Remembering Sabine

When we had to help Socks on his way a while back, and then I lost Beka the following day, I did posts with photos of them as a way to remember them. I wanted to do that when I lost Sabine on Samhain, but wasn't really in a good state of mind to do so. It's a bit late now, but I want to finally do that for her. So here are some photos, not strictly in chronological order, though I've kept the photos of her with Beka versus the younger two girls separate.

Sisters

This was from the day I brought home Sabine and her sister, Beka. Due to photo quality I'm not sure which is which.

I got them from a breeder who I met at a place sort of between our houses. Ok, we met in a gas station parking lot. Fortunately the employees there were familiar with her so they weren't trying to figure out what she was giving me. lol I assumed that she would bring them in a box that she would hand over, but since she didn't I brought them home in a bag. This is a photo I took of them in the bag while mom drove us home.

Sabine on left, Beka on the right

Maybe one of my favorite photos of them, and not just because it showcases my fine crafting skills by showing a fancy hammock I made them.

Piano!

I was playing around getting photos, and decided to introduce Sabine to the piano. You can just see her nose poking out of my sleeve. I'd say she wasn't impressed.

Grooming

 Here Sabine was getting groomed by her sister, Beka.

Munching

How does she look so cute while munching on a treat?

Climbing

Sabine was quite a climber. Here she's climbed my bath robe that's hanging on my wall, and she's pretty much at my eye level. So, five feet up. After snapping the photo I moved her to safety.

She was pretty good at climbing, but did fall on occasion. I'm pretty sure that's how she broke a rib, though I didn't realize she'd hurt herself until I could feel the bump where it had healed up. Once the vet told me what I was feeling under her skin, I finally understood why she'd didn't want me petting her for the previous month or so. Of course she didn't want me touching her much, her rib was broken!

Sisters

A sad photo, this was in the last few months of Beka's life. At this point Beka's mobility was pretty limited, and if I remember correctly Sabine would move food closer to where she was.

Lonely

Another sad photo, or sad to me, since I know it was taken after losing Beka but before getting the two girls I have now. Sabine was really alone. And yeah, she had me, but a human friend isn't the same as a rat companion.

Sabine, Niki, Kora

After I got the two girls I have now, I took all three of them to the vet. I brought Sabine in a different carrier, but she decided to hang out with the younger two once we got to the vet's office. Sabine's hiding in the back of the carrier here, while Kora is being adventurous. 

Sabine and the younger girls

All three of them hanging out together. Based on size I'll say that's Sabine on the right, and based on scruffiness/head shape I'll say that's Kora on the left.

Don't ask me why all four rats look so similar. I really did not plan this. Beka and Sabine were from the same litter, and I'd say it's a good bet that Niki and Kora were from the same litter, and I don't think it's surprising for sisters to look like each other. Then it's just coincidence that the first rats I found at the Human Society to bring home as company for Sabine looked like her.

Just hanging out

The three of them in a hammock. Sabine on the right, and I think that's Niki on the left.

Without going into lots of details here (I wrote other posts about it and don't feel like writing it all out again), I did have to separate Sabine from the younger girls for a while. She and Niki were butting heads since both are naturally dominant, and I worried that a fight would turn bad. Once age forced Sabine to slow down I was able to reunite them and things went well.

I detect bRATtiness...

Sabine spilled coffee on my desk, then started drinking it. So of course I let her while I took photos.

I named Sabine Curlywhiskers after two characters from the Beka Cooper books by Tamora Pierce. One was Sabine, a fierce lady knight who is best not crossed in a fight but also who makes the best of friends, and she can drink anyone under the table. The second Achoo Curlypaws, a scent hound who has the best nose you could ever hope to find. She knows she's a working dog, but she also knows how to relax and enjoy a cool autumn day when the breeze is kicking up fallen leaves.

I miss Sabine, but maybe she's playing with Beka now.

Samhain

I admit it, I'm one of those Pagans who requests time off from work for Samhain. And this year I decided that I may as well make it a four day weekend, so I also requested Friday off. Happily, I got off the days I requested.

As I said yesterday this was perhaps the best Samhain/Halloween I've had. Which may be a little strange since we didn't get any trick-or-treaters at my parent's house, and I didn't dress up. However, I did spend the day with my wonderful boyfriend. We watched some movies, including some old Halloween episodes from the Simpsons. He'd also said that he wanted to read me some Edgar Allan Poe poetry, and I said that I will not argue with my boyfriend wanting to read me Poe on Halloween.

Of course, Samhain is also a time to remember those who have passed in the last year. And this year I remember...

Socks, an elderly cat who finally needed to be helped on his way in January. He was a very interesting cat, who liked to bite yet somehow was very sweet. My parents got him for me when I was young, but was eventually more attached to mom than to me. Still, towards the end, he took to sleeping on the foot of my bed and then under it.

