Meet My Zoo.

RATS:

ABU. (Abu Marshmallow Reptar)

Birthday: June 1, 2010

Abu is a petite little girl who is almost two. I rescued her out of a feeder tank at Debbie’s Pet Land when she was just a few weeks old. She was very shy at first, having not been handled at all, but she’s definitely come around. She’s still shy, but she’s my smartest rat and she really loves people. She climbs immediately into my shirt every time I hold her. She’s an absolute NINJA when she gets loose in my room. It takes HOURS to find her. She loves to hide, but she enjoys being chased around. She liked to pick on Roo before Roo passed. They were typical sisters. Yoshi and Abu would sometimes shoo Roo away when she wanted to play so they could have alone time. She lived with Sirius, but as she’s gotten sicker, I moved her in with Yoshi. She was really bonded with Yoshi. After Yoshi passed in March, I moved her to her own half of the Ferret Nation. Sirius is too rough to be with her and she wouldn’t be able to handle a young girl, either. I also don’t want to get more girls after her for a while, so she’s got all the space she wants. She spends most of her time in her hammock, or free ranging in my room. When she’s out, she spends a lot of time in the little bed Yoshi died in. Abu loves to sleep and loves to shred beds into a pile of fluff that she can hide in. She has her own bird log in the corner of the cage that she sleeps in, too. Well, she has had many - she ruins each from so much use and chewing in a few weeks. Abu is really soft, and the brown of her hood is super dark. I almost lost Abu to a terrible case of pneumonia in Fall 2011, but after lots of money and amazing vets, she’s back at home and happy, even though she’s got lots of scarring in her lungs! She’s got really bad myco, sadly, and it’s left her lungs in pretty bad condition. Poor baby girl.

BALOO. (Baloo Cheese Reptar)

Birthday: September 18, 2010

Baloo is my fat man. He is OBSESSED with food. He will literally do whatever he has to for food. He’s the alpha of all my boys. Baloo and Sora came together from Petsmart, and they’ll be two this summer. Sora and Baloo are housed together, along with Will, Hiccup, Sirius, and Godric. Baloo and Will have their issues, but get along most of the time other than feeding time. Godric and Baloo really like each other and wrestle a lot. He was quite mean to Sirius and Hiccup at first. It took eight months for him to accept Sirius and five with Hiccup. I recently got them into the boy cage and it’s so nice to have them all together! Baloo is the dominant male in his cage, and he used to have some issues with Yoshi, but in their older age, they were fine. He was the most aggressive of my rats, but he has calmed with age and wasn’t very aggressive at all in the first place. I’ve been lucky with my rats when it comes to aggression. Baloo is probably my most dim-witted rat, but he can be quite a love. Sometimes I find myself comparing him to Lenny from Of Mice and Men, which I find ironic, since he’s a rat. Hah. He’s so food oriented that he’ll immediately go to grasp your fingers in his mouth, and when he feels your squishy fingers, he stops and kisses you to apologize for the misunderstanding. He likes to hide his food in a stash in the litter box (sanitary?) and then try to steal Will’s food. I think it’s just for fun, because he knows Will will scream like a little girl and make a big fuss about Baloo being anywhere near him. 

SORA. (Sora Cream Reptar)

Birthday: September 18, 2010

Sora came from Petsmart with Baloo and lives with him, Sirius, Hiccup, Godric, and Will. He’s almost two. Sora is a shy and skittish little boy, but means very well. He’s a sweetheart. He stayed in his igloo about the whole time for the first 2 months I had him. Sora has come around, but is still jumpy at loud noises. He has deep maroon eyes, and his vision isn’t as good as my other rats, so he does a lot of standing still and swaying back and forth to see. He’s also taken up a habit of chewing the cage bars in frustration when he hears voices, mostly mine and Sarah’s. Sora is Sarah’s favorite rat. Sora loves to escape with his food so he can eat in peace, since his three other cage mates are very competitive with food. He has a high up yellow lava ledge where he always eats. He takes about 2 more hours to finish eating than anyone else. He was very submissive, until I got Sirius and tried to put him in with the boys. Sora and Sirius were immediate arch-nemisis for some reason, and Sora took a big chunk out of Sirius’s tail and stomach during introductions. It was so bad I had to neuter Sirius so he could live with Yoshi, Roo, and Abu. He was just as aggressive when I tried to introduce him to Hiccup. It took forever, but I finally got Sirius and Hiccup in with Sora and the rest of the boys. Sora really loved Yoshi, and followed him around when they played together. Sora LOVES to give kisses to anyone and everyone, constantly. He’ll groom your hands, lips, face, and he is very affectionate.

