# Rock On at the Bridge, Axl: 03/??/2011 - 12/25/2013



## ILoveMyMonsters (May 25, 2012)

Christmas should never have the Reaper as a dinner guest, but unfortunately, that's what happened Christmas day...it's hard losing a loved one of any kind, but it's even worse to me on a holiday meant for joy... 


I got Axl as wee 2 1/2 month old baby. My surly hairless man had just passed, and the Alban needed a companion. The pet store I work at had gotten a fresh "shipment" of dumbos, and the little awkward black one caught my eye almost immediately. His ears, whiskers, and feet were too big for his body, he still wore a crown of baby fur, and he had a 'tic' of constantly moving his mouth as if chewing --- he was too sweet to pass up.









I had the easiest introduction between rats ever with them. Since both Alban and Axl were both mellow, submissive, and generally chill, they got along great. Alban played parent: grooming and loving on him, only asserting himself when Axl acted out of line. Axl loved his big uncle Alban, who unfortunately passed only six weeks after putting them together.

Axl was too young to grow up without a companion, so I found a rarity on Petfinder: an adoptable rat in my hometown! He was a younger male, a fawn, red-eyed boy named 'Swiss.' When I got to the shelter, I found out that the group of rats they had had been abandoned, found in a cardbox next to a dumpster. None were fully socialized, several were feral (including Swiss) and wanted no human contact. I went in for the pretty little blonde, and somehow brought home the mangy, black, aging 'monster' that is Tanto. The sweet, licky boy I found quickly morphed into a twitchy, hormonal, and generally insane rat. After a few months of his escalating aggression, I got him neutered for Axl's sake, and the two calmed down.

The two would bicker...















But Axl never became the hormonal lion that Tanto was. He tolerated Tanto's surliness and general a-hole attitude with a patient paw. He grew into a somewhat small male, very gentle and loved to lick...




















His intelligence had me from the beginning. He is by far the best "genius" rat I've had. He quickly learned his name as a baby, and would 'ask' me to pick him up from the ground by rearing on his legs and clasping his front paws open and shut, reaching for me like a toddler. He knew how to escape virtually any carrier, cage, and attempt to contain him. Any foreign object in my hands captured his fascination. Puzzles were solved easily, and most conventional rat toys seemed to bore him. He hated cuddling most of his life, preferring to explore the world beyond his human.


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I knew that getting another rat from the pet store was probably an unwise idea. I had seen so much heartbreak with both 'fancy' and 'feeder' rats of pet store stock dying at young ages. I risked it anyway, and Axl reminded me last month why I should have been leery. At just 18-19 months, he had a stroke. He lost use of his rear legs, but was mentally sound. I started nursing care once he came back to me from their foster mom, and he was high maintenance: baths, sponge baths, cleaning his ears, nails, making sure he was fed and watered, cleaning bedding, etc. 







Slowly, but surely, he began to improve. He became able to drink and eat in his new, adapted away. He groomed mostly normally, even grooming Tanto while they slept together. His bad rear legs were just another puzzle for him to solve. His legs were starting to regain feeling, and I was elated yesterday morning to see him starting to kick his back legs while I bathed him. The fact he had survived a stroke with minimal damage was amazing in itself, but the fact his legs were coming back was a miracle to me...that didn't last.










I came home last night with my boyfriend after a day of Christmas festivities, and found Axl laying on the cage floor, like he often did. I noticed his eye bugging out and picked him up, and he was drooling and went limp. We rushed him to the emergency vet only to find out he had a second, catastrophic stroke. I made the decision to have him put to sleep. My boyfriend was crying, and so was I. I kissed Axl on his still-awkward dumbo ears and handed him off to the vet. 

"I love you buddy, but I think God wants you to come home." 



Rock hard like the Guns N' Roses frontman you were named after, my sweet boy...









*FOOTNOTE: *Axl is my last pet store rat, and it's easy to see why. His premature death from an aliment that shouldn't have taken him so soon is a devastating ripple effect of bad genetics and poor breeding. Sure the little babies in the window are cute, but I implore you guys that read this, please, please go to a responsible breeder or save a life from the animal shelter. The majority (not all, but most) of pet stores, especially the large chain ones, buy from horrific animal mills that care only for money and none for their animals' welfare. The immediate gratification of a new baby rat is not worth the heartbreak or your beloved pet's suffering. I loved Axl - he was the adorable, crazy-eared genius who always wanted a kiss or hoodie ride - but had he come from a more stable genetic line, he would probably still be around.


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## Mouse&Bun (Dec 24, 2013)

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's never easy to say goodbye, but it is exponentially harder when they are so young and taken by illness. I too have learned the hard way about pet store rats and will never purchase one again.


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## Endgame (Dec 21, 2013)

He was a fighter, that was a nice story.. 

Sorry for your loss.

R.I.P Axl ; Rock On.


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## Gannyaan (Dec 7, 2012)

I love that stretchy yawning picture 
.... RIP little genius rat. Sounds like you will be missed ... <3

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## Endgame (Dec 21, 2013)

That's him rockin'.


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## PaigeRose (Apr 12, 2013)

RIP <3 what a sweet story.


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## TachisMom (Oct 17, 2012)

I am so, so sorry for your loss. *hugs*


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## ILoveMyMonsters (May 25, 2012)

Wow...thank you to those of you who have replied. I am not the most active user of this site since I'm pretty busy and I've been pleasantly surprised by the condolences I've received thus far. I expected a lot less.


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## ILoveMyMonsters (May 25, 2012)

I also just realized he was born in 2012, not 2011. I was not really thinking properly when I first posted this.


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## Cstaar (Mar 7, 2012)

Rip Axl you were an amazing and much loved rat. Play hard at the bridge x

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## RexRat (Nov 29, 2013)

Rest in peace Axl<3
I loved reading about him. I'm so sorry for your loss.


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