Pepper

Pepper was a rat i adopted back on December 26th, 2024, she was a skittish lady for a bit, not enjoying anything but after a lot of patience she became my little buddy, she would sit on me as i did homework, helped me get through spells of depression and even was with me through my first breakup and starting my anti-depressants, she’s not only missed by me but her two sisters salt and juniper. She was such a silly girl and her favorite snacks were Cheerios, yogurt and she always liked to steal bites of my toast in the mornings. I plan on getting a memorial tattoo of her in a few months, not only for her but specifically in memory of all my rats i have now, and will have in the future. she was truly the best friend i could have asked for, and she even made people who originally hated rats see how amazing they truly are. her favorite activities were cuddling with me or her sisters, playing on my piano when i was trying to practice or getting treats from my mom. eventually though, in about November she developed two tumors on her mammary glands, which i was monitoring, but eventually they got so large i took her to the vet for a quality of life check, and they told me what to look out for and gave me some medicine and told me i was doing good for being a first time rat parent. earlier in march she began to decline, and got a wound on one tumor. she wasn’t happy anymore, she was still eating but she hated her medicine and didn’t want to play or do things she used to like so i decided it was time and scheduled the appointment for two weeks out. the day before her birthday one of the wounds got infected, and even though i cleaned it, it just got worse, so i knew i had made the right call. the day i put her down was probably the hardest day ever but i know it was the kindest thing i could do, she passed in my arms peacefully at 5:41 march 16 2026. i will always love her, but she never went a day in my care where she was unloved, and her memory will live on with me for the rest of my life.