Unhitched is a sitcom about four friends in their 30s who find themselves newly divorced and thrown back into the dating world. In this episode, airing March 30, Jack "Gator" Gately (Craig Bierko) courts an animal rights activist but cannot bring himself to tell her that he unwittingly killed her rescued rat in the microwave, thinking it was a feral rat.

An American Humane Association Animal Safety Representative monitored the animal action in this episode. No animals were harmed. Although the action may seem intense, especially the rat appearing to be microwaved to death, American Humane can assure the viewing public that all animal action was created using "movie magic," and no rat was harmed -- let alone killed -- in this episode.

Although some viewers might consider the content of this episode to be in poor taste or to be condoning animal cruelty, American Humane's purpose is not to address the content of a production, but to ensure the welfare of the animals on the set and to attest to whether the Guidelines for the Safe Use of Animals in Filmed Media were upheld.

Featured Animal Action

A rat scurries across the kitchen floor. Tommy (Johnny Sneed) swats a broom at it, appearing to fling it across the room and onto the front of Gator's (Craig Bierko) shirt, causing Gator to flail his arms around until the rat crawls down his shirt. The rat then runs across the countertop and into the microwave. The gang shuts the door, and moments later, the microwave beeps. This scene was filmed in separate shots. One trainer placed the well-trained rat on its starting mark and released it to another trainer, who used a buzzer to cue the rat to run to its end mark, where it was immediately retrieved. Trainers then placed the rat on the floor and tapped the floor to get the rat to run from point A to point B, while a well-rehearsed actor swept a broom near (but not at) the rat. Trainers then placed the rat on the actor's shirt. The rat was accustomed to walking on clothing, and the actor was well-rehearsed for the action, being careful not to over-exaggerate his arm movements and risk the rat falling off. As an added precaution, a furniture pad was placed below the actor and a trainer stood nearby with a net, just in case the rat fell (which it never did). A stuffed rat was used for the portion of the scene in which the actor threw it off his shirt. Trainers then placed the real rat on the countertop and used a buzzer to cue it to run into the microwave, where a nut had been placed as added incentive. Once the rat was safely inside the microwave eating the nut, the actor shut the door, making sure the rat was toward the back and away from the door. Trainers immediately retrieved the rat, which was never near the microwave while it was on. Several small rats are seen in a cage in Gator's date's (Erinn Hayes) apartment. These rats were familiar with each other and the cage was spacious and comfortable. The actors were instructed on the proper handling of rodents

The exterminator sees a rat run across the hall and crawl onto a heating grate and into a heating duct. He removes the grate and pulls the rat from the duct, handing it to Gator's date. He then pulls out a handful of baby rats in a nest of bedding and hands them over. This scene was filmed in separate shots. The area was secured and blocked off so the rat could not escape. The grate/duct was a custom-made prop -- on the other side of the grate was an open area where the trainer hid. To get the rat to run, trainers tapped on the floor along the rat's path and retrieved it at its end mark. For the shot in which the rat briefly crawls on the grate, one trainer set the rat on the grate while another trainer hiding on the other side of the grate immediately retrieved it. This handoff was very brief and very well-rehearsed. Then the trainer hiding on the other side of the grate handed the rat to the crouching actor playing the exterminator, who in turn extended his hands to the actress, as if handing her the rat. The actual handoff to the actress took place between a trainer and the actress, not the "exterminator" and the actress, but editing made this scene look like one fluid action. The baby rats were carefully placed in the actor's hand while lying in their own bedding. The handoff for the babies occurred the same way as for the adult rat, with a trainer involved in each handoff. The babies were only used for a brief take and were returned to their mother immediately after filming.

Fish. The fish tank was maintained by an experienced crew member and the lobster in the episode was fake.

Source: American Humane Film & TV Unit

The Rat Assistance & Teaching Society (R.A.T.S.) has information on the humane care of pet rats. Photo courtesy: R.A.T.S.