Following a lawsuit earlier this year accusing Petco of selling an infected rat that led to a boy’s death, a Maine man is now suing the chain claiming he got rat-bite fever from a rat he bought at the store.

He filed a federal lawsuit against Petco yesterday, claiming he was bitten twice in March by a rat he bought in February, reports the Portland Press Herald. He then spent 35 days in the hospital battling “multiple spinal abscesses, painful inflammation of his joints, extreme debilitation and pain and suffering,” the lawsuit says

“He could have died,” his attorney said.

The man bought the rat to feed to his son’s pet boa constrictor, something he’s done every two to four weeks. He kept the rat in a tank until he tried to feed it to the snake, which did end up eating its dinner and wasn’t harmed.

So at least the rat didn’t get away with it, eh?

The man says he’s still getting treatments regularly for the disease and that he’s racked up medical bills of more than $170,000. He claims Petco breached its implied warranty and is liable and negligent, and he’s seeking unspecified monetary damages and fees.

Portland man contracted rat-bite fever from Petco rodent, lawsuit says [Portland Press Herald]

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