Beka, a pet rat who had been very sick and who I'd still hoped to save. We lost her the day after Socks. I remember her stealing an acorn off my altar and bringing it back to me before munching on it, and also that she would lick my face when I cried. She was absolutely lovely.

Grandma, who passed just a couple weeks ago. She'd been in hospice so it wasn't a surprise, and we had known she was in her final days. Still, I'm not sure how to deal with it. I've finally realized that mixed in with my grief is resentment, since she'd never seemed really interested in meeting my brother and me, though she said she was proud of us and loved us. Regardless, it's hitting me hard, as evidenced by the fact that my migraines started within a week after she first went into hospice last May. It took me until the migraine that developed when we knew she was in her final days to make the connection, though.

Great-grandma Sadie, who died before I was born. Towards the end grandma said her mom had visited her and told her that she would be home soon. I also want to mention that I was the first girl born in the family after grandma Sadie died, and am named for her. I've got the name Sarita instead of Sadie though because she apparently hated her name, and both of these names are forms of Sarah.

I also spent some of Samhain spinning yarn. I don't know why, but it somehow seems appropriate to create things on that day. Maybe because even though all lives eventually end the world still goes on, and making things is a good way to remind myself of that.

Beka

I want to share some photos of Beka, just like I did for Socks. And then hopefully this blog will become less depressing, and I'll stop writing about losing two pets in two days.

There are fewer photos to share. Partially because I've shared some already and would sort of like to avoid repeats, and I also don't have 18 years worth of photos for this one. (She was only born in June 2011.) Also, I'm trying to stick to photos that don't include Sabine, and a lot of them do include both rats.

How often do you find pets climbing the artwork on your walls?

Beka went nose to nose with Kokopelle through the cage wires. I was quite impressed.

I had to share this one of both Beka and Sabine. Beka's on the right.

Beka was quite fond of coffee. And alcohol. lol Oh dear girl...

I also want to share a video I made of the two girls when they were about three months old. You can tell them apart by looking for a white tip on Beka's tail and a stripe down Sabine's head.

And now Beka

Beka gave up sometime yesterday. I'm not sure exactly when it was that she gave up. But she pretty much nibbled at her food in the afternoon, and then had zero interest when I tried feeding her the prescription canned food last night. And that's when I knew.

Even though I didn't entirely expect her to be alive today, it was still painful to confirm it. Especially since I thought I saw her breathing a little, just before I touched her and realized she was cold.

In a way this is harder than Socks' death because I have so many questions. Questions about what I could have done differently for her, since I had still hoped she would recover. Yes, I knew I might have to make the decision to help her on her way, like we did with Socks. But there was still one more medication to try her on before making that decision. And we didn't even get to it.

Presumably it's the ear infection that got Beka in the end. Mom thinks there may have been something else going on, and I saw one or two symptoms that I thought might suggest that. Things I was going to talk to the vet about tomorrow. (Do you know how much fun it is to call the vet and say "Sorry, I have to cancel because Beka is dead"? It isn't very fun.) But I don't know if there was also something else in the picture. All I know is that an ear infection is all it takes with rats.

I took Beka to be cremated today. On the way I kept half expecting her to jump out of the box she was in, fully alive and healthy. I've no idea why. And I have no idea what I'll do with her ashes.

...and in this all I have to figure out what to do about Sabine, my surviving rat. Rats are very social critters, and they really need playmates. The obvious solution is to get another rat, but I'm not really in a position to do that. So I guess I'll have to give Sabine extra attention and hope it's enough.

Beka, eating an acorn she stole off my altar

Life isn't fair

Today's post is going to be partially a rant about how unfair life is, and partially to cry. And, although I'll keep it clean, I really can't accurately describe how I feel without resorting to profanity. And I'm normally not the type to use profanity.

About a couple months ago the vet told me that Beka's front teeth are crooked, and that they needed to be trimmed. He said they'll need trimming...I forget exactly how often. Maybe three to four weeks. But I was supposed to be ok waiting three weeks between a trim.

Turned out three weeks was too long. Beka's teeth grow too quickly, or something, and it wasn't a good situation when I brought her back in for a trimming.

I wound up deciding to aim for every two weeks.

On the two weeks schedule I was supposed to bring her in for a tooth trim this Wednesday. Then last night I noticed that her upper teeth were hurting her lower lip due to their length, and realized that they really need to be trimmed several days ago.

Are they just growing more quickly as time goes by?!? That's what it seems like.

I've called the vet and will bring her in late this afternoon for the trimming. That's the soonest they could get her in.

(I should acknowledge here that it is possible to trim the teeth at home. But I don't have the necessary knowledge, and from what little I know I'm not sure that I have the tools either. And I'm afraid I would just hurt her worse in my ignorance.)

