YOUR 15 MINUTES: Diet Motivator of the Day

Dallas Cowboys passing game coordinator Todd Haley is suing a suburban McDonald's after claiming his wife and their family's au pair found a dead rat in their salad. The lawsuit filed Thursday in state district court seeks $1.7 million in damages, The Dallas Morning News reported on its Web site. In addition to Haley, who got in a well-publicized shouting match with Terrell Owens earlier this month, the suit was also filed on behalf of his wife Christine and the family's live-in babysitter, Kathryn Kelley. The dead rodent, believed to be a juvenile roof rat, was about 6 inches long and was found on its back with its mouth opened, Scott Casterline, a spokesman for the family, told The Associated Press. He said the women didn't find the rat until taking the salad home to eat, and that a manager from the McDonald's "didn't offer any comfort" after driving to their house to see the rodent.

The suit was filed after the restaurant didn't follow through on promises "to make things right," he said. "The family needs closure," Casterline told The Associated Press. "It came to a point where you have to draw a line." A message left for McDonald's Corp. spokesman Walt Riker on Thursday evening was not immediately returned. Ken Lobato, owner-operator of the McDonald's in Southlake, told the newspaper that he hadn't seen the suit and couldn't respond. "Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well-being of our customers," he said. "We maintain the strictest quality standards. We take these matters seriously and are conducting a full investigation to get all the facts. "In my years as an owner-operator, I've never seen anything like this."

According to the lawsuit, Christine Haley and Kelley had eaten part of the salad purchased June 5 before the dead rodent was uncovered. The women became violently ill and endured long-lasting physical injuries, the lawsuit said. Chritine Haley, who was nursing, states she had to feed her baby with formula

That will teach rich people to eat at McDonald's. You don't want rats in your food, don't go to places that will serve rats in their food. This is just sending bad messages to people in the ghetto. When they find animals in their food, they're ok with it because they're in the ghetto. Now all of a sudden they're going to start thinking animals in their food is worth $1.7 million. Get rich quick motherfucker. I'm sure you'll see a daytime lawyer commercial on soon during Judge Joe Brown: "Did you find animals in your food? You may be entitled to a cash settlement." Now don't get me wrong -- human body parts are another story. [source]