A rat who became the laughing stock of the internet after getting trapped in a man-hole cover has lashed out, saying it has been ‘body-shamed,’ before adding “It’s 2019 – I really thought we were past this.”

“I’ve been called Chunky, Ratty Fatty, The Mouse as big as a House – which is doubly offensive for mis-speciesing me as well. My name’s Trevor, and it just seems like no one’s interested in the rat behind the picture.” 

When we spoke to Trevor, who had been rescued by a team of 15 firefighters, he was raging about how the rescue was portrayed.  “It’s tasteless. It’s hurtful. In fact, rats are supposed to bulk up over winter, so this is not only totally natural, but I’ve also got an underachieve thyroid, so really you’re making fun of someone with a disability too. And getting papped outside your house when you haven’t even had time to do your fur – these people are vultures, frankly it should be illegal.”

However, not everyone has been laughing at Trevor. Some on Twitter have posted about times they’ve got inconveniently stuck in places, in solidarity with the unfortunate rodent, while the hashtag #JeSuisTrevor is doing the rounds on instagram, with people sharing their own inspiring stories of fighting prejudice.

By David Bard and Daisy Bard