The giant, inflatable rat that was stabbed outside the upscale Babbo restaurant in Manhattan this week is getting patched up \u2014 and its injuries were even worse than previously thought, The Post has learned.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, the union that staged the ill-fated Monday protest at the grand reopening of the posh Italian eatery<\/a> bought a patch from Home Depot to repair an 8-inch gash on the right thigh of \u201cScabby the Rat\u201d that was allegedly cut by a knife-wielding assailant.<\/p>\n Members of Unite Here Local 25 brought the rat back to its headquarters in Washington, DC, for the procedure, union reps said. During inspection, they said they found yet another gash that was apparently inflicted Monday night \u2014 on the other side of the same leg, and even bigger than the first slash.<\/p>\n \u201cScabby was patched up on Thursday as union organizer Mike Haack assists. Unite Here Local 25<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s near the first one, a bit bigger, about 10 inches,\u201d Benjy Cannon, a rep for Unite Here Local 25, told The Post. \u201cCan\u2019t say for sure that it was inflicted on the same night \u2026 but it\u2019s close to the first one and we hadn\u2019t noticed it before.\u201d<\/p>\n Late Thursday afternoon, the rat \u2014 which the union said cost $7,000 \u2014 was inflated to its full height of 12 feet. It wasn\u2019t immediately clear, however, whether the rat would be able to stay inflated.<\/p>\n Union rep Mike Haack takes over repairing Scabby. Unite Here Local 25<\/p>\n The inflatable vermin came to woe after a man who appeared to be a Babbo employee punctured it with a paring knife, according to Mike Haack, a union organizer who had brought \u201cScabby\u201d to New York City for the Monday protest, as The Post reported exclusively.<\/p>\n Haack said he realized what had happened when he was in the middle of a verbal altercation with another employee and suddenly heard a \u201chissing sound.\u201d He saw a man with a knife run into the restaurant and called 911. Some 10 NYPD officers showed up, he said.<\/p>\n Unite Here Local 25 employees pay their respects to Scabby after the attack. Unite Here Local 25<\/p>\n The cops and Haack marched through a ritzy dining room filled with startled guests, searching for the slasher, but they didn\u2019t find him, the union organizer said. He noted that police briefly huddled in the dining room before apparently deciding not to search the kitchen.<\/p>\n The NYPD did not respond for comment on whether it is actively investigating the incident. Starr Restaurant Group, which runs Babbo, did not return a call requesting comment.<\/p>\n Babbo restaurant reopened this week after about a seven year hiatus. Getty Images<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Local 25 is gearing up for \u201cScabby\u2019s\u201d return to Babbo on Nov. 18, when the mascot will have a posse of supporters to greet diners and passersby.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are discussing enhanced security measures to protect \u2018Scabby\u2019 and the attendees,\u201d Cannon told The Post. \u201cWe will be doing everything we can to make sure \u2018Scabby\u2019 is safe this time.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cDespite the attack on \u2018Scabby,\u2019 our fight for restaurant workers will march on,\u201d Cannon added, vowing that \u2018Scabby\u2019s\u2019 struggle against Babbo\u2019s owner, restaurateur Stephen Starr, is not over.<\/p>\n The union is spearheading an organizing campaign at three Starr Restaurant Group eateries in DC and brought its fight to the Big Apple on Babbo\u2019s opening night.<\/p>\n Babbo\u2019s founder and celebrity chef, Mario Batali. New York Post<\/p>\n Starr \u2013 whose restaurant empire includes Buddakan, Morimoto and Pastis \u2014 bought Babbo this year with grand plans recapture the buzz it once enjoyed as one of the most iconic Italian eateries in the city \u2013 without the drama.<\/p>\n The iconic restaurant founded by celebrity chef Mario Batali closed about seven years ago, after Batali got mired in sexual misconduct allegations in 2017<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Babbo boycott is an expansion of a months-long boycott of Starr-operated restaurants in Washington, DC \u2013 Le Diplomate, The Occidental and Osteria Mozza \u2014 over the company\u2019s alleged union-busting.<\/p>\n