Let's Pretend That Never Happened: That's 'Shirly Templeton' to you, sir!

Friday afternoon Templeton passed away :( It was truly a heartbreaking moment for me. When I bring an animal into my home they are immediately loved and considered a part of my family. I just can't fathom living any other way. I love animals and that's that. Wednesday after the visit to the vet she had started eating a little, drinking A LOT, and even began to move around. Later that night she looked bad and I was concerned I would have to put her down. Thursday I started giving her vanilla ice cream because I figured that as long as she could get something down she could go stronger...let's just say that my nurturing side kicked into overload to try and save her. I didn't want to take her back to the vet because I knew that there just wouldn't be much else they could do for her, as all rats have a short life of 2-3 years, and 3 is pushing it. (Templeton was at about 1.5 years) Friday morning Eric woke me up and told me that Templeton was on the floor under the coffee table just hanging out, so I started wondering if maybe she was feeling any better. I tried giving her ice cream. A little. Her favorite snacks. Nothing. Water. A little. So I put her in her cage to rest and left for a couple of hours.When I got back home I knew she wasn't going to make it much longer. I had prayed for God to heal her in some way and I also prayed to Him that I couldn't be strong enough to put her to sleep. I knew that my prayers were being answered.
I took Templeton to a meeting with me because I didn't want her to die alone. Another hour passed and she went from bad to really bad. I rushed back home so I could at least let the sweet thing go to rat heaven in peace. The next 30 minutes took my breath away in so many ways but at least I was able to make sure she was comfortable. Templeton had always been very alert and observant...she knew her name, had favorite treats, favorite things to do, and favorite places to go to (i.e. the sofa, bookcase, etc.) So as silly as it may sound to some, I know that she knew she was loved and cared for. I just believe that all living things, ~~with the exceptions to some people,~~ deserve to have a peaceful goodbye and not die alone. So here's to my sweet rat, Shirly Templeton, who lived a lot longer than she would have if she had stayed with her old roomate ( a snake). I hope rat heaven is full of....lettuce, sugar & cheese :))