Good thing she's already on meds (due to her ear infection) that will help with the pain, and they'll also keep any hurts inflicted by her too long teeth from getting infected. And from what I'm seeing, they'll both be be helpful with her tooth situation as it is at the moment.

At the risk of sounding self centered, when this post is really about Beka's situation...my emotions are a mix of upset, anger, and guilt. I know that not all of these emotions are reasonable. Anger isn't helpful, especially since it's with the situation instead of being directed at a person. And there's no reason to feel guilty when I'm already trying to do my best for Beka.

I hope that Beka and I both feel better after her tooth trimming today. And her next trimming will be less than two weeks out.

Really, she doesn't need to deal with this in addition to fighting off a lingering ear infection that still has her crawling around on her side. She doesn't need this.

Rat in coffee cup. Because it's too cute, and this post is too serious.

Found at clker.com

Rat teeth

Yeah, a weird title for a post. But it's what this post is about.

Stay tuned to learn about rat teeth, and about what can happen when they go wrong.

Funny thing about a rat's front teeth is that they keep growing, always and forever. This means that rats have to continually chew on things to keep their teeth a reasonable length. But...sometimes they can't.

Beka's front teeth have somehow gone crooked, and she can't gnaw them down anymore. One of her lower front teeth is actually pointing back into her mouth, and that's BAD. That tooth was already poking a hole in the roof of Beka's mouth when the problem was discovered. You can imagine how horrified I was when the vet told me that.

Luckily, there's an easy solution: we trim Beka's teeth for her.

I'll be taking Beka to the vet to get her teeth trimmed regularly. I guess I could learn to do it myself, and part of me feels like that's the truly responsible thing to do. But I know it can be tricky, and I would be too scared of cutting her tongue.

In addition to routine tooth trimming I now have to break Beka's food into bite sized bits for her. It turns out that rats use their front teeth to do that job, and that with her teeth so crooked Beka can't do that anymore

This will be a life long thing for Beka. There is no way to fix her teeth. Yeah, I could have the problem teeth removed, as the vet suggested, and it's not like they're doing her any good anymore anyways...but I don't want to put Beka through dental surgery unless absolutely necessary. And it isn't necessary, so long as they can be trimmed.

I'm just glad we caught this problem, and that I don't have to do the trimming myself.

Furry Friends update

Beka

Remember Beka has an ear infection that resulted in an emergency visit to an animal hospital? Well, it's taken a while, but she's showing enough improvement that I'm finally relaxing. She's more active, has more control over her movements, and actually tried to crawl out of her cage today when I brought her medicine!

Odd thing, though...we noticed a small bald patch yesterday. When I took her to the vet today (we'd already had the follow up visit scheduled) he said it just looks like over grooming. We suspect Beka's sister is to blame. So we'll keep an eye on it, but no worries for now.

Here's a pic I took today right after I gave Beka her medication, and Sabine a treat.

Sabine on top, Beka with the bald spot

Socks

In the last two weeks Socks has taken to sleeping on my bed. I really have no idea why. For ages he's slept on my parents bed, so this is a weird change. I'm not sure if he's ticked off at mom, is trying to get away from dad, has gotten ticked off at dad's cat, is trying to invade Kokopelle's space (not that my kitty seems to care), or has suddenly decided that he likes me.

Whatever the reason, his presence can be nice when my feet are cold. Though I wish he'd stop tracking bits of kitty litter onto my bed.

Kokopelle on the left, scruffy Socks on the right

Update on Beka

You may remember that Beka had a nasty ear infection that resulted in an emergency trip to a pet hospital.

Good news is, she's improving! Not as quickly as I had hoped, but there is definite improvement.

Beka has still got her head tilt, but she is more enthusiastic about taking her meds (or "treats" as she thinks they are) and actually climbed out of her cage today for her meds (um, "treats"). She's also much less disoriented now.

And just because I just have to share a cute pic, here's one I took of Beka and Sabine maybe a week ago.

Beka in box, Sabine outside box.

I put Beka in a box to keep her out of trouble (that is, from trying to climb things and then falling down due to her lack of coordination) while cleaning their cage. I put Sabine in the box also, though with no real expectation of her staying in. And of course, Sabine escaped to go exploring.

Much to my surprise, Beka did manage to escape her box. At first I was irritated by this. Then I realized that it was probably a good sign for her health, and although still annoyed, my displeasure turned to pleasure. But it did mean that I had to keep switching between cleaning and stopping escape attempts.

Poor Beka

Less than two weeks ago I took Sabine to the vet for an injury to her toe. I was concerned, but not seriously afraid for her health.

But now I'm rather worried about Beka.

She started tilting her head Saturday night. I had to wait until Monday to call the vet, and took her in on Tuesday. I was told it was an ear infection, and the vet sent me home with meds for her.

