Rogue rat suspected as Thomas the tortoise, 130, dies after bite in Guernsey garden

He survived the Blitz, five monarchs and both World Wars.

But Thomas, who was Britain's oldest resident, has died aged 130 - after being bitten by a rat.

He was born in 1882 and was pulled out of the rubble of a bomb-hit house in Essex in 1945.
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Tearful June Le Gallez said: 'We are all very upset as you can imagine, Thomas was like a member of the family.

'He was put down after he was bitten on the leg by a rogue rat in the garden and the wound become so inflamed that it started pushing into his shell."
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Thomas was kept company by fellow tortoises Gorky and Carstaias, who are both 50-years old.

June said: 'Gorky got bitten on the nose too but Thomas suffered the brunt of the attack."
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