Alas poor Larry

Well I just discovered a dead Larry in his cage just now. I should have figured something was up when he was so quiet last night but I was too tried to think. We are now hamsterless and not intending to change that just now. Evan did get a kick out of a furry little animal but I hated that he incessantly chewed the cage. I feel bad that he died so young, but then he did not come from the best breeding so a long life was not as likely.

I am glad that Evan is still young enough that this will not end up being a huge ordeal. I remember having guinea pig funerals when I was a kid. My sister E's was the first one to kick the bucket and we gathered all of his progeny and his "wife" (they had to be married to have kids duh!) together. My sister wrote out a eulogy and the other g pigs snacked on grapes. Poor Trixie (yes he was male and named Trixie. He was a she when s/he came home from the pet shop and by the time we found out the true sex the name was stuck) was interred in the back yard in a wooden coffin made by my father.

Other funerals were not nearly as elabotate, but a big deal was made every time one of our many animals snuffed it. I think my dad was glad once we got to be older and stopped getting so dramatic about the death of an animal. My personal animals did not die until I was in college so there were no funerals for mine. My rabbit Fleta had to be put down due to complications to old age. I held her as they gave her the shot and she was later cremated with a ton of other animals. One of my g pigs died when I was at school and I have no idea what my parents did with her. The mother of the family, my darling Squeaky was the last of them. She outlasted her whole family and died of cancer. My mother had her put down rather than see her suffer.

The saddest animal death for me was my cat Norbert. I got him right after we moved to San Diego. My husband was going to be gone for three months to pick up the boat that he had been assigned to. It was brand spanking new so the crew had to put her through her paces. The shipyard was in the south so they had to also get her to her home port. I didn't want to be alone in the apartment so we rescued a black kitten from the animal shelter. He became my buddy during a hard time in my life. He was truly a member of the family, sleeping with me in bed and having the run of the house. Shortly before me moved north he started throwing up a lot. He would eat his food and then throw it right back up. He has developed cancer in his stomach and it was preventing him from eating. It was a very sad day when we had to put him down.

Death is never an easy thing even if it is the death of a tiny annoying little rodent. Larry will be missed.