A Rattie Morning

Kitten fed, breakfast eaten, shower taken and ready for school.

I'm stretched out on my large fluffy bed watching the curious, complex interactions and explorations of three very sweet rats. By and large these little creatures are misunderstood. Even in the vet, and animal loving world, it's rare to find someone who adores rats, or even tolerates them.

It's sad, because rats are highly intelligent and much less likely to bite than both hamsters and mice (both of which I've had and did not enjoy as much) Rats are willing to cuddle you, learn tricks and come when called.

Olivia is the bravest of the trio, a dark silver blur running around the edges of the bed, trying to figure out how to get down and explore what looks like a fascinating landscape. She flits from one corner to another, stopping only to lick my cheeks or nibble on my socks. None of the rats like it when I wear socks. It distorts my smell and confuses them so they think that the evil sock is attacking me. They sometimes work together to take my socks off. Olivia can be irritatingly determined, like when she wants to nibble the chapstick off my lips and I keep pushing her away.

Penelope is visiting for the week. She is my aunt's rat, and she is a gentler, softer and prettier rat than Livvie. (I can say that in love) It took her a while to warm up to me, but now she sits against my hips, bruxing contentedly. Bruxing, much like a cat's purr, is a grinding of teeth noise that rats make when they are happy. Occassionally she displays other signs of affection, like licking and gently running her teeth on my fingers. She let Livvie boss her around, and is often the co-rat in her adventures.

Adelaide is harder to find. She is a chocolate brown rat who is incredibly shy with strangers. She loves mommy but is extremely cautious about venturing out from under the covers. She favors the warm spot by my feet, or being tangled up in my hair while she sits on my shoulder. For all her timidity, Addie is actually the dominant rat of the brood. She frequently puts both Olivia and Penelope in their place and she isn't afraid to take a choice bit of food that one of them might have. For some reason Addie really likes the sound and feel of my laptop's keyboard and she often tries to input her own thoughts into my blog.

I'm enjoying my rattie morning immensely. Every few minutes the girls run back to me to check up on what I am doing and chatter about their exciting finds. Rat noses poke out from under covers, behind pillows and through blinds. Rat joys are simple. Friends (and mamma) to cuddle with, yummy fruits and veggies to eat and a scratch between the ears.

'Quel