Logan Paul Tasering Dead Rat

2018Reaction memes / controversy memesdead

Also known as: Get These Rats · Logan Paul Taser Rat

Logan Paul Tasering Dead Rat refers to memes and backlash that followed a February 2018 YouTube video in which Logan Paul tased dead rats during a segment called "Get These Rats." The incident drew sharp criticism from PETA and internet users, especially since it came just weeks after Paul's infamous suicide forest controversy. The backlash quickly spawned a wave of memes on Reddit and Instagram mocking Paul's judgment.

Overview

The meme centers on footage from a Logan Paul YouTube video where he shoots dead rats with a taser as part of an entertainment segment. Because this happened barely a month after Paul faced massive backlash for filming a dead body in Japan's Aokigahara forest, the rat-tasing clip struck many viewers as tone-deaf and cruel. PETA condemned the video publicly, and meme creators on Reddit and Instagram ran with the absurdity of Paul's decision to escalate controversy rather than lay low2.

On February 5, 2018, Logan Paul uploaded a video titled "THE PAULS RESPOND TO THE CSI FIGHT! called out" to his YouTube channel2. Around the 4:50 mark, Paul introduced a segment called "Get These Rats," in which he shot a pair of dead rats with a taser on camera. The video pulled in over 9.5 million views within its first week.

Origin & Background

Platform
YouTube (source video), Twitter (backlash), Reddit / Instagram (meme spread)
Key People
Logan Paul, various Reddit and Instagram users
Date
2018

On February 5, 2018, Logan Paul uploaded a video titled "THE PAULS RESPOND TO THE CSI FIGHT! called out" to his YouTube channel2. Around the 4:50 mark, Paul introduced a segment called "Get These Rats," in which he shot a pair of dead rats with a taser on camera. The video pulled in over 9.5 million views within its first week.

How It Spread

Two days after the upload, PETA2 posted a tweet calling Paul out directly, writing that "TRUE mavericks don't find humor in suffering & death. It's time to stop." The post picked up more than 1,100 retweets and 2,500 likes in 48 hours2. PETA also tagged YouTube, arguing the content "could desensitize young people to cruelty to animals" and calling for its removal. A follow-up tweet from PETA2 defending the dignity of all animals, including rats, went even bigger with 4,300 retweets and 15,000 likes in a single day.

On February 8, Twitter user @toontownstaff pointed out the hypocrisy between Paul's post-Aokigahara claims of respecting the dead and his willingness to tase dead animals for content. That tweet earned over 1,000 retweets and 3,600 likes in 24 hours2. Twitter also published an official Moments page documenting the backlash.

Memes based on the controversy started appearing on r/dankmemes the same day. Redditor Miximum Dennis posted a two-panel photoshop of Paul tasing Remy from Pixar's *Ratatouille*, which collected over 100 upvotes2. On February 10, Instagram account @memepoleon created a Daily Struggle variation showing Paul choosing between "Lay low and make risk free content after controversy" and "Taser dead animals and put it on YouTube," earning 22,000 likes in two days. The next day, Redditor AFriendlyUserName posted a "Bae Come Over" image macro with a close-up of Paul running and the caption "Her: My pet rat just died." That post hit 25,700 points with 89% upvotes and 390 comments in one day2.

How to Use This Meme

Most Logan Paul Tasering Dead Rat memes follow one of a few formats:

1

Daily Struggle / Two Buttons: Present Paul with a choice between sensible behavior and another controversial stunt. The joke is that he always picks the worst option.

2

Bae Come Over: Use a photo of Paul looking eager or rushing somewhere, paired with a caption implying someone's pet rat has died.

3

Character Swap: Photoshop Paul or his taser into scenes from movies or shows featuring rats (Ratatouille being the go-to).

Cultural Impact

The rat-tasing incident landed just five weeks after Paul's Aokigahara forest video, which had already put his channel under intense scrutiny. PETA's public condemnation brought mainstream animal rights discourse into the conversation, and Twitter's decision to create an official Moments page about the backlash showed the platform treating it as a notable news event. The controversy reinforced a growing narrative in early 2018 that Paul's content strategy relied on escalating shock value regardless of consequences2.

Fun Facts

PETA2's tweet asking people to imagine Paul tasing a dead dog or cat instead of rats was their most viral post about the incident, with 15,000 likes in 24 hours2.

The "Bae Come Over" meme version outperformed all other formats, hitting over 25,700 upvotes on Reddit in a single day.

Paul titled the taser segment "Get These Rats" as if it were a recurring show feature, though he never brought it back2.

Frequently Asked Questions