Fancy rat the first film. Here, the protagonist befriends the rats found in his home and builds up a close relationship, only to have it end tragically. While these movies generally emphasize the popular perception of malevolence—they kill people and cats and ransack grocery stores—other wild rats who become pets are portrayed in more neutral to positive ways; the television show, "House", briefly featured "Steve McQueen", the pet rat of the titular character. In certain versions of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise, the master and adoptive father of the turtles is Splinter, who was once the pet rat of ninja Hamato
Brown rat making it by at least this particular definition the most successful mammal on the planet alongside humans. With rare exceptions, the brown rat lives wherever humans live, particularly in urban areas. Selective breeding of "Rattus norvegicus" has produced pet rats, as well as the laboratory rat - the white rats used as model organisms in biological research. Originally called the "Hanover rat" by people wishing to link problems in 18th century England with the House of Hanover, it is not known for certain why the brown rat is named "Rattus norvegicus" (Norwegian rat), as it did not originate from Norway.