SqueakingJellybean
Mission Control -- All is ratness
It hasn't even been two months since Oleksii and Norm came into our lives. It is not fair in any way that a rat so young should have a bad heart. We were still getting to know each other, but I was already looking forward to seeing who Norm would be as he grew.
What got him did, in fact, end up being heart failure. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy-- a genetic thing we could not have predicted or prevented. Our vet was frank with us: while there were medications like Lasik, they aren't usually very effective in rats. It would not buy him much time or quality of life. We made the decision to spare him further pain. Norm passed quietly across the Rainbow Bridge this afternoon.
What got him did, in fact, end up being heart failure. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy-- a genetic thing we could not have predicted or prevented. Our vet was frank with us: while there were medications like Lasik, they aren't usually very effective in rats. It would not buy him much time or quality of life. We made the decision to spare him further pain. Norm passed quietly across the Rainbow Bridge this afternoon.