# Oreo's story (Long post)



## Prince (Jun 17, 2016)

I wanted to make a post about my experience with raising a very troubled baby boy. He passed away at 11 months old in June of last year, but I don't feel like this should be in the over the Rainbow bridge section. I just wanted to tell his story.
Oreo was a tiny little pup at the bottom of the feeder bin when I first met him. Him and his brother were the only two left, without a mom. When I asked the store owner what happened to his mom, he told me that she had been sold off earlier in the day. I knew they would die, their eyes hadn't even opened yet. So I caved in, I couldn't resist. I took them both home.
I set up and incubator, and it only took a couple of days before their eyes had opened. It's always a very exciting thing when baby rats first open their eyes. So I picked up my baby boy and looked at his eyes for the first time. That's when I noticed he had a cataract in his left eye.
Thinking he might've scratched it, I took him to the vet the same day. The vet looked very closely at his eye and confirmed my suspicions of a cataract. She mentioned to me that a two week old baby rat having a cataract was very odd, but sent me and Oreo home.
Over the weeks, his vision slowly got worse and worse, until when he was three or four months old, it was apparent that he was completely blind. It didn't stop him from doing rat things though, he was still very happy. He loved to play, and he loved to snuggle even more. 
Then one day, I came to their cage to see that he has squeezed through the bars of his ferret nation, and was on the floor. He was dazed and very confused, he looked ungroomed and couldn't stand up. Again, I rushed him to the vet in an absolute panic.
The vet had come to the conclusion of a stroke, after ruling out all possibility of an inner ear infection. Again, very strange for a four month old baby. The vet had offered to have him put to sleep on the spot, but I declined, saying I'd like to watch him for the next week or so to see how he does. I'm very glad I did, because he seemed to bounce back drastically. He had some lingering issues, he had a bit of a head tilt and seemed to drift to the left, but he was otherwise normal after about a month. 
About a month later, he had another stroke, and had a very serious URI as a result of the compromised immune system. He couldn't really close his mouth or lick anymore. I really worried about him, but he still seemed very happy after we got the URI sorted out. He loved pumpkin pie, and he would seek people out for snuggles whenever he possibly could. Since he still seemed happy, I yet again declined multiple vets offers to have him PTS. At that point, I had taken him to multiple vets and they each ran tests and all came to the same conclusion. He had a hard time grooming himself, but his brother was a sweetheart and would always groom him morning and night.
The whole family had eventually accepted that dear Oreo wasn't quite right, but we still loved him. And as long as he was happy and wasn't in pain, we had no plans to put him down. 
After his third stroke, he didn't quite bounce back. He had trouble walking, he couldn't hold food as well anymore, and he one time was bruxing so hard he broke a tooth! That's when I had come to the conclusion that his strokes were likely caused by a pituitary tumor. We switched him onto a very high fat, mush diet which he loved. All of his treats were soft foods, and he got extra attention. Giving him treats was often a struggle, because he would get very excited, but couldn't find the treat. Even if you were holding it right in front of his face! 
This was the point where we all seriously thought about having him PTS, but again, he seemed happy, still loved his food, and would run around and play just as much as a normal rat.
His fourth stroke is what I think did him in. My mom was babysitting him when I was on a vacation to visit my in laws, so I wasn't there to say for sure. She said that he seemed very confused and spent most of his time sleeping. We had decided that the day I got home was the day I'd have him put down.
The day before my flight home was the day he lost the fight. He didn't eat his mush, and just wanted to cuddle. He passed away peacefully in his sleep, in the arms of my mother at 3am on the morning of my flight. 
I regret not being there for him at the very end, but I don't regret my choice of not having him PTS. He was happy up until the day he died, and he was never in any pain. 
Today, he's buried in my backyard with him brother next to him, with a rose bush planted for each of them. I hope there's lots of pumpkin pie for him over the Rainbow bridge, and I hope I'll see him again one day.
I did take his body to the vet to have an autopsy done to see what caused his untimely death. Turns out, he had a pituitary gland tumor bigger than anything my vet has ever seen before. The pressure it was putting on his brain was that caused his strokes, and what made him go blind.
I just hope wherever he his now, he's happy.


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## Kyuubi (Jun 25, 2016)

I shed so many tears whilst reading this, it's such a beautiful yet extremely saddening story. I feel you made the right decision not to have him put to sleep because with that you wouldn't have given him a chance to live his life to the fullest despite the problems he went through. He was really happy up until the end and it's sad how you couldn't be there for him then but at least he didn't die alone, he still had someone to comfort him and give him cuddles. Also if it weren't for you, him and his brother would have died long ago and Oreo wouldn't have had this amazing chance you have given him to live a happy life. I'm sure he's happy now with his brother over the rainbow bridge, eating all the pumpkin pie he wants. He was a beautiful rat and he looks so adorable in the pictures, both of them do.


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## Prince (Jun 17, 2016)

Thank you very much, he was a beautiful boy and I sometimes get pangs of guilt for maybe not doing what's best for him. I do think that in the end, I made the right choice. He was so friendly and loving, and even though he was definitely a bit developmentally delayed, he managed to live a fairly normal life. He was, and still is my heart rat.
Just don't tell my other rats! 

I've been thinking about posting his brothers story about his pituitary tumor, but I think Oreo had quite the interesting life story. That, and I want him to be remembered for how happy he was, despite everything.


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## keeta0 (Jun 28, 2016)

Goodness.. This post made me cry. You are such a kind person for letting him have this many chances at having a loving home and a natural life. You are so amazing for having the sweetest heart. Despite his illness, i'm positive he had pleasant memories and loved you very much.


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

He's absolutely gorgeous.


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## Kirara (Jan 28, 2012)

I really don't think sweet little Oreo could have had a better life than what you gave him <3


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