WILL: (William Butterscotch Reptar)

Birthday: November 11, 2010

Will is an interesting little fellow. He’s Roo’s brother and is not a dumbo like Roo. He’s around 9 months now, and lives with Sora, Godric, Sirius, Hiccup, and Baloo. He has the CUTEST little face I’ve ever seen, and still looks like a baby to me because of his cute little face. Will is a very vocal little man. Every night at feeding time he gives us his fair share of screeches and whines for about an hour while he and his cage mates eat. Because Baloo is food aggressive, the boys all have to be very greedy with their food to get any. This makes Will, who is already very nervous, even more nervous, and at feeding time he screeches at anyone and everything that comes near him. He’s a sweetie otherwise though, but he definitely has always been nervous. It took me a LONG time to introduce him to Sora and Baloo and get them in the same cage. Because Will was so nervous and intimidated by the older males checking him out, he would preemptively attack them, making it REALLY hard to get them together. But, eventually, him and Sora became friends, and it made Will a lot less nervous. He’s much closer to Sora than he is with Baloo, but they’ll all snuggle in together to take a nap. They get along pretty well now. Will seems to like Godric much less than the Sora and Baloo do. I suspect he dislikes not being the ‘baby’ of the cage anymore. He’s jealous. Will is an absolute love when being held. He’ll groom you and kiss you, but like Roo, he’s still very hyper. He’s recently gotten very round. I think he gorges himself because somewhere deep down he’s afraid that one day Baloo will succeed in keeping all the food in the world from ever reaching him. Will was the only one of the boys that was good with Sirius and Hiccup during introductions (save for Godric, who was hiding under the litter box the whole time). He let them do their thing, while being curious. 

SIRIUS: (Sirius Blackberry Reptar)

Birthday: March 27, 2011

Sirius has my favorite markings of any rat I have - I especially love the blaze on his face! He is the mirror image of Lisa’s (many-splendored-rat) rat Badger! He’s going to be a year old this spring. Sirius has had many issues with Sora and Baloo. He got beaten up pretty badly during introductions, and then turned really aggressive toward Yoshi, so I got him neutered so he could live with Yoshi, Roo, and Abu. He lives with Hiccup, Godric, Will, Baloo, and Sora now because he was getting to be too much for poor Abu with her bad lungs. He really liked Roo, and Roo treated him like an annoying big brother. Sirius is very sweet, and prefers people to rats. He can jump REALLY high. Since placing Sirius with Hiccup, I’ve discovered that he and Hiccup love each other. I’ve actually decided they’re gay lovers. Now that Sirius and Hiccup have moved in with the boys, Sirius seems really happy. 

HICCUP: (Hiccup Chuck Reptar)

Birthday: June 27, 2011

Hiccup is my biggest rat and is so clumsy and lazy. He’s so uncoordinated that he slides right off my shoulder when I place him there. I’m not sure how old he is because he was monstrously huge and full-grown when I got him, but assuming he was under 6 months, he’ll be a year some time this spring. I’ve estimated a birthday for him. He’s probably close to Sirius’s age. Hiccup is very laid back, which is why he lived with Yoshi, so he didn’t rough him up too much. Still, he’s a young male, and he was a little too hyper for Yoshi at times, and too competitive with food. I moved him to live with Sirius, and they were great together. Introductions with him are barely introductions unless someone else has a problem with him, seeing how he gets along with everyone, usually. The boys gave him plenty of trouble though, and by the boys I mean Sora, Baloo, and Willy. Silly men. I finally got them all together, though. Hiccup is very content being Sirius’ gay lover companion. They’re very sweet together. Upon introducing him to Sirius I discovered that Hiccup is 100% gay. He is absolutely head over heels for Sirius. He’s so affectionate with him, it’s adorable. I’ve started calling them Kurt and Blaine. Whoops. Yes, I ship my male rats together.

GODRIC: (Godric Guacamole Reptar)

Birthday: October 18, 2011

Godric is almost six months old. I got him in late December 2011. He came into Petsmart two weeks after I lost Roo, and when I first saw him in the back room, I squealed. He’s got very similar markings to Roo, but has one spot on his back, behind his exclamation point hood. I thought to myself “I can’t get any more. I have to give myself time” and I looked away for half a second, and the little guy jumped from his container onto my shoulder. And I was sold. He’s a sweet little guy and lives with Baloo, Hiccup, Sora, Sirius, and Will. He likes to sleep underneath the big boys! Baloo and Godric have tons of fun playing together. It’s really adorable to see Baloo, who’s usually so dominant, playing with a baby rat! Sora and Godric have lots of fun together too. Willy doesn’t seem to like Godric much. I suspect he’s jealous because now Godric is the baby of the cage. Sirius and Hiccup enjoy his company a lot. Godric’s an odd little guy - his xyphoid process (end of sternum) sticks out straight from his chest, so it looks like he has a big lump on his chest! It’s so weird, but I guess it’s more common than I knew. Godric is wonderful, and I’m so glad I got him.

