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Parents:
Unknown x Unknown
From: HSCA
Status:
Deceased - June 4th, 2005 at 1:35 PM - companion only
Health: Fox's
health had been excellent until April of 2005 when she developed a
respiratory infection. It was treated with 0.5 mls of Cipro
twice a day. The medication helped greatly, but after being
off for two weeks she started to develop more wheezing.
She was given Sulfatrim and Children's Benadryl to clear up the
noise. Things seemed to be getting better but a sudden attack
of respiratory distress in June had her into the ER where
radiographs explained that she had abscessing in her lungs from myco.
Oxygen was not helping and her prognosis was guarded at best.
She was humanely euthanized to ease her suffering.
Temperament:
Fox's
temperament is most likely from being born at the shelter and not
socialized to people. She is shy, afraid of noises, and
slightly cage aggressive. She occasionally bites through the
bars, but never when she is out of her cage. Despite the
negative aspects of her temperament, she is a highly inquisitive
girl who enjoys free range time. Her extraordinary
intelligence keeps me on my toes and she can find her way to almost
anywhere in my room, including the top shelves of my closet if I'm
not paying attention.
Her Story: Fox
is one of those examples where "rats are like chips"
because one rat, or even three, is just not enough.
Mara's health had been
deteriorating and I decided that it is time that I should move her
to an aquarium where she won't have to use her hind legs to climb to
different levels. By moving Mara I have freed up room for a
new ratty in one of my cages. I found a litter of rats and
played with the remaining two female rats and fell in love with
Foxfire.
Fox had not had very much
hands on play time with people, so she was still a little shy of
people and was terrified of loud noises. The two of us spent
the next several days watching season two of CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation. Fox would snuggle for hours inside my shirt on
my shoulder. She has since then learned that humans are
fun to play with and now
begs to be taken out as soon as I get home.
After Mara and Kirika
passed away Fox was forced to befriend Aura. The two of them
occasionally sleep together, but Fox enjoyed sleeping in the ferret
tube instead of the cuddle cup and hammock.
She had become quite
subdued after the death of Aura. Without a friend, she spends
more time getting scritches, but enjoys running around the room and
getting into places she isn't allowed, like the top shelf of my
closet. Her cage aggressiveness completely disappeared and I
no longer needed to worry about being bitten if I stuck my hand
through the bars of her cage. Whether it was happiness about
not having a cagemate or loneliness I was never able to decide.
Foxfire developed her one
and only respiratory infection in mid to late April of 2005.
Before that she had been completely healthy and never sneezed or
wheezed. Several rounds of medication were given to aid in
combating the mycoplasma and they seemed to be working in the long
run. But things took a sudden and unexpected turn for the
worst early June 4th. She was rushed to the emergency vet with
severe respiratory distress because our primary vet was closed on Saturdays.
After several hours with oxygen and radiographs it was clear that
she had abscessing in her lungs from the bacteria and had a guarded
prognosis at best. After observing Fox huddled in a corner of
her oxygen filled cage I decided that it was best to not force her
to suffer through the weekend when the vet didn't believe she would
survive it. She was humanely euthanized at 1:35 pm.
The unexpected ones are
always the hardest to deal with. Fox was young in comparison
to my other rainbow rats and that is the hardest part to deal
with. I will always love her and can't wait to be reunited at
the Rainbow Bridge.
The Many Faces
of Fox
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