KatTheHippie
Well-Known Member
**I know I posted snippets of Sids life here and there after Nancy's passing, but I haven't really sat down to write it all out. Thank you guys, for being with me in this adventure with Sid and Nancy, since the beginning. Sid and I both really appreciate the support we've gotten from you guys over the months. I feel like this was important to share, I see too many people keeping their rats alone, or giving them away due to "aggression" issues.
This is what happens when you don't give up, and when you try your absolute harderest, even when it's easier to give in and say "It didn't work!" and throw in the towel. There is always another option. There is always something else you can try, even when you feel like you've tried it all.
Sid came to us in July of 2015. He and his best friend Nancy were dumped at my local animal shelter, and a friend contacted me about them, asking if I had the space to take them in. I agreed, of course, and was surprised to see that Nancy, Sid's companion, was actually a mouse. Long story short, I attempted separating them at first, but when they both became very depressed and lethargic, I decided to keep them together. Nancy, sadly, began to develop a tumor, and Sid became aggressive toward people, and extremely over-protective of her. It got to the point where I couldn't even put my hand in their cage without Sid trying to take a chunk out of me. For the time being, I left them mostly alone, except to change their food and water, and clean their cage. I understood. Sid was worried about his best friend, and could see her declining, and was doing all that he could to keep her safe.. we ended up losing Nancy in December of 2015. It was one of the most heart breaking things I ever experienced. Sid was lost. He was lonely, and depressed, and lethargic.
So I started working with him. I spent time with him every day. It started by just talking to him, standing in front of his cage and speaking to him for long periods, so he would get more used to my voice and see I wasn't a threat. Then I started giving him treats every time I passed by his cage, or stopped to speak to him. Slowly, he started emerging from his igloo more, seemingly eager to have someone nearby, or to get a yummy snack. After a few weeks, he would start clinging to the cage bars excitedly. At that point, I started petting him. Gentle head pats and ear rubs while he finished his snacks, and over time he began to allow me to reach into his cage without any issues. I didn't have to worry about being bitten any more. Sid would let me scoop him up and give him kisses and cuddles, and he began to look forward to coming out of his cage to play, and snuggle. At that point, I thought he was ready to try introductions with the other rats. I didn't want him to be alone for the rest of his life, mourning Nancy, with me being his only social interactions. I knew a few hours with me a day wasn't enough for his well being. So, little by little, I tried.
And let me tell you, I tried EVERYTHING, every tip and trick I knew for introductions. But nothing was working. Sid would get too nervous and lash out at the other curious rats, even on neutral grounds. Even after I let them explore each-others cages so they could get used to each other's scent. Even when I dabbed them with vanilla extract to remove any scents. Even when I was holding him, and allowing the other rats to sniff him. I tried one-on-one intros, I tried letting him meet the whole colony at once, I tried everything. Sid wasn't budging, he was just too scared and hormonal. So at this point, I knew neutering him and fixing any hormonal issues was the only way to go. I was a nervous wreck the day he went in for the surgery, but my amazing vet did a wonderful job, and Sid came home groggy, but safe. A week after the procedure, I attempted one-on-one intros again, with my most docile rat, in a neutral zone so no one would feel territorial.
At first, Sid was terrified. He would run to me when Axel tried to sniff him, or got too close to him. Eventually, though, after about 3 days of constant intros, Sid began to warm up to Axel. Then, they began playing. Sid and Axel would chase each other around on the bed, and pin each other, and groom each other, and fall asleep cuddling after they exhausted themselves. That was the first time I had seen Sid brux since Nancy passed. He put his little face in my hand one day while he and Axel were cuddling, and he stared up at me while I rubbed his ears, and bruxxed away. It brought me to tears, I was so moved at his transformation... it was like he was trying to say "thank you" for not giving up on him and marking him as a lost cause. It's like he knew I was fighting so hard to give him the best life he could have. And over the next few weeks, I slowly began to add more rats to their play time. I let my sweet, calm rats all meet him first, while I let my more dominant, defensive guys explore Sid's cage during their play times, so that they could familiarize themselves with his scent. After a little while, and adding one rat at a time, I finally had everyone together.
Now Sid is a normal, happy, bouncy, playful rat, and you'd be none the wiser to know about his difficult past. He snuggles in a pile of other rats at bed time, and eats sitting around the food bowl with his "brothers". He runs, and plays, and still gets excited when I walk by the cage so he can get a cuddle and kiss from his mommy. He and Axel are best friends still, they're always together, and it makes me smile. I know nothing will ever replace Nancy for him, but at least he's happy again, and Nancy would want that. Sid is the reason why I rescue, and why I don't give up. Sid was the most difficult rat I've ever dealt with, and now he's a love bug who's excited to meet anyone. The world could learn a lot from Sid. It's important to give your pets all that you have, even when you begin to feel like it's a lost cause. You are all that they have in the entire world, and it's easy to forget that when life gets busy, but do your pets a favor and never give up on them, even when they're at their most difficult and 'hopeless'. That's when they need you the most.
