Athena and Squeakers came to me in 2004, my sophomore year of college. They were my first rats and I made a lot of mistakes with them, but they taught me so much. Unfortunately, as they were my first rats I also didn't take nearly enough pictures of them. I don't have ANY photos of Squeakers at all, and the pics above are the only surviving pictures of Athena. They were both PEW girls pulled from the feeder bin at Petco. At the time, feeder rats were about two dollars cheaper than "fancy" rats. Since then, there's been some pressure on pet stores to stop selling live feeders, so most pet stores are now having owners sign adoption contracts guaranteeing the pet will not be used as food. It's a small step in the right direction.
Anyway. Squeakers died just a few months after she came to live with me, of unknown causes. She died in my hands and I will never forget it.
Athena lived on for just about two years. She grieved terribly when Squeakers died and become somewhat vicious. I never tried to give her another friend, although I wish I had -- it would've made her life much happier. Despite being territorial (and sometimes downright bitchy) Athena was a lovely girl.
She was put to sleep after a long struggle with respiratory disease. I was out of the country at the time, so I don't know all the details...the person who was rat-sitting had to make an extremely difficult decision that night!
Squeakers and Athena were my gateway rats, the ones that really started my love for rodents.
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