# New little friend's visit is already over :'(



## Rubi (Mar 25, 2014)

:'(I woke up this morning to be told by my husband that my little male was gasping for breath with convulsion like tremors and was pale and cold to the touch. By the time I reached the room he was gone. I only had him for a little over a week and his time was much too short.

I really couldn't say why he became so suddenly ill. Luckily he was separate from my girls and hopefully the disinfecting I have done of the area and anything he has come into contact with over the past few days will be enough to stop the spread of anything contagious. I really don't know what else I can do at this moment except watch my girls closely for labored breathing or really anything since I don't know what was wrong. 

I just can't believe he went from fine to gone in such a short amount of time. I worry I just didn't know how to recognize symptoms of something I could have gotten him treated for earlier in the week or if it was simply something I could have done nothing about.


----------



## TexasRatties (Jun 2, 2013)

Awww so sorry to hear that  It's hard to know what happened. May I ask where you purchased him from?


----------



## Rubi (Mar 25, 2014)

TexasRatties said:


> Awww so sorry to hear that  It's hard to know what happened. May I ask where you purchased him from?


He was a little blue berkshire (the only blue) in a feeder bin at Petland. My kids had fell in love with a little girl at a visit to 'just look at the animals' and I ended up going back the next day and bringing home three rats because they couldn't stop worrying about the poor baby rat getting eaten. I did not intend to get a male but he was so outgoing and he really had such a sweet personality that I planned to get him neutered so he could be kept with his sisters (He was kept separate from the girls to avoid complications). I'm not really sure now if having been eaten by a snake would not have been preferable to the lonely and scary way he must have suffered last night when I was unaware. I just hope the few days of cuddling and comfort of lots of food and treats offsets the possibility. 

I did understand that, coming from where he did, there was a likelihood of illness I would have to contend with when taking them home. I just did not expect something to happen so suddenly that I could not at least provide some comfort he would have otherwise not gotten being purchased and tossed live to a snake.


----------



## Andyurgay (Jun 10, 2013)

I'm so sorry this happened to you the exact same thing happened with one of my feeder bin boys though. He was fine the first week, then got tons of red crust on his nose. I rushed him to the vet but the next day he was breathing heavy, cold and weak. He passed away that day. Who knows why they can go from good to gone so quickly. Its just unfortunately a risk with feeder bin ratties


----------



## Rubi (Mar 25, 2014)

Andyurgay said:


> I'm so sorry this happened to you the exact same thing happened with one of my feeder bin boys though. He was fine the first week, then got tons of red crust on his nose. I rushed him to the vet but the next day he was breathing heavy, cold and weak. He passed away that day. Who knows why they can go from good to gone so quickly. Its just unfortunately a risk with feeder bin ratties


Yes, it is too bad there are no breeders near my home or I would have had ratties years ago. Luckily my two girls are doing fine with no signs of problems and they were separated before so they haven't been phased. My kids are still upset though as he was so sweet but they do not regret getting him because, as they told me "It is better to die at home than be eaten by a giant snake." I can't really argue with their logic in this so for our family this has been a sad loss but we will still be able to feel grateful for his time here with us.

This has already been a sad time for us as we recently had a much loved dog pass in our family as well. I believe that the ratties have helped my family with this however, aside from the untimely passing of my blue boy, in helping my little ones understand that when someone you love dies it's ok to still keep on loving them and learn to love others too after a time of healing.


----------



## JasmineTara95 (May 25, 2011)

My lily was a Berkshire blue dumbo and she was always poorly, I live in the UK on an island just off the coast really and blue dumbos are so popular, there are no proper breeders and all the pet shops order from the same place and they are bred very irresponsibly because people want them so much  I wouldn't of chosen her but I rescued her and my other baby from a girl who couldn't be arsed. I dunno if that's the case with where you come from and the fact he was a feeder I don't know ..


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## WillowRat (Feb 28, 2014)

I'm so sorry this happened!  He must have already been sick. It can be hard to recognize sickness symptoms in a being that can't tell you about it. By the sound of it, the little guy had a wonderful, loving home. He'll always be with you.


----------

