Shocking moment a builder boots a live rat 30ft through the air like a football after his mate smashes it with a plank of wood
- Footage shows the creature running from under a pile of rubble on a building site
- The two workmen attack the rat before kicking it into piles of building materials
- The animal charity PETA are now calling for the two builders to be tracked down
Two ‘callous’ builders booted a live rat 30 feet through the air like a football.
Animal rights campaigners have called for the men, who ‘value bullying over brains’, to be prosecuted.
The shocking clip shows the startled rat running from under a pile of rubble on a building site, desperately trying to reach safety.
As it runs across the open land, a builder wearing a white hard hat attempts to squash the creature under a plank of wood.
The builders were filmed kicking the live rat 30 feet through the air like a football before it lands among heaps of building materials
But just as it appears the rodent has escaped a near-death, another workman takes a running kick and boots it more than 30 feet through the air.
It then meets a ‘violent’ end as it lands among heaps of building materials.
Although it is not clear where the footage was taken, the appalling video has been viewed online more than 6.1million times.
Twitter users have retweeted the video more than 112,000 times, with angry viewers branding it ‘unnecessarily cruel’ and ‘disgusting’.
Animal rights activists have slammed the footage – with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) calling for authorities to track down the two men before other animals are hurt.
PETA claimed the clip shows that the builders ‘value bullying over brains’ and slammed them for having ‘an utter disregard for decency’ – however it is not known where the clip was filmed.
A builder wearing a white hard hat attempts to squash the creature under a plank of wood as it runs from under a pile of rubble
The appalling video has been viewed online more than 6.1million times and retweeted more than 112,000 times
Elisa Allen, the director of PETA, said: ‘This video shows an utter disregard for decency, a total lack of empathy, and the sort of men who value bullying over brains.
‘Rats have the capacity to experience pain and fear, just as humans do.
‘They make good mothers and are sensitive and resourceful in eking out their lives.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have called for authorities to track down the two men before they hurt other animals
‘They giggle when they’re tickled and show empathy – something the men in this video clearly lack – for other rats in peril.
‘They deserve our protection, as all animals do, and PETA urges authorities to move swiftly to track down these callous men before more sentient beings endure a similarly violent fate.’
Meanwhile, thousands of social media users were appalled at the cruelty of the workmen and voiced their disgust.
Hilary Littlefield said: ‘This is disgusting. It’s abuse. That poor animal. If you find this amusing there is something very deeply wrong with you.’
Chris Hirons said: ‘Rats are vermin, they carry disease and I wouldn’t want them anywhere near me. However, they are living creatures and booting them about is unnecessarily cruel.’
Lerreno said: ‘Where’s the joke? I literally don’t see anything funny in this.’
Viv Harris said: ‘Sick. The way a person treats animals says everything about who he is.’