The Old Nest Box
past companionsBrekke - (2yrs 11 mths old, blue colored/light grayish-pearl.) purchased in memory of my hamster Gray, she is the newest arrival. now she comes out regularly with the others and although still a bit tentative in being 'trusting' with me, she will daringly come up and sniff me or my shirt, or fingers, or whatever with a cautious but curious attitude. she's now got a few dark gray patches along her back. Brekke died today, 05/14/01. She will be missed. She, as well as some of her sisters developed a cancerous tumor. Her decline in health was not nearly as lenghty as the others. She didn't lose the horrible amounts of weight Ripley did, and didn't seem to be in pain. Bless her.Gwendolyn - (2yrs 2 mths old, tan true agouti.) the shyest of the bunch. she tends to be very timid, even around people she has known longer. a one-person kind of rat, she frequently snuggles with me rather than explore like the others. she's very sweet and timid and adores hiding other things much more than the other rats, excepting maybe Mirrim. Ripley - (1 yr 3 mths old, brown colored female with a little white patch on her tummy.) definitely the most adventurous of the group, and my third rat. she is by far the most outgoing as well and loves to cuddle. she also is fearless, which can be very compromising as she tends to be the one that will try to force your lips apart so she can stick her head in your mouth and lick you. some people don't like this. (grin) UPDATE - before our move from birmingham to lawrenceville, ripley grew very ill. she had lost an alarming amount of weight in about a week's time though she was still eating. we put her in intensive care at the vet's office for three full days. in the end, her breathing was strained and she was still very weak. deciding not to put her through more, i asked them to put her to sleep. there is no doubt in my mind that it was one of the hardest things i have ever done in my life. she died with my scent around her, and i hope this gave her comfort knowing i loved her. she is sorely beloved. Evelyn - (1 yr old, dark gray/light gray/white tri-color.) purchased as a companion to the others and because of her most unusual coat, she has proved to be almost as outgoing as Ripley. being newer to the group, she has not quite yet mastered the art of leaping directly up through the openings in the top of the aquarium. she manages quite well however in leaving by climbing the water bottle. (grin) she's very friendly with new people, and is now outgoing enough to come directly up to me and lick me when i let them out to play. UPDATE - Evelyn has passed into the next world. she suffered from a cancerous growth that wasn't detected until i noticed she was having some trouble breathing. while waiting for x-ray results at the vet's office, she suffered something akin to a heart attack and died in my arms. i buried her (the first rat i have actually 'buried' in truth) under a beautiful tree. only later did i notice that the branches of the tree had grown oddly so that you can find within them each of the letters of her name. she is deeply loved and missed. Mirrim - (1 yr old, dark gray/black) this one was the 'leaper'. above all else, she loved to explore, but a bit more timidly than Ripley. she loved to jump and would try to reach anything within about two feet of her by doing just that. she was more shy with new people, although once she got to know you, she'd warm up rather quickly. loved to hide under things and would actually fall asleep in the little cardboard rolls for toilet paper. she and Gwendolyn were purchased on the same day. On 01/04/99, Mirrim passed away. The top of the cage had fallen in and hit her on the head, instantly blinding her in one eye, and damaging another. Although she was expected to recover by the two vets we consulted on the matter, she was in great pain, and the strain proved too much on her heart. We grieved for her suffering and eventually made the choice to put her to sleep. She was buried in our backyard with her favorite rat log and washcloth. Lavendar was sprinkled over her to bring her peace. After a small ceremony, we left her to the Earth. We hope to see her wonderful, loving spirit again in the guise of another of our little furry friends. Blessed Be Mirrim. Skadi - my first, and a Yule gift from Mark at 4mths, is still sorely missed. she and Ripley escaped while i was moving from my old apartment to the new house in March of this year. she died from drowning and i still tend to blame myself to this very day. she was much loved and i will always remember her. Blessed Be Skadi. little Ripley - my second, she was very small when i purchased her, probably about 2mths old. at the time, i only had Skadi and did not have much experience with rats, not knowing of the Wet-Tail infection. she died from it the day after i'd gotten her. i was glad to share what little time i had with her and i hope i made her life a happier one. Blessed Be little Ripley. Etain - my fourth, she was about 4mths when i purchased her and joined her with Ripley and Skadi before leaving for Atlanta for a week. she had also contracted Wet-Tail, i was still unaware of it, and died with me in Atlanta before i even returned home. she was a very affectionate and a lovely friend. her life was a good one while she was with me. Blessed Be Etain. 
