I am sorry I did not inform PT of this sooner, but my emotions have been slashed by this and only now do I feel I can write a fitting tribute to my beloved companion, Tia Maria the little black-hooded rat, without frustration and serious LES.
In case some of you missed the troubles that Tia encountered in her final months, please see my thread in pet general. I do not feel like bringing up bad memories again.
Tia lost her battle, which she had fought so bravely for so long, on Thursday 27th September. Her paralysis was as worse as I was prepared to let it become, and I had told myself, that if one more ailment was befallen upon her, then I would not be cruel by letting her struggle on any longer. I could not play with her life for mere days.
It came in the form of what I had suspected, but never confirmed - a pituitary tumour. On Thursday, we noticed her left eye bulging slightly. By the evening, all the sclera was exposed, and she was unable to shut it. The cornea had dried and wrinkled, and she was scratching at it in vain, evidently in considerable discomfort. There was no way on earth that I was going to subject her to such torture any longer. She was taken to the vets that evening, and laid to rest peacefully at about 7:15pm GMT, at the age of 2 years, 6 months, and 17 days.
My heart is torn as if attacked by a pack of dogs.
Tia was probably the pet I have been the closest to out of any of them. I love all my animals dearly, past and present, yet with Tia we just clicked instantly. We were pieces of a jigsaw that fell perfectly into place.
I recall the very first day I laid eyes on her, just a few weeks old, with all her baby fur and her eyes only just opening. Her mother was a beautiful animal, and Tia had her face exactly, but had her own unique pattern on her back, a ‘key’ shaped stripe, with a little black spot just above her tail. Her markings made her stand out to me from her brothers and sisters.
She was a scared little girl on her first day home, looking minute in her huge cage. She hid underneath one of the tubes for three days and refused to come out, until one day, after much coaxing, I managed to slip my hand underneath her and scoop her up, and that was the moment that we both looked each other in the eyes directly, and from that moment on, we were best friends for life.
It didn’t take her long to surface her exuberant, playful side. She was one heck of an acrobat, managing to hang upside down from the bars of the top of her cage to play tug-of-war with the fresh washing my mum had just placed there for a second. She could jump from one level of her cage to another without having to use the ladder, and on many occasions scaled the wash basket and curtains, yet was never quite so good at getting back down again.
She poured love into everyone she met. Even the most stubborn of sceptics were mesmerised by her charm and sweet nature; she was quite the ambassador of her species. There was never one occasion in her life in which she resorted to biting, the worst punishment she could give to those she disliked was probably making them feel a damp, warm patch on their newly dry-cleaned trousers…
She was one of the pets who was present when I joined PT, along with Foxy the hamster and Zsa-Zsa the cat. With both having been sadly deceased, Tia remained for over a year the only remaining ‘original’ pet, and she, in a way, always tied me to pet talk, and has since been a well-loved and rather famous member of the PT community.
She did not get the retirement she deserved. As I previously stated, I do not wish to explain all the details again. But I will say that watching her recline within herself further and further, whilst hobbling on with all her might, made me choke on tears every day. She was a model patient, always willing to take her medicine, be cared for, fed water via syringe, never once giving up that glint of hope in her eyes.
It was time for her to go, though, she deserved a rest from all the efforts she put in to stay with me.
I am raw with sorrow for Tia right now, and will be for some time to come. Nightshade has now been moved into my room, as I just could not sleep at all without the sound of an animal shuffling about or breathing. I did not sleep until last night, and have not eaten since the lunchtime before we let her go. I have never had such a tragedy affect me so before, yet I am thankful that I have some wonderful friends who have put in all efforts to brighten my spirits.
Tia Maria, will never be forgotten, here at Pet Talk, and in my heart.
Here is one of her final photographs, taken on Monday:
Yet I will always remember her like this:
Tia Maria; 20th March 2005 - 27th September 2007
She came in the form of a rodent,
Lived the life of a queen,
Died as revered as a saint.
Very sorely missed. My Pet of the Day, every day.
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