NOT RATS:

SOSKE the HEDGEHOG. (Soske (Que)sadilla Reptar)

Soske is my hedgehog! She’s a feisty little girl. She’s still shy and rather testy. I adopted her from a friend that works at Petsmart with me. She’s very sweet when she opens up after I give her a few mealworms. I believe she’s about five months. I’ll add more as I learn more about her.

SLIGHTLY the HAMSTER: (Slightly Special Reptar)

Birthday: January 11, 2010

Slightly is a crazy little man. He’s a winter white dwarf hamster. I’ve had him two years, and I’m unsure of his exact age. He isn’t very smart, but he’s adorable. He likes to bite/nibble, even though I’ve always handled him. He’s obsessed with his wheel and with chewing the bars of his cage. He refuses to chew anything but the bars and this certain cheese chew that I found. He’s a little insane, but I love him all the same. He loves his ball, too. He rolls around my room super fast and crashes into anything and everything.

COOPER the Golden Retriever.

Birthday: January 14, 2012

This is Coop! He’s my family’s new puppy. We got him four months after we lost Riley. Cooper is an awesome little guy. He’s decidedly more hyper than Riley was as a puppy, but he’s so much fun and such a little rascal. I really adore him. He likes to take naps between my legs, as can be seen, haha. I’ll keep you posted as I get to know him better. 

LUCKY the Kitty.

Lucky was a feral kitty that we trapped by our old house. His mother had died and he was just a little fluffball trying to survive in the cold weather. He was totally wild, living in the rafters of our basement for about a year, but he eventually came around. Now he’s just a grumpy housecat, and is a wonderful addition to my parents’ house.

THE HERMIT CRABS:

I’ve got nine hermit crabs. From left to right (starting on top): Ickabod, Pinchy (adopted), Sully, Little Foot, Max, Bamboozle, Mongo, Yoda, and Alaska.  To give you a size reference, Alaska is almost as big as a tennis ball. He scares me, but I love him.

AURON the Betta Fish.

Auron is a really cool guy. I’ve had him for a while now…I think since October 2011. He’s very friendly when approached and likes to fan out his gorgeous fins at people as they watch him. I’ve never seen a betta with quite the same colors before.

BLINKIN the Betta Fish.

Blinkin is my newest betta. I bought him March 2012. He’s a simple veiltail, but I absolutely fell in love with his colors while I was at work one day. He’s very healthy and really active. He definitely has the betta attitude, too. 

The FISH Tank!

This is my fish tank. You can see my four mollies (three dalmatian and one creamsicle). The giant dalmatian is named James Dean. You can’t see his tail, but he’s almost three inches long. Biggest I’ve ever seen. I snagged him from Petsmart when the order came in as fast as I could. You can also see my betta, Eli. He’s the blue one with purple tinting. I recently added him to the tank and he’s doing wonderfully. I also have two cory catfish (one green and one peppered), an african dwarf frog, and a pleco. I can’t wait to move and upgrade my tank to a bigger size. They’re going to get crowded in there soon! They’re all really great fish. 

SWITCH the Milksnake.

Okay, he isn’t mine, but it feels wrong to leave him out since he lives in my room with all my other animals! This is Switch, Zack’s milksnake. He’s the sweetest snake I’ve ever met. He was at the Petsmart where we work for over a year before Zack bought him. He’s never struck at his food and anyone/anything else. He eats frozen, which is why I’m okay with him.

ACROSS THE RAINBOW BRIDGE:

YOSHI. Rest in peace. (Yoshi Pickle Reptar)

Birthday: December 15, 2009

Yoshi is my first ever rat and the love of my life. He’s a dumbo that I got from Petsmart and turned 2 years in December. Yoshi’s neutered, but it hasn’t made him slow down in any way. He’s my biggest rat. He was my biggest rat until Hiccup came along. I originally got him fixed so he could be housed with Abu. He has a hilarious personality. We play games all the time - he loves to be tickled and get’s really hyper and zips around. I’ve tried to make him cuddle me, but he rarely will. He’s my best shoulder rat. I take him everywhere with me, and he’s undoubtedly my favorite. He lived with Abu, Roo, and Sirius up until recently, when his pituitary tumor got too bad. Sirius and Abu were both too rough with him, so he lived with with Hiccup for a while. Recently, though, since Abu’s been getting sicker and sicker with her lungs (she’s got really bad myco) I moved Yoshi back in with Abu, and it’s been great for them both. Him and Abu are still really bonded with each other. Yoshi also has a total bromance with Sora when they play together. Yoshi and Baloo used to have serious issues with each other, but now that they’re older they’ve relaxed a bunch. Yoshi loves his hammock, but in his older age it’s hard for him to get in there. He loves to hoard food - at feeding time when I hand each of the rats one block each and then fill their bowl, Yoshi will come back at least six times for food to stash in the igloo. He loves papaya and scrambled eggs. Yoshi’s pituitary tumor sucks, a lot, but now that he’s on prednisone, he’s SO much better. I hope he lasts a while longer before he starts to suffer and I have to put him down, because when Yoshi goes, I’ll go. He’s so important to me, and I’m pretty sure he’ll always be one of my best friends, even when he’s gone. The thought of living through the rest of my life without my best friend makes me cry, and now it’s hard to type, so I’m just going to stop now.I have a Yoshi tattoo on my ankle. That way my little sidekick will always be with me. Oh, the tears.