past general infoCurrently all my littles ones reside in a 20 gallon (10 inches deep, 20 inches long) aquarium that sits upon a cabinet in my room. Now and then, their home is moved into the dining room so they can sit beside me and visit while I eat/write/read, etc. Respecting their health, I use only Carefresh litter, which is recycled wood pulp, as their bedding and feed them Kaytee Forti-Diet Mouse & Rat food. The latter is nutritionally fortified and they do indeed seem to like it! As a necessary precaution, whenever I purchase a new rat and add it to the group, I use Dri-Tail medicine. Before discovering it, I had the misfortune to lose two rats to Wet-Tail which is a horrible illness whose symptoms include loss of appetite, dehydration, and depression. I strongly recommend its use, or you might find yourself going through the loss of a wonderful new companion. The aquarium is very heavy to move around by myself (especially with the rats in it!) and I'm hoping that one day in the future, if I upgrade them to a larger home, I'll be more buff. (grin)
past journal08/03/98 - Update! - Well, they're all doing fine, but are rather larger than when I last added to the page! (smile) Gwendolyn is almost larger than Ripley! They're all eating well as usual and I just gave them a toilet paper roll and a Puffs box for them to use as a nest box. =) 03/03/99 - Update! - All the ratties have aged quite a bit since I last wrote. (grin) Of course, during this time, the death of Mirrim occured on January 4th, and she is still deeply missed. Because of this, I would recommend to future (and current) rat owners to avoid the cages with the two 'doors' in the top that fit inside the rim of the aquarium and then lock. We had experienced a few times where the cage top fell inside, but this was the first that a rat was injured; it proved fatal. There are tops available that will fit over the rim of the aquarium and basically are mesh wire instead of solid plastic. Please at least consider this alternative, it may save a life. The rats are continuing to do very well. They remain playful and chittery as they always have. The same time as the event with the cage top, Gwen actually got out of the cage. She proved to be alright, but had hidden under the small refrigerator for quite some time. We were all grateful she emerged unscathed as we also own two cats. All are much chubbier now, but I try to keep their weight down so they remain healthy and long-lived. =) 12/04/99 - Update! - I have learned through many hard and painful lessons that though the expected life span of rats is three to five years, this is often not the case in real life. Rats are unfortunately subject to quick-growing and lethal cancers through years of inbreeding in laboratories, etc. While they are no doubt beloved animals that make intelligent, caring, sensitive and empathic pets, the parting is hard. Often, rats can die slowly enough to put them in pain or at least inconvienience their breathing, depending upon the location of the cancerous tumors. All tumors that rats develop are almost exclusively malignant and unless surgery is done will cause death. Gwendolyn, my oldest rat, has now developed a tumor on her right breast. Though she is not in any pain, it has put her off balance a little. It only took about a week to noticably form and develop. When the times comes, I will opt to put her to sleep unless it is a quick death, which cancer normally does not promise. For now, I will let her live out her remaning days in happiness and companionship with Brekke. They still cavort and play happily and, I dare think, obliviously. I purchased all my rats from pet stores. I am not certain whether or not this contributed to the overall development rate of the cancers within them or not. I am inclined to think so since I have seen many webpages where people have owned rats for many years, usually purchased directly from a breeder. I would encourage prospective rat owners to research their options and seriously consider taking the time and expense to find a breeder. They are truly wonderful, loving animals and their little lives can bring you much joy just as their deaths bring great sorrow. Above all, love your pets and let them know that you cherish them. I think that when we pass on, one of the most important things we can take with us is to know we have loved well and have been loved. Blessed Be. 05/14/01 - Update - The last of my rats have all passed on. Brekke died today of cancer. I hope they will all be happy in their new lives whereever they may be, and know that I will always remember them.
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