Then last evening Beka's balance went really screwy, and she became disoriented. Thank gods mom thought about the Dove Lewis emergency hospital for pets, because I had never really given the place any thought.

(Also, thank gods mom paid for the visit.)

The emergency care vet who I saw was very up front about not being an expert on rats, but said that she didn't think Beka was in any immediate danger. She sent info from the visit to my regular vet, who I have another appointment with in about four hours.

And as though this weren't enough to upset me...I've got some people in the NW rat group I'm part of telling me that my vet isn't worth anything. After some consideration I have chosen to trust some local vets I've spoken with who tell me that he's good (since not only are they local, they're also vets), but I've got at least one person in the group ticked off at me for who I've been taking my rats to.

...I keep removing then adding back in the paragraph about the rat group people being displeased with me, but it's part of the whole situation so I guess I may as well share it. Also, in case any of them somehow find this blog, I do want to just provide some explanation for why I am returning to my regular vet rather than finding a new one.

Any good vibes for Beka would be appreciated. She's lost weight and acts like she's drunk.

Rattie owies

Both of my rats like to get into trouble. Beka gets into trouble more often than Sabine, but Sabine gets into worse trouble. For example:

1) One broken/cracked rib last winter -- I'm sure it was from climbing and falling

2) One front toe that was injured two months ago

3) Another toe that was injured a couple days ago

I noticed the new injury two nights ago, and I have no idea how it happened. I got mom to call the vet yesterday since I was busy, and she made an appointment for today.

We still don't know how it happened, but her toenail is either mostly gone or completely gone. (Turns out there's a bone that sticks into the toenail...so that's definitely there, it's just a question of whether it's also toenail we're seeing.) The toe is a bit swollen, and it looks painful. She doesn't act like she's in pain, but as I've said before rats are good at hiding it when they're suffering. :(

I want to know how this happened!

But we've got a medication to prevent infection, and Sabine should be fine.

Who knew that one rat could be so accident prone? It's got to be because she has a knack for trouble.

And because just have to share a happy photo...here's one of Beka (I think) in their plastic igloo that they like to turn upside down. Sorry about the poor quality, but I was trying to get it in poor light before she jumped up to greet me. As it is, when I took this pic she was already looking at me instead of sleeping as she'd been when I found her.

Pets

I lost a follower...how did that happen?

Anyways...

Socks

I had mentioned that the cat Socks wasn't doing to well, and wasn't expected to live much longer. Amazingly he's turned around. I think he's still losing weight, but is healthier than he was before. So hopefully he'll hang on for a while longer.

I figured that since I was going to talk about a rat, I may as well share an update about this one.

Rats

You may remember that I have two rats, Beka and Sabine. They're staying with my parents since I couldn't find an apartment to move into where I could bring them, but they're still technically mine.

A few days ago Sabine injured her paw. Specifically, one of her fingers. It's now swollen, red, and one of the bones is dislocated. There was also a bit of bleeding. I took a photo to get advice from other rat lovers, but I'll spare you that. It's not gruesome, but it's not pretty either. Sabine still uses her paw and doesn't look like she's in pain, but it's amazing what these critters can hide.

We took her to see the vet today, and came home with some meds to bring down the swelling and fight off infection. Good news is that the vet expects her to be fine! Whew.

And now the girls seem determined to chew on things. They're also trying to help me type. I guess this is their revenge for the vet visit. Yes they both went, so that Beka could keep Sabine company. Beka is more laid back than Sabine, and I thought her influence might be helpful.

Cute rat pics

I just wanted to share some cute photos of rats. Or photos of one particular rat, Beka.

True, "my" rats live with my parents. And I still feel bad about leaving them behind. But I do still get to play with them, and if I had to do it again my independence would win out over keeping them. No, actually, if I had to do it again, I would do my research before getting them, so that I wouldn't get pets that I would have to abandon.

But anyways...

The following photos are of Beka drinking various substances that I also find yummy.

It turns out that Beka likes coffee. Look at how much she drank!

Ok, I'm joking. Well, she does like coffee, I wasn't joking about that, but she didn't drink that much. I actually didn't let her drink very much at all. I really don't think that she needs caffeine.

And here I am protecting my coffee by placing my hand over the mug. And of course, Beka trying is to get through my fingers. Yeah, this rat loves her morning coffee!

This photo, and those following, were taken in January. I may have shared them on my previous blog at the time, I don't remember. But I think they're worth sharing again. :)

These pics are from when Beka discovered that sake and ginger ale go well together.

I didn't let her have much, and soon enough was protecting my yummy drink with a hand over the mug. I'm not sure how well rats and alcohol mix.

Beka tried to push my hand off the mug...

...and she tried smothering my hand with kisses.

But no matter what she tried, the hand wouldn't budge.