This is what happens when you don't give up, and when you try your absolute harderest, even when it's easier to give in and say "It didn't work!" and throw in the towel. There is always another option. There is always something else you can try, even when you feel like you've tried it all.
Sid came to us in July of 2015. He and his best friend Nancy were dumped at my local animal shelter, and a friend contacted me about them, asking if I had the space to take them in. I agreed, of course, and was surprised to see that Nancy, Sid's companion, was actually a mouse. Long story short, I attempted separating them at first, but when they both became very depressed and lethargic, I decided to keep them together. Nancy, sadly, began to develop a tumor, and Sid became aggressive toward people, and extremely over-protective of her. It got to the point where I couldn't even put my hand in their cage without Sid trying to take a chunk out of me. For the time being, I left them mostly alone, except to change their food and water, and clean their cage. I understood. Sid was worried about his best friend, and could see her declining, and was doing all that he could to keep her safe.. we ended up losing Nancy in December of 2015. It was one of the most heart breaking things I ever experienced. Sid was lost. He was lonely, and depressed, and lethargic.
So I started working with him. I spent time with him every day. It started by just talking to him, standing in front of his cage and speaking to him for long periods, so he would get more used to my voice and see I wasn't a threat. Then I started giving him treats every time I passed by his cage, or stopped to speak to him. Slowly, he started emerging from his igloo more, seemingly eager to have someone nearby, or to get a yummy snack. After a few weeks, he would start clinging to the cage bars excitedly. At that point, I started petting him. Gentle head pats and ear rubs while he finished his snacks, and over time he began to allow me to reach into his cage without any issues. I didn't have to worry about being bitten any more. Sid would let me scoop him up and give him kisses and cuddles, and he began to look forward to coming out of his cage to play, and snuggle. At that point, I thought he was ready to try introductions with the other rats. I didn't want him to be alone for the rest of his life, mourning Nancy, with me being his only social interactions. I knew a few hours with me a day wasn't enough for his well being. So, little by little, I tried.
And let me tell you, I tried EVERYTHING, every tip and trick I knew for introductions. But nothing was working. Sid would get too nervous and lash out at the other curious rats, even on neutral grounds. Even after I let them explore each-others cages so they could get used to each other's scent. Even when I dabbed them with vanilla extract to remove any scents. Even when I was holding him, and allowing the other rats to sniff him. I tried one-on-one intros, I tried letting him meet the whole colony at once, I tried everything. Sid wasn't budging, he was just too scared and hormonal. So at this point, I knew neutering him and fixing any hormonal issues was the only way to go. I was a nervous wreck the day he went in for the surgery, but my amazing vet did a wonderful job, and Sid came home groggy, but safe. A week after the procedure, I attempted one-on-one intros again, with my most docile rat, in a neutral zone so no one would feel territorial.
At first, Sid was terrified. He would run to me when Axel tried to sniff him, or got too close to him. Eventually, though, after about 3 days of constant intros, Sid began to warm up to Axel. Then, they began playing. Sid and Axel would chase each other around on the bed, and pin each other, and groom each other, and fall asleep cuddling after they exhausted themselves. That was the first time I had seen Sid brux since Nancy passed. He put his little face in my hand one day while he and Axel were cuddling, and he stared up at me while I rubbed his ears, and bruxxed away. It brought me to tears, I was so moved at his transformation... it was like he was trying to say "thank you" for not giving up on him and marking him as a lost cause. It's like he knew I was fighting so hard to give him the best life he could have. And over the next few weeks, I slowly began to add more rats to their play time. I let my sweet, calm rats all meet him first, while I let my more dominant, defensive guys explore Sid's cage during their play times, so that they could familiarize themselves with his scent. After a little while, and adding one rat at a time, I finally had everyone together.
Now Sid is a normal, happy, bouncy, playful rat, and you'd be none the wiser to know about his difficult past. He snuggles in a pile of other rats at bed time, and eats sitting around the food bowl with his "brothers". He runs, and plays, and still gets excited when I walk by the cage so he can get a cuddle and kiss from his mommy. He and Axel are best friends still, they're always together, and it makes me smile. I know nothing will ever replace Nancy for him, but at least he's happy again, and Nancy would want that. Sid is the reason why I rescue, and why I don't give up. Sid was the most difficult rat I've ever dealt with, and now he's a love bug who's excited to meet anyone. The world could learn a lot from Sid. It's important to give your pets all that you have, even when you begin to feel like it's a lost cause. You are all that they have in the entire world, and it's easy to forget that when life gets busy, but do your pets a favor and never give up on them, even when they're at their most difficult and 'hopeless'. That's when they need you the most.
