Rennie – May 2006 to January 6, 2009
Hello
Saturday morning my DH and I noticed a brown rat in our garden, picking up the dropped seed from the birdfeeders. At first we were a little horrified, as never in all our time living in this house have we ever heard of rats in the area. However, about an hour later, another rat appeared, this one brown and white! We now suspect that someone has let their rats go and they have found shelter in our yard.
This was a post on Goosemoose. An animal-lover in another city, but not knowledgeable of rats at all, posted for advice and help. Much later, the wee girl Rennie, and her new litter, plus Daddy Hobo, went to wonderful Jorats for fostering, and eventually made it to me.
Rennie was the mom of the Wildlings, or Wildthings as mamarat called her 3 half-wild boys. Those weeks of freedom after being dumped outside, that experience of fighting for survival against predators, being infested with botfly larvae (warbles) and having to have them removed at such a young age, affected her psychologically. Poor Rennie was almost as wild as her young offspring, she was barely handleable, and very frightened when she was.
Rennie and baby Teya
Happily being Auntie to the Bronlings
A year later and her 4 other daughters came home to me from a former adopter and those daughters decided that Mom Rennie was to be driven out of their Wildling Colony, so Rennie ended up with a series of domestic cagemates that she never bonded with, or was even very nice to.
Until Portia. Portia who was ill and had a tumour in her old age. Rennie let wee Portia pin her and powergroom her, letting the sweet old girl think she was boss, and would cuddle up to her when they slept and even gently groom her. Portia was the first and last rat that Rennie ever truly liked.
Portia when she was well and Rennie bookending Shadow
She’s been on her own for almost a year now, and actually very happy with the arrangement. Like her young daughter Laila, being Free was the best thing ever!! Rennie as my active little old lady with her chronic respiratory issues became an Overnighter. I would have all the rats out and Rennie would wait patiently in her cage. She knew that her cage door would be opened soon enough, and she would get the run of the room all night long. She never caused any trouble, never taunted the other rats, she just did her thing, came and visited me a few times to say Hey! And would make sure I was up in the mornings by licking my nose or forehead after I had hit snooze too many times on the alarm clock. I would often wake up to her staring at me from her open door, willing me up and making her breakfast. LOL
October 15 – Queen Rennie on her snake pattern throne
For awhile now her one-level cage has been on my bed so she wasn’t alone, and she still came out every night. But age takes its toll and I knew my Rennie’s clock was not ticking along like it should. We had been fighting her respiratory issues for about 10 months now as well.
Dec. 28 – still curious about everything and every smell with her head in the air, albeit a bit threadbare and thin
Tonight she would barely take 4 cc’s of Ensure, where before she would demand and get 10 cc’s a feeding. I cleaned up her face and her eyes and laid her on my chest. I stroked her until she bruxxed and finally slept, and then dozed off myself. Rennie was just gone at 1:10 am when I woke up.
What a life!!! Her very own life! 33 months of being a contrary unhandleable rat, to a sweet and loving oldie…always her own terms, there was nothing else really.
The last of my Family of Wildlings is gone with Mom Rennie. End of an era.
Cause some ruckus up there at the Bridge, my Rennie, find your Portia whom you waited a LONG time to be reunited with.
Hello
Saturday morning my DH and I noticed a brown rat in our garden, picking up the dropped seed from the birdfeeders. At first we were a little horrified, as never in all our time living in this house have we ever heard of rats in the area. However, about an hour later, another rat appeared, this one brown and white! We now suspect that someone has let their rats go and they have found shelter in our yard.
This was a post on Goosemoose. An animal-lover in another city, but not knowledgeable of rats at all, posted for advice and help. Much later, the wee girl Rennie, and her new litter, plus Daddy Hobo, went to wonderful Jorats for fostering, and eventually made it to me.
Rennie was the mom of the Wildlings, or Wildthings as mamarat called her 3 half-wild boys. Those weeks of freedom after being dumped outside, that experience of fighting for survival against predators, being infested with botfly larvae (warbles) and having to have them removed at such a young age, affected her psychologically. Poor Rennie was almost as wild as her young offspring, she was barely handleable, and very frightened when she was.
Rennie and baby Teya
Happily being Auntie to the Bronlings
A year later and her 4 other daughters came home to me from a former adopter and those daughters decided that Mom Rennie was to be driven out of their Wildling Colony, so Rennie ended up with a series of domestic cagemates that she never bonded with, or was even very nice to.
Until Portia. Portia who was ill and had a tumour in her old age. Rennie let wee Portia pin her and powergroom her, letting the sweet old girl think she was boss, and would cuddle up to her when they slept and even gently groom her. Portia was the first and last rat that Rennie ever truly liked.
Portia when she was well and Rennie bookending Shadow
She’s been on her own for almost a year now, and actually very happy with the arrangement. Like her young daughter Laila, being Free was the best thing ever!! Rennie as my active little old lady with her chronic respiratory issues became an Overnighter. I would have all the rats out and Rennie would wait patiently in her cage. She knew that her cage door would be opened soon enough, and she would get the run of the room all night long. She never caused any trouble, never taunted the other rats, she just did her thing, came and visited me a few times to say Hey! And would make sure I was up in the mornings by licking my nose or forehead after I had hit snooze too many times on the alarm clock. I would often wake up to her staring at me from her open door, willing me up and making her breakfast. LOL
October 15 – Queen Rennie on her snake pattern throne
For awhile now her one-level cage has been on my bed so she wasn’t alone, and she still came out every night. But age takes its toll and I knew my Rennie’s clock was not ticking along like it should. We had been fighting her respiratory issues for about 10 months now as well.
Dec. 28 – still curious about everything and every smell with her head in the air, albeit a bit threadbare and thin
Tonight she would barely take 4 cc’s of Ensure, where before she would demand and get 10 cc’s a feeding. I cleaned up her face and her eyes and laid her on my chest. I stroked her until she bruxxed and finally slept, and then dozed off myself. Rennie was just gone at 1:10 am when I woke up.
What a life!!! Her very own life! 33 months of being a contrary unhandleable rat, to a sweet and loving oldie…always her own terms, there was nothing else really.
The last of my Family of Wildlings is gone with Mom Rennie. End of an era.
Cause some ruckus up there at the Bridge, my Rennie, find your Portia whom you waited a LONG time to be reunited with.
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