fluffydd
10-06-2015, 05:47 PM
With so much sadness, I said goodbye to my beautiful Carmilla on Monday 28th September. She was an amazing friend and I miss her so much. It still doesn't feel real and although I've tried a couple of times before now I've not been able to write a goodbye for her. And now I'm writing it there is just so much I want to write about her. This is my favourite photo of her.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/01b5fd95-81c6-4b7a-9ec5-c3db2ec5c3cd_zpsylydolue.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/01b5fd95-81c6-4b7a-9ec5-c3db2ec5c3cd_zpsylydolue.jpg.html)
Carmilla came to live with us on 24th March 2014 after I saw her advertised on Gumtree. These are the pictures from her advert. She was such a pretty miss and I wanted to rescue her from the tiny Crittertrail cage she was living in.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/baby%20carmilla_zpsdl2vdwxk.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/baby%20carmilla_zpsdl2vdwxk.jpg.html)
I loved her straight away. She was still a baby - about 8 or 10 weeks old. Her previous owners didn't tell us her name but we'd already decided to call her Carmilla. On the way home in the car when she kept climbing up into her wheel on the roof of the cage and then dropping back down again. I was so worried that she would hurt herself but there was nothing I could do to stop her. When we got home I took her up to the guest room and planned to leave her in her little cage overnight to give her a chance to settle in but she had other ideas. When I opened the door to give her some food she walked straight out, trotted about on the bed and climbed on my hand. I'd already set up a Barney cage for her and she was very interested so I held her up to the door and she stepped in. She was so excited and explored straight away. Her ears were pricked right up and she sniffed everything. She loved her big Trixie wheel and all the toys and she was quite sure that's where she wanted to live. She was so tame and gentle and friendly.
Carmilla had so much spirit and such a huge sense of adventure. She was so playful and happy. I made a big playpen for her out of correx sheets and she was able to have 2 or 3 hours out to play each night. Her tiny cage was useful in the playpen for her water bottle and sand dish. She'd make regular visits to the cage during playtime and she liked to scent mark all over the cage door. She'd scent mark everything else in the playpen too. Here are a couple of very short videos of her in her playpen. I love the way she used to bounce out of the little cage door.
Jumping out of her play cage
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20141029_224324_zpsksdrrela.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20141029_224324_zpsksdrrela.mp4)
In her sand dish
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_TRIM_20150112_020544_zpssf5kd9py.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/TRIM_20150112_020544_zpssf5kd9py.mp4)
Exploring in her playpen
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20150702_234208_zpsgf2xrfhu.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20150702_234208_zpsgf2xrfhu.mp4)
Carmilla would chew the bars when she wanted to come out to play. She'd even chew the bars on the open door of the little cage in her playpen. She might be the only hamster who bar chewed when she was out to play. The rest of the playpen was full of boxes that she could explore with ladders up on to the boxes and bridges joining them together. For a time our rowing machine was standing folded up in the playpen. One playtime she managed to climb up it as far as the drink holder, about 2ft off the ground, and she looked so proud of herself looking down at me. She really was an adventurous and fearless hamster.
I also kept a 2ft tank in the playpen, half filled with fitch bedding and wood shavings, and I buried food in it for her. I always sat in the playpen with her while she ran around, and when she was ready she'd climb up on to my lap and ask me to put her in the tank. She'd burrow in the tank until she'd found all