YARRRGGHHH!!!"** ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/18 "2014-03-28T20:10:59Z")
But what a beautiful kitty though! Anybody know what breed it might be? ---
**Author:** ![Arabella\_Flynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8491ac/32.png) [@Arabella\_Flynn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arabella_Flynn)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/19 "2014-03-28T23:42:51Z")
> [@JoseB](#): > > Welp. They say you always have one not farther away than 6 feet from you. Not quite. The rat cage is probably a good eight feet away, on the other side of the room. 😃 I’m going to show this to the next person who goes wide-eyed and asks me how my pets get to be so _big_. I keep a few critters around for company, and my (pudgy, lazy, spoiled) boys usually weigh about a pound, which is apparently huge for domesticated rats. You can still scoop them up with one hand, but you’ll get rat feet leaking out of your grip in all directions. (My internal reference for what a kilogram feels like, in fact, is now “two rats smashed into a Kleenex box”. You can get three of them into the average cereal box, if you don’t care what shape the box is when they’re done.) They might just about hit 16" long if you include the tail, but I’ve never had one that long _plus_ tail. Are they sure that thing isn’t a well-traveled capybara? Brr. ---
**Author:** ![Sandwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee59a6/32.png) [@Sandwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandwood)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2014, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757/20 "2014-03-28T23:57:29Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > But what a beautiful kitty though! > > Anybody know what breed it might be? Definitely looks like a [Cornish Rex](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornish_Rex). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ratzilla-caught-in-stockholm-family-home-giant-16-rat/684757.md?page=2)