fenshae
Well-Known Member
I've been afraid this would happen, but I wasn't prepared for it today. My sweet old man-rat is gone. Einstein would have turned 33 months in April, just a few short weeks away. I'm not entirely sure what happened. He was okay today. Then, at feeding time, he didn't come out -- he stayed curled up in his hammock. I pulled him out and he was cold and unresponsive, but not yet gone. I held him until he passed, but he was pretty "out of it" by then. I'm guessing probably a stroke.
I got Einstein from a young military couple who were moving to Germany and couldn't bring him. He was about 8 months old at the time and had been living alone after his own cagemate died. From the beginning, he lived up to his name. He also quickly added a middle name, Houdini, because he was always escaping.
Einstein always wanted to be the alpha, but he could never hold his own against the others. He was always tiny, girl-sized, and he tended to squeal like a pig whenever anyone threatened him. He liked to escape at night to wander around the room and steal food. He would nest in the box of fabric scraps next to the cage and climb back into the cage when he was bored. Sometimes I would wake up with him in my bed.
Einstein was one of the sweetest, most sociable and cuddly rats I ever had. He had a very sweet expression all the time. He loved people. He loved cuddling. He also loved exploring. You couldn't turn your back on him for two seconds without him finding a way to get into somewhere you didn't want him to be. One time he ate like an entire bag of soynut treats when I wasn't looking and bloated up like twice his usual size. The last time I had him out, he was in the bathroom and somehow managed to climb on top of the toilet. He tried to jump off into the tub to be with me.
He only finally began showing signs of age the past couple of weeks. He was mostly hairless on his back end from chronic barbering, and he had lost a lot of muscle tissue but still had most of his motor control in his hind end. He still liked to jump around the cage, but he'd stumble and fall occasionally when he would try to be too athletic. He still put the younger rats in their place on a regular basis.
I'm glad he made the move here to Austin, and I'm glad that he went peacefully. He had a food pellet in the hammock with him when I found him, so he got to pass away with everything that was important to him -- food and comfort, and a friend at his side. I had to bodily pull Ginji away from him; they were crowded together so closely that I couldn't get to him.
I miss you so much Einstein. I knew you couldn't really be immortal....but oh, I wished you were
I got Einstein from a young military couple who were moving to Germany and couldn't bring him. He was about 8 months old at the time and had been living alone after his own cagemate died. From the beginning, he lived up to his name. He also quickly added a middle name, Houdini, because he was always escaping.
Einstein always wanted to be the alpha, but he could never hold his own against the others. He was always tiny, girl-sized, and he tended to squeal like a pig whenever anyone threatened him. He liked to escape at night to wander around the room and steal food. He would nest in the box of fabric scraps next to the cage and climb back into the cage when he was bored. Sometimes I would wake up with him in my bed.
Einstein was one of the sweetest, most sociable and cuddly rats I ever had. He had a very sweet expression all the time. He loved people. He loved cuddling. He also loved exploring. You couldn't turn your back on him for two seconds without him finding a way to get into somewhere you didn't want him to be. One time he ate like an entire bag of soynut treats when I wasn't looking and bloated up like twice his usual size. The last time I had him out, he was in the bathroom and somehow managed to climb on top of the toilet. He tried to jump off into the tub to be with me.
He only finally began showing signs of age the past couple of weeks. He was mostly hairless on his back end from chronic barbering, and he had lost a lot of muscle tissue but still had most of his motor control in his hind end. He still liked to jump around the cage, but he'd stumble and fall occasionally when he would try to be too athletic. He still put the younger rats in their place on a regular basis.
I'm glad he made the move here to Austin, and I'm glad that he went peacefully. He had a food pellet in the hammock with him when I found him, so he got to pass away with everything that was important to him -- food and comfort, and a friend at his side. I had to bodily pull Ginji away from him; they were crowded together so closely that I couldn't get to him.
I miss you so much Einstein. I knew you couldn't really be immortal....but oh, I wished you were
