My Rat: 2009 - 2011, RIP

[beccatoria]

Today we let a vet kill our rat. It was the right decision I think, because she'd had a stroke and kept walking in circles and clearly didn't know which way was up and the vet said there were a few medical options that might help her be a little more functional, but might not, and probably wouldn't and even if they did there was almost certainly permanent damage. And in the meantime, she wasn't drinking which is a really bad sign.

She was a very good rat. She had masses of personality and character. Even the vet, who only saw her once before (a few months ago when we took her in because she had a benign tumour - which we let be because it wasn't bothering her), commented on how intrepid and curious she was. She remembered her and commented on her different temperament.

She was the absolute runt of the litter - so much smaller than her sister. She spent her life getting progressively blinder with her little cataracts and turned out to be allergic to lots of protein, which would give her all sorts of little scabs over her back, so we had to be careful what we fed her. Then she got a benign tumour and she had a broken tail (which lots of rats get - it doesn't hurt, it's just a kink in the cartilege at the very tip). She was always sneezing.

On top of all of that, Kev went and named her "Bum". Because when we got them (before it became clear she was an adorable blind, broken-tailed, scabious, wheezy, cancerous runt), the main way we could tell them apart was that she had a darker mark on her hindquarters while Nose (the other rat) had a darker mark on her nose. And whatever he called them, he said, would just end up shortcutting to "the nose rat" and "the bum rat".

She was the underdograt. Rats usually live between 18 months and 3 years at the very outside. She made it to about 2. I think for her, that was a pretty good run.

She was brave in the face of strange noises and trips around the house inside pockets and on shoulders. She loved prawn and noodle and milk. She liked playing in water, even though her sister hated it.

She helped Kev get through some really bad days, and the promise of seeing her helped him get home safely on others. It's harder for him than me, because really, she was his rat, I just kept borrowing her.

I really miss her. I have a scratch on my arm from the last time I held her. Nose keeps sniffing the tissue where she slept and wondering where she is.

She was a very good rat.

* * *

In other news, I apologise for not being around so much. It's not intentional. The holidays were nice enough, but after that has been a bit of a stress explosion in real life. And now my rat's dead. I keep wanting to post things, then finding I don't have much to say. Probably this will clear as the new year sets in. I've been vidding a fair bit, but sadly nothing I can show anyone yet. VIDUKON, and stuff. :)

Thanks for listening to me talk about my rat.

Comments

[sabaceanbabe.livejournal.com]

Once upon a time, when I was in high school, I used to work as a volunteer at a science museum. I worked in the "life sciences" area because they had snakes and rats and a chincilla and I can't not be around critters, of any sort. There was a little albino rat I named Tucker and he was my little buddy, riding on my shoulder or sometimes in the sleeve of the lab coat we volunteers had to wear. He liked to play in my hair.

I'm sorry about Bum. *hugs you tight*

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Aww, Tucker sounds like the best. Bum was almost albino too. Critters are the best little buddies. Bum played in my hair sometimes, but mostly panicked because she couldn't get back out of it. Her sister likes climbing it though. Thanks, and *hugs*

[i_kender]

Ah, this post made me sad. I'm very sorry about your rat, and thank you for writing about her. She sounds like a great rat.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

She was a great rat. Sorry to make you sad, but thanks for listening and thinking about her.

[tellitslant]

Aw, I'm so sorry to hear about your rat. It sounds like you guys made the best decision for her, though. *hugs*

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I think we did too. Now just to give the sadness some time to heal. *hugs*

[spiralsheep.livejournal.com]

My sympathies to you and Kev on the death of your pet.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thank you - I appreciate that.

[nicole-anell.livejournal.com]

Ah honey, I'm sorry! :( This is a really sweet post though.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thank you. *hugs*

[daybreak777.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry. She sounded like a good pet friend to you and Kevin. And I'm sorry about stress explosion too.

*hugs*

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

She was a great pet friend, yeah. Thanks for your thoughts and hopefully the stress explosion will calm down as the year gets into swing. *hugs*

[asta77.livejournal.com]

2011 was supposed to be a better year for you. This is not fair! :(

As I mentioned on Twitter, you did the right thing by her. Trust me. I've seen the result of people putting their feelings and inability to let go before the welfare of their pets. I know it's hard for you, but you seem to have a lot of great memories to hold onto. ::hugs::

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

I'm trying to think of it as getting all the crap of 2011 out of the way in the first week. ;)

Thanks for your thoughts and your reassurance. I didn't want her to live in pain or in distress. *hugs*

[fallingtowers.livejournal.com]

Sounds as if she had a long and excellent and full rat-life.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

I like to think so - I'm glad it sounds like she did.

[jo-lasalle.livejournal.com]

I don't know if that helps, but this is one of the best RIP Pet posts I've ever read. I think Bum would be proud.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thanks, it does help actually. I'm really glad I...wrote well about her. Thank you.

[a2zmom.livejournal.com]

She sounds like she was much loved and a great pet.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thank you. She was a really great pet and I hope she felt loved.

[chaila.livejournal.com]

I think intrepid trips around the house on shoulders, noodle snacks, the occasional trip to the water recreational area and being something that helped somebody through some really hard days is an excellent rat life. It feels horrible but pretty soon it'll be better and you'll just remember that she was awesome. But mostly, I'm sorry about your adorable rat (and that I won't get to meet her). <3

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry you won't get to meet her too! I think you would have liked her. I like to think she had a good rat life. Hopefully you'll get to meet the other one. Like you say, it won't hurt forever, it just hurts a bit today. *hugs*

[emmiere.livejournal.com]

I've always been fond of rats ever since sharing a house with a pair of them for two years. Bum sounds like quite the rat indeed, I'm sorry she's gone. *hugs*

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I always like hearing that other people like rats - they have such a bad reputation with many but they're such excellent friends and pets. She was a great rate, and thanks for your thoughts. *hugs*

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry to hear about the passing of your wonderful rat; but you sound like a wonderful owner! I love the little guys. My friend had a few when I was a kid, I used to hold one for hours. (I had a snake, which she used to hold for hours when she visited me.)

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Yeah, rats are so great, aren't they? The rat we still have is so wiggly she's impossible to hold for very long (adorable! But impossible to hold for very long!) but Bum was quite patient and used to stay still and be petted for quite a while. I only ever got to hold a snake a few times as a kid, but I remember how dry and smooth they were when I expected them to be slimy. Fascinating creatures.

Thank you for your thoughts; she really was a wonderful rat.

[ghanimasun]

I'm sorry to hear about your rat. She sounds like she was a lot of fun.

[beccatoria.livejournal.com]

Thank you - she really was, and it means a lot to me that so many people have stopped by to express their condolences.