Yoshi passed away from a pituitary tumor March 12, 2012. He died very peacefully, snuggled up with me around 4 am. I miss him so much, but I’m glad he’s at peace now. He held on for a really long time, and I know it was best for him. It’s been really hard for me, but I’m trying to stay strong. Miss you forever, Yoshi. His obituary can be found at http://theratrach.tumblr.com/post/19327630143/yoshi-pickle-reptar-dec-2009-march-12-2012.

ROO. Rest in peace. (Roo Barb Reptar)

Birthday: November 11, 2010

Roo is my crazy little girl. Notice the exclamation point on top of her head! She’s Will’s sister, and a dumbo! She’s got SO much energy and is always ready for anything. She’ll wake up out of a sound sleep to greet you. She’s a very sweet little girl, and she loves to clean fingernails. She also has a habit of nipping my toes during playtime and running away, making a game out of it. She lives with Abu, Roo, and Yoshi, and loves them all, but sometimes gets left out when Abu and Yoshi want ‘alone time’. She’s very hyper, all the time, and sometimes randomly hops on top of her cage mates to try and get them to wrestle her. She’s about 9 months old now. She always tried to escape to the top of the Ferret Nation when the door is opened. Roo likes to sit in my sweatshirt pockets and in my hood when we go out.

I lost Roo on November 30th, 2011. Roo had a large mass in her abdomen, and when we went in to try and remove it, we found that it was impossible to remove. Since she had already lost lots of weight and was having some trouble walking and was really lethargic, we figured it was cancer, the vet suspects lymphoma, and she was put down while in surgery so she wouldn’t suffer. I miss her so much, and the house is much more quiet and lonely without her.

RILEY the Golden Retreiver. (Riley Blue Whiting)

Birthday: May 1, 2005

Riley wasn’t up in my tumblr zoo because technically he’s my family dog (even though he was bought for me) and lived with my parents when I moved, but since his recent passing (December 2nd, 2011), I felt it necessary to address how important to me he was/is/will always be. People often say their dog is the greatest. I can sit here and write this long spiel about how my dog is better than yours and blah, blah, but with him, it isn’t even a contest. Because he wasn’t a dog. He was a soul, a perfect, wonderful being that spread nothing but joy to every life he touched. Never once was he a burden to anyone, and he was the smartest, most loyal, loving, and kind animal I have ever had the presence to live beside. Riley was one of my best friends in this entire world, and I’ll mourn him every day. We lost Riley suddenly, with no warning, to hemangiosarcoma. My parents spent $10,000 trying to give him up to six months more to live, and we ended up putting him down two days after his surgery. But losing him has been the hardest thing I’ve ever had to go through in my short life. And I’ve lost plenty of family members and friends and animals, but the heartbreak that I feel now is incomprehensible. I love this dog so much. While I was laying with him before he was going to be euthanized, I told him that I would gladly take his place. That I wish I could. Because I’ve already fucked up so much in my life, and the idea of living without him was so awful, and he was so young and so good and it wasn’t fair. But I couldn’t. I honestly wanted to take the cancer for him. I would have so much rather it been me. My parents probably would’ve been less upset if it was. And then I sang him a medley of I’ll Cover You/All I Ask Of You/Fix You/Sobbing. Things go the way they go, though, and so I have to live without him. I’m designing my tattoo for him, which I had wanted to get before I lost him. He was only six, I thought I had plenty of time. Now that he’s gone though, I’ve edited it. I want the words “Anywhere you go let me go too” around it, because when he was dying I told him I wanted to be with him always, while I was still alive and when we were both gone. But Riley, if you can see me, know that living without you is really hard. And I hope you follow right behind me, like you used to, until the day I die. And I hope it’s your face I see when I’m old and grey and I finally leave this earth. It’s you I’ll be looking for, even then. I love you, buddy. I’m so, so sorry. You deserved a better ending.