It's a well known journalistic saying that if a dog bites a man, that's not news, but if a man bites a dog it most certainly is.
Little wonder then the curious fascination with Brisbane man Matthew Maloney, convicted on Monday of biting off the head of a live rat.
![Matt Maloney bit the head off a live rat in a Facebook video.](/web/20160715060653im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/m/b/1/z/p/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gq4a2j.png/1468357122496.jpg)
Despite being described to court by his lawyer as remorseful, Maloney struck a different tone outside. He told the media: "I agree with the court's decision but I just think, I don't think it was that bad. There's a lot worse stuff you could have done, buy rat poison and all that stuff, rat traps."
Mr Maloney could best be described as morally confused. Maybe he thought he was Ozzy Osbourne; but does he have a point?
There is no doubt Brisbane residents kills rats and mice by the hundreds, if not thousands, every day, and nobody spares it a second thought.
And anyone who has lived on Darling Downs in the middle of a mouse plague will have a less-than-sympathetic attitude to most things murine. So why should Maloney be made out to be a villain?
What actually comprises cruelty to animals, and do we treat some animals more equally than others?
We most certainly discriminate when it comes to animals.
A dog is supposedly man's best friend, but a rat is, well, a rat.
And in between there is a curious assortment of animals of all types.
We justify this to ourselves that dogs are more intelligent than other animals, but rats are known to be pretty ingenious members of the animal world.
Even dogs are not safe. In China it is not uncommon to eat dogs, and there is even a festival in one city where eating dogs is celebrated. To Western sensibilities, this is abhorrent, but people in Switzerland and other European countries eat horse meat with little equivocation.
Here in Australia, most of us think nothing of eating beef or pork, knowing full well this is only possible by killing a steer or a pig in the first place. And if we kill pigs on an industrial scale, then what does it matter what one person might do to a rat?
Perhaps our reasoning is sometimes arbitrary, but at least we try to apply reason to the issue; Maloney did not.
Poisoning and killing vermin is necessary to prevent the spread of disease. However, if we choose to make pets of mice, rats or guinea pigs then we must accept an obligation to treat them as well as one would any other pet.
There is a reason for this. A pet is almost entirely dependent upon its human owner. If take an animal into our care then we become responsible for it in ways that we would not be if it was in the wild.
Killing a domesticated animal for the thrill of it is contrary to these principles. Recording the act and putting it on the internet is worse, and shows a blatant disregard for any principles at all.
So where does that leave those of us who like our red meat, but who are not entirely immune to the suffering of animals? I have been to more than a few meatworks, and know what goes on. Still, I am happy to eat meat.
Humans are omnivores. Our bodies were designed to eat both meat and plants. I respect the principles of vegetarians, from Plutarch until now, who decide not to eat animals, however if people become vegetarians or vegans, it is by choice, and not by design.
We should also be wary of ascribing to animals a right to life that they do not accord other animals in the wild. Many species of animals eat other animals, so it is not unnatural that we should do so too.
However, when we kill animals to eat them, we should do so as humanely as possible. How we treat lesser creatures says a lot about us ourselves. We should not be wantonly cruel.
Rat biters are mad, bad and probably dangerous to know ... if you're a rat.