Pit Bull Puppy Becomes Unlikely Best Friends with Pet Rat Brother

It stands to reason that humans are not the only mammals who are charmed by cute little animals. Dogs and cats can actually get along very well, several zoo apes have been known to adopt stray cats, and at least one elephant has a been known to keep its own dog.

But few are as charming as this tiny Pit Bull puppy, who immediately took to the household’s pet rat, Remi, a rodent who is no stranger to canine love.

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In this video a tiny, gray-and-white Pit Bull puppy is being introduced to his rat brother, Remi. Remi is two years old, a bottle-fed “feeder rat” saved from becoming snake food and raised alongside humans and his older brother dog, another Pit Bull named Zeus. Due to their longstanding friendship, the pets’ owners thought it likely his puppy would also view Remi as another furry friend.

Related: Rat Offers Comfort to the Family Dog in Video That Has People Smitten

And that is indeed what happened. In the clip, you can see the puppy cuddling with his rat friend, an adorable sight, especially considering that the tiny puppy and full-grown rat are almost the same size.

But was everyone happy to see this? Of course not. It is, after all, the internet.

Rat Diseases

One user took to the comments section, complaining that videos like this were not only terrible (instead of heartwarming) but they promoted a dangerous lifestyle. Rats, she claimed, should never be allowed near dogs to the possibility of spreading a bacterial disease called leptospirosis.

Leptospirosis is a rare disease that can affect rats, other animals, and even humans and is most commonly spread through contact with the urine or feces of infected wild rats, such as in drinking water. Dogs can in fact be vaccinated against the disease, and the most common way for pet rats to get the sickness is to come in contact with wild rats.

In other words, it’s highly unlikely that this rat, who lives alone, is a carrier of this disease. In fact, it’s more likely that the dog, who goes outside, might pick it up from contaminated drinking water or a place where a sick wild rat has been and pass it on. But either scenario is pretty unlikely.

This did not stop hundreds of comments debating the subject that diseases could be posed back and forth between the animals. This is true, but it’s also true for any animals living in a household.

Similarly, many people too issue with the fact that this rat lives with dogs and human, not with other rats. Some actually suggested that this person give up the rat who had spent his whole life with this family so he could live with another rat instead.

Some people just come on the internet to complain. Luckily, others has a lot of fun with the nonsense.

Making a Joke Out of It

After the complaints came a rash of humorous comments.

“Please don’t do this! It’s too dangerous. You’re rat may teach your puppy to cook and they will become a famous chef duo and you’ll have to do sooooo many dishes,” said one person.

“Do not do this! The rat can lead it to the sewers and teach him martial arts to defend New York!” said another.

And a third agreed that either scenario was possible. “Rats can teach you two things, how to cook or how to be a ninja, we'll need to wait and see.”

Still others allowed that rats and Pit Bulls can be great friends. “I had pet rats for a few years and my pit loved them. He would stand by their cage and cry until I let them out. They would get free time in the house and he would let them climb on him, he'd follow them around... he was so sweet and gentle with them until they both passed of old age.”

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