One ‘RAT named Covid’ and is ‘completely apolitical’ is up for grabs on Trade Me- New Zealand’s largest online auction site.
The listed rat that is ‘allergic to cats’ has been put up for ‘sale’ by a Hamilton registered seller, Marty.
With 42 bids and reserve met already, the current bid has reached $172.
“RAT is used, and may have unknown diseases notifiable to public health officials,” the seller warns in listing description.
There are strict conditions set for buyer – “sale item must be picked up and buyer needs to be “Triple vaxed, with vaccine certificate and proof of booster, Prepared to take rapid antigen test on arrival, Neither anti vax, pro vax, anti anti mandate, or anti vaccine mandate…”
The rat pictured in the listing is “possibly from somewhere else ….Purchaser is welcome to verify any of this via genomic sequencing to their satisfaction before pickup and payment.”, says seller in reply to a curious potential bidder.
Trade Me members are fully enjoying humour and satire in questions being asked and the equal wit with which the seller, Marty is answering these.
“These comments are pure gold…” says a trader from Hamilton.
Though the ‘RAT named Covid’ is ‘completely apolitical’, there is definitely a dig at politicians and political parties as revealed in several of the published comments.
One inquiry was “Has the rat expressed any political leanings?” another one that reads “how does this rat choreograph its own press conferences with its front paws…”
Another satirical one reads “…both the rats and covid outsmarted the politicians” as both were “allowed to enter the country where they thrived and spread”
There is a pun also “How often does this rat get rat test?”
“Can he cook” seems to be a favourite question of many.
On being asked if “this rat have any cooking skills?”, the seller’s answer was “I asked but didn’t get a response (unlike our current press conferences where people just talk to reporters and questions are not allowed).”
There were very interesting trade and swap offers, too for the listed rat.
“Would you trade your rat for my wife’s thoroughbred horse?” asks one, but “trade would need to be done discreetly…”
But a couple of interesting swap offers were “Could I swap him for my husband?” and “Do you want to swap him for some large concrete blocks in Wellington.”
With closure of listing at mid-day on 10 March, and watched by 452 others, the listing has already crossed 31,500 views at time of publication of this story.
