I’m not done with the Cataclysm Safari by any means, but I’ve delayed the next … section? episode? chapter? … for a moment while I concentrate on getting basic Cataclysm information up on Petopia.
As galling as it sometimes is, many more people read Petopia than this little blog – by many orders of magnitude! – and so sharing information there is, well, more effective. At least when we’re talking about pretty tables, like what pets live in the new Cataclysm zones or what new looks may be available.
Unfortunately, that’s not the only reason I’ve been distracted. Late last week, our pet rat Ana (aka Ana “the Rat” Conda) developed an infection in her mouth, probably related to the surgery she had a while back to remove a tooth that was growing backwards into her head.
A rat with an infection in their head is a terrifying thing: the swelling put pressure on the nerves in her head, causing her head to tilt to the side and her balance to deteriorate until she could no longer walk in a straight line – and in fact could barely walk at all. The visible symptoms developed in just a few hours and my husband and I, having no idea what was wrong, understandably freaked out.
We found Ana huddling in her box trying not to move at 4am; the vet’s office opened at 7:30am so we stayed up until then and made an appointment for 8:30am. By the time I got home from the appointment I was dead tired, but we had some notion of what was going on and antibiotics to give her. Since then we’ve been watching her carefully and while her balance is improving, she may be stuck with the head tilt permanently.
Ana is in a hospital cage away from the other rats right now and we can tell that she’s lonely and that the other rats are worried about her. Margaret in particular is eating a lot less and keeps trying to get down to Ana’s cage.
In other bad real-life pet news, my betta fish Winston is dying. It turns out to be really hard to take a fish to the vet, but the fact is that he’s a (pardon me, Winston) cheap pet store betta and probably between two and three years old. So this isn’t exactly unexpected … but it’s causing me to grieve nonetheless. Given his current state, I expect him to pass sometime today or tomorrow.
Well … I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty depressed now. I think I’ll go back to my pretty tables for a bit.
/hugs
It doesn’t matter what kind of pet it is, it’s always hard to lose a friend.
/hugs
I’ve been there. It sucks. At least you were able to find a vet that takes rats,I hope all turns out well. It sucks to see your little friends in pain.
Thanks for the support. :) I don’t mean to sound like I’m … digging for sympathy. It’s just on my mind, y’know?
My bunny passed away a few days ago…it was really hard. He was pretty much the family dog: had free run of the house and came when called, among other things, and soooo soft. I hadn’t seen him for 6 months (I moved away) and I don’t think I ever said goodbye T_T
He was 10 years old, but he had a liver infection and his kidneys weren’t working. Poor guy. Anyway, I know how you feel. /hug :)
(and if you think 10 is old for a bunny, my family has another one that’s 12 and still kicking!)
My heart skipped a beatt when you said you were dead tired, my eyes just skipped a line and only noticed the word dead, and I feared the worse! But I hope Ana the rat gets better.
*huggles Mania*
I’m very sorry to hear about Ana and Winston, Mania. To me that is the worse thing about having pets, they will always leave us much too soon. I’m sure it’s not of much comfort but many of us have felt the same pain and understand exactly how you feel right now. *hugs*
One sad thing about owning fish is how short their lives can be. Me and my brother had a tank of fish growing up. And we named them all. It was devastating when any of them died. :(
I’m very sorry for Ana and Winston :( I hope Ana will be ok
Similer to Talaaya’s story, I went to Canada for 6 months, came home a month ago, and while I was up there had missed our dog JD terribly. I brought him presents, including a red coller with canada leaves on it, and couldn’t wait to come home and give them to him. in the car on the way home from the airport I told my mum about what I brought him and she gave me this look and I just knew something was wrong. She told me he tried to jump over this fence to get to the chicken coop at the new house and got stuck on the fence by his coller and he choked to death. She avoided telling me because she didnt want me upset for the plane ride. i think i cried for a week straight. He was a beautiful little white maltese/shizhu cross we adopted from the pound. We miss him :(
I am sorry to hear about your pets Mania.
When one of our guild members passes on into retirement, sometimes one of us hunters will name a pet after them so that they might live on.
It might not be the best memorial but it can be a daily remembrance.
Sorry to hear about Ana, Mania. My rat Princess has pnemonia right now, so I can relate.
It definitely doesn’t matter what kind of pet – you’ve spent time with your beta and rat and know their personalities – and so I think all of us with pets totally know how hard seeing them through an illness is. I think it may be even more so with fish because there’s such a limited amount of things you can do. Take care!
I hadn’t read this entry until just this morning, Mania. I’m so very sorry to hear that your fish is critically ill. I had a small aquarium with a betta, several flavors of corydoras catfish, and some assorted tetras back in high school. Eric The Fish – the betta – was named after a Monty Python sketch. He had tons of personality for a fish, and lived a long and distinguished life, just as your Winston has. And for a little fish only a few inches long, to be fondly remembered by his human friends is a fine legacy, I think. Cheers to Winston, and here’s hoping that little Ana continues to improve and can soon rejoin her friends.