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| supershea |
| Dear readers. I am fairly new to rat parenting. However, I've been initiated to a deadly activity that I want to let you know about. I initially bought two female rats. The were fine for several months, but then it appeard that they were alternately squabbling and then listless, and then sleeping curled up with one another again. It didn't seem serious - no blood, just ruffed up fur, a scratch here and there. I was told by several people that maybe they needed another rat to balance them out. I got another female and all went well for a while. Then, a few months after the third rat was introduced, she received a large slash just above the eye in a tussle. I was concerned, but was told by the vet and the pet store employee who has several rats that it wasn't anything to worry about. Well, a few days ago, I began my evening ritual of play-time before bed. What I saw in that cage was a horrible sight and one I hope none of you will ever have to experience. The most timid of the three had been beaten to the point that she was catatonic, lying in a corner of the cage in the fetal position, no blood - but bite marks on her legs and feet, one eye gashed, swollen and the red tinted porphryn (sp?) around her eyes, in a pool of her own excrement. Later, I found out from the vet that she was probably scratching at her own eyes from the stress of the attack. As it was Saturday at 8:00pm and she was still breathing, we opted to see if we could revive her - we were thinking it was shock and she would come out of it. We separated her and placed a heating pad under her cage (on low), cleaned her up, fed her drops of water from an eyedropper - but she wouldn't respond. By Sunday morning, we realized she was not going to recover - she was worse and her other eye was now damaged. We took her to a vet who works with rodents and was thankfully open on Sunday. Based on our rat's horrible condition, she recommended uethenising her. She performed a necropsy and said that from what we told her about the history of the three rats, the lack of disease or serious injury, in her experience, this was a case of extreme traumatic stress and that even though her wounds were not life threatening, she wouldn't have made it because of the mental damage that had been done and she wouldn't have recovered to the point that she would want to eat or drink. We are in agony. She was the sweetest little thing. I hate that we listened to all the "experts" when they said that fighting among rats is "normal". Please, at the first signs of scrapping, separate your rats. I will never foget the pitiful sight of that precious girl lying in her own filth gasping and rigid with fear. |
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