Guest
I can see I may not be welcome in this forum.
Sigh.
I am the previous owner of Jack, Bambi and Dumbo. I am the one who had to find new homes for them b/c my young daughters are allergic to them. I am the one totally embarrased at their lack of good health and if everyone here would like me to disappear I will.
I just want to say that I have had ratties for many years and have done more than my share of rescues and paid more than my share in Vet bills. When we had kids we stopped getting rats b/c we no longer had the time we used to for them. I missed them though and ended up with Jack and Dumbo and Bambi. My then 4 year old daughter named them.
My rats may not have had as much attention as other ratties over the last month or two, but they have been cleaned, fed and watered and snuggled when there was time. The cage was only stinky when it was picked up b/c the water bottle had been squeezed while the cage was at the front door b/c my hubby had forgotten to take it off the cage for the trip. The cage got very wet while I was at work apparently, and wet cages do not smell good. I'm sure there were some food scraps in there too from the cage being upstairs with kids who eat constantly. I CLEAN MY RATS' CAGES DILLEGENTLY!!!! I was most upset and am in tears now at some peoples' comments who don't even know me.
We had cats who we also had to find homes for b/c our daughters were allergic and the cats were fed in the basement. The kids liked to feed the rats with the cat food and no matter how often they were told not to, you can't be there 24/7. I was sure that was the problem with the ratties' skin b/c they were getting too much protein. I've had mites before and treated it and just didn't even consider mites b/c they hadn't been around other rats, nor had we, and we had a good year without rats before getting these.
The rats WERE NOT SNEEZING the week before they went to their new home!!! It must have been the stress of being moved upstairs and driving in a car that started the sneezing. I do feel sick about the tooth thing b/c Dumbo never stopped eating and was a fat rat. She never indicated she was in pain and I had no idea she was hurting.
I assure you, I have no intention of getting rats again, but only b/c my youngsters have Diabetes and allergies and I cannot expose them to anything that might compromise their already seriously compromised healths. When they are all grown up and I have the time and space I WILL have rats again. I have apologized profusely to LA and Mamrats and anyone else involved in my rat rescue and was so upset to join this forum to make some more rat friends and find this thread.
I cannot thank LA and Mamarat enough for doing everything they did, and for you guys for all your advice to LA. I feel as bad as she she wasn't able to take Jack after all this. I was honest about the Platinums being a bit nippy b/c when we got them I almost lost my newborn baby to something called RSV. I found her at home blue, eyes open and not breathing. My new platinums took a backseat during all this and I was at the hospital with my baby on a ventilator for 3 weeks after I got her breathing again and she was airlifted to Mac in Hamilton. I'm sorry the rats weren't handled, but I had another priority at the time. They were standoffish when I got them and I could not predict I would not be able to give them the handling they needed. Now I have 2 young daughters with Diabetes and that really reduced my rat cuddle time too.
There it is. I'm sad, I'm upset, I'm frustrated, I'm embarrased, I'm angry. Most of all though I'm grateful to LA and Mamarats.
Sigh.
I am the previous owner of Jack, Bambi and Dumbo. I am the one who had to find new homes for them b/c my young daughters are allergic to them. I am the one totally embarrased at their lack of good health and if everyone here would like me to disappear I will.
I just want to say that I have had ratties for many years and have done more than my share of rescues and paid more than my share in Vet bills. When we had kids we stopped getting rats b/c we no longer had the time we used to for them. I missed them though and ended up with Jack and Dumbo and Bambi. My then 4 year old daughter named them.
My rats may not have had as much attention as other ratties over the last month or two, but they have been cleaned, fed and watered and snuggled when there was time. The cage was only stinky when it was picked up b/c the water bottle had been squeezed while the cage was at the front door b/c my hubby had forgotten to take it off the cage for the trip. The cage got very wet while I was at work apparently, and wet cages do not smell good. I'm sure there were some food scraps in there too from the cage being upstairs with kids who eat constantly. I CLEAN MY RATS' CAGES DILLEGENTLY!!!! I was most upset and am in tears now at some peoples' comments who don't even know me.
We had cats who we also had to find homes for b/c our daughters were allergic and the cats were fed in the basement. The kids liked to feed the rats with the cat food and no matter how often they were told not to, you can't be there 24/7. I was sure that was the problem with the ratties' skin b/c they were getting too much protein. I've had mites before and treated it and just didn't even consider mites b/c they hadn't been around other rats, nor had we, and we had a good year without rats before getting these.
The rats WERE NOT SNEEZING the week before they went to their new home!!! It must have been the stress of being moved upstairs and driving in a car that started the sneezing. I do feel sick about the tooth thing b/c Dumbo never stopped eating and was a fat rat. She never indicated she was in pain and I had no idea she was hurting.
I assure you, I have no intention of getting rats again, but only b/c my youngsters have Diabetes and allergies and I cannot expose them to anything that might compromise their already seriously compromised healths. When they are all grown up and I have the time and space I WILL have rats again. I have apologized profusely to LA and Mamrats and anyone else involved in my rat rescue and was so upset to join this forum to make some more rat friends and find this thread.
I cannot thank LA and Mamarat enough for doing everything they did, and for you guys for all your advice to LA. I feel as bad as she she wasn't able to take Jack after all this. I was honest about the Platinums being a bit nippy b/c when we got them I almost lost my newborn baby to something called RSV. I found her at home blue, eyes open and not breathing. My new platinums took a backseat during all this and I was at the hospital with my baby on a ventilator for 3 weeks after I got her breathing again and she was airlifted to Mac in Hamilton. I'm sorry the rats weren't handled, but I had another priority at the time. They were standoffish when I got them and I could not predict I would not be able to give them the handling they needed. Now I have 2 young daughters with Diabetes and that really reduced my rat cuddle time too.
There it is. I'm sad, I'm upset, I'm frustrated, I'm embarrased, I'm angry. Most of all though I'm grateful to LA and Mamarats.