Nauseating moment a New York City rat tries to EAT a live pigeon before the bird is saved by a pipe-wielding Good Samaritan

• Video was posted to Twitter on Wednesday and has been viewed more than 3.4 million times
• New York City rats are becoming increasingly aggressive as many of their food sources have dried up amid the COVID-19 pandemic
• The clip was actually filmed back in May, but is only now going viral; many locals see the video as representative of the decline of NYC 
• The city is experiencing a dramatic uptick in violent crime and lewd public behavior Nauseating video captured the moment a rat attempted to eat a live pigeon in New York City. 
  The clip, filmed in a Brooklyn park, shows the aggressive rodent with the terrified bird trapped in its mouth. 
  The pigeon only managed to escape the encounter when a passerby intervened and tried to hit the vermin with a metal bar.  
  The rat then scurries from the scene, as the bird hobbles off with an injuredntervened and tried to hit the vermin with a metal bar
  'Are you alive?' the Good Samaritan can be heard saying as the camera zooms in on the pigeon. 
  The stomach-churning video was actually filmed back in May, but was re-shared to Twitter on Wednesday by user @MrCruzV3. Share
  The clip has already been viewed more than 3.4 million times, and is gaining traction as New York residents remark on the problems plaguing their city. 
  In recent months, the Big Apple has seen a dramatic uptick in violent crime and lewd public behavior. 
  

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  Nauseating video from New York showing a rat trying to eat a pigeon in New York City is going viral on social media amid assertions of the metropolis' decline
  Now, an increasingly aggressive rodent population is presenting new peril for residents remaining in the city.
  According to a Fox 5 report, there is a lack of available food sources for the rodent population as many restaurants remain shuttered and the city is emptied out. 
  Disturbingly, the hungry rats are becoming more aggressive and desperate in their bid for a meal. 
  Footage filmed in July shows rats scurrying around diners enjoying an outdoor meal at a New York City restaurant. 
  One patron even claimed to be attacked by the animal, with the hungry creature nibbling in their shoe. 
  

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  New York City diners forced onto the sidewalks at restaurants  are now being attacked by rats as restaurateurs beg the city to tackle its sanitation problem
  
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  It's the latest hazard for New Yorkers, with shootings up more than 160 percent in the month of August when compared with the same time last year. 
  Some locals have also had to witness lewd behavior in recent months.
  Multiple videos have shown uninhibited New Yorkers have sex on near-empty subway platforms, while a shocking clip filmed earlier this week showed a homeless woman performing a sex act on a man on an Upper West Side street.