gramma2jaakk
Well-Known Member
that seems totally unfair to us humans but we know is in the best interest of our little rat friends. I have decided that today will be the one when we have Polly pts. I'm sitting here crying as I type this, knowing what an impact she has made on us and Sally. Polly has only lived with us and been Sally's cage mate since August 2009, so only 6 months. But she was the Godsend that Sally and Josie needed, after losing Lucy in July 2009. And Sally needed Polly's companionship when Josie left us in October.
Polly has so many things going wrong with her all at once. I took her to the vet on January 22nd for some 'purring' she was doing. The vet put her on Trimethiprim twice a day along with keeping the vaporizor going for humidity, and that helped for a while, but now she's back to purring. She is having these respiratory issues more frequently.
She has a lump that appeared last week, and has gotten twice the size in the last 2 days. She also had HED, so is scooting around trying SO hard to walk and it is painful to watch. She can't climb on anything anymore, falling from the lowest shelves in the cage. Last week I was holding her and she tried to climb onto my shoulder, but before I could put Sally down then Polly slipped and fell about 1 foot to the floor. She wasn't hurt, but it scared me.
Polly also has been losing weight fast. I've tried everything I can think of to put SOME weight back on her, but nothing is helping. Neal thinks that the lump might be cancerous and that is why she is losing weight. And she has also been losing her hair. Poor little thing looks so sickly with patches of hair gone.
But she is still so happy! That is why this is such a touch decision. She has recently discovered the joys of the wheel. Even though she is only walking on it, she loves it. And she loves her free-range time. Polly loves to cuddle and get scritches also, having discovering that in October just before we lost Josie. Polly loves to give us kisses when she is cuddling, and grooms the top of Neal's ears and the back of my neck, which tickles! One of Polly's favorite things to do is climb into Neal's shirt at the waist and clean herself then fall asleep.
We are so careful to make sure that she is safe, sitting with our backs against the couch when she crawls onto us. We help her to the seat on the couch and block the edges when we think she is getting too close. And we have low ramps for her, but she falls off of them so we don't put them up anymore. Even to the top of a brick is too high for her.
So, with all these things, we talked about it and decided that for our love for her, it is in her best interest to have her pts. It isn't fair to her that she should go on with her life the way it is. I had to make a similar decision a few years ago when we had our greyhound put down. She was also losing weight and was having lots of other health issues, so we did the only fair things we could do for her. But none of this is fair to us. It is only fair to Polly.
I've made her appointment for 4pm today, when Neal can go with me. I already know I'm going to be a wreck.
Polly has so many things going wrong with her all at once. I took her to the vet on January 22nd for some 'purring' she was doing. The vet put her on Trimethiprim twice a day along with keeping the vaporizor going for humidity, and that helped for a while, but now she's back to purring. She is having these respiratory issues more frequently.
She has a lump that appeared last week, and has gotten twice the size in the last 2 days. She also had HED, so is scooting around trying SO hard to walk and it is painful to watch. She can't climb on anything anymore, falling from the lowest shelves in the cage. Last week I was holding her and she tried to climb onto my shoulder, but before I could put Sally down then Polly slipped and fell about 1 foot to the floor. She wasn't hurt, but it scared me.
Polly also has been losing weight fast. I've tried everything I can think of to put SOME weight back on her, but nothing is helping. Neal thinks that the lump might be cancerous and that is why she is losing weight. And she has also been losing her hair. Poor little thing looks so sickly with patches of hair gone.
But she is still so happy! That is why this is such a touch decision. She has recently discovered the joys of the wheel. Even though she is only walking on it, she loves it. And she loves her free-range time. Polly loves to cuddle and get scritches also, having discovering that in October just before we lost Josie. Polly loves to give us kisses when she is cuddling, and grooms the top of Neal's ears and the back of my neck, which tickles! One of Polly's favorite things to do is climb into Neal's shirt at the waist and clean herself then fall asleep.
We are so careful to make sure that she is safe, sitting with our backs against the couch when she crawls onto us. We help her to the seat on the couch and block the edges when we think she is getting too close. And we have low ramps for her, but she falls off of them so we don't put them up anymore. Even to the top of a brick is too high for her.
So, with all these things, we talked about it and decided that for our love for her, it is in her best interest to have her pts. It isn't fair to her that she should go on with her life the way it is. I had to make a similar decision a few years ago when we had our greyhound put down. She was also losing weight and was having lots of other health issues, so we did the only fair things we could do for her. But none of this is fair to us. It is only fair to Polly.
I've made her appointment for 4pm today, when Neal can go with me. I already know I'm going to be a wreck.
