So Pikachu was designed after a squirrel that the artist wanted to have as a pet
also Pikachu is 'rare' because the planner loved Pikachu so much he didn't want to share them with a bunch of people
maple classic™ 
@squirrel no lie Pachirisu is one of my fave Pokemon
@squirrel also Rhys transliterated into Japanese ends up as "Squirrel"
My cat's name is Pacha
Pacha-Risu
@bugpaws but also reading the other toots, maybe