# Rest in Peace Cheech



## Alethea (Jul 14, 2010)

Rest in Peace, Cheech.
_"He passed through glory's morning gate and now he walks in paradise."_







Last night was one of the quickest and most traumatic rattie passings I have dealt with so far... I was sitting on the bed with my boyfriend when we both heard a noise that was not a normal sound to come from our only male at the time, Cheech. I jumped up, thinking he was messing around with something in the cage, but the noise happened again and again. I can only explain the noise as a chirp/gurgle noise, opening his mouth wide each time the noise was produced. I raced to the cage to see Cheech flopped on his side in the hammock, breathing hard. I went to check on him, when suddenly he seemed to go limp, sliding towards the edge of the hammock and fell out of the hammock! Some how, I reached inside the cage in time to catch him from falling to the second level below, landing in my hands like a limp noodle. The noise happened again and again, so I immediately thought that he was choking. I checked his throat, he wasn't blue and wasn't showing the typical signs of choking, so I don't think that was the case. Just last week I was reading a thread about what to do for serious choking and tried everything listed(rattie fling, etc etc) and nothing helped. This was all happening in a matter of seconds and suddenly Cheech was very limp and very still, his heart was barely pulsing and I couldn't tell that he was breathing. I laid him down on the bed, closed his eyes where he passed after making one last noise....

This was awful and my heart aches to know that I might have been able to do something more, but it happened in literally seconds. He was there one minute and gone the next  My boyfriend didn't even have time to dial the vet  

Would anyone be able to offer me some insight on what might have happened last night?


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## Alethea (Jul 14, 2010)

Here are some more pictures of my long haired little capped hooded baby <3
The sadder thing was, that he had just turned a year old in January if that information would help.


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## HuncaMunca (Dec 29, 2010)

Oh so sorry to hear about your loss, he was a real cutie.
I don't know if I'll be any help, but I've heard of people sometimes making strange gurgling sounds and such when dying. Maybe from phlegm or saliva in the throat while strugling to breathe?
Have you thought about heart failure or something similar? He wasn't very old but I know it can happen to younger people and probably rats too. Sorry to not be of more help.

Rest in Peace Cheech.


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## Alethea (Jul 14, 2010)

Thank you for your reply and well wishes.

I thought it could have been phlegm or spit, when I thought he was choking, but I opened his mouth and checked as well as I could and there was nothing in his throat and no liquids coming out. *sighs* 

I have heard that heart failure will take rats of any age, so that is not out of the question for a cause. And with it being out of no where and happening in a matter of seconds, that could be the cause. 

It's just hard wondering if I could have done more for him


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## toby (May 11, 2009)

so sorry to hear of your loss.x


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

Oh no..not Cheech, I loved seeing pictures of him, he was a really beautiful boy.

I don't know what could have caused it but I doubt you could have done anything, it sounds like it was a very quick death. -hugs- I'll tell Tickles to look out for him, they can be big, fuzzy Rexes together.


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## Alethea (Jul 14, 2010)

Thank you, Toby. It is a great loss  

And thanks to you too, Kinsey. I also loved posting pictures of my little rex babe. And thanks, I'll tell Cheech to look out for Tickles as well ^^ Rest in peace, fuzzy buddies <3


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## Alethea (Jul 14, 2010)

Good job Cheech, your once beautiful little face helped make us into the newspaper  <3 Rip little buddy, you are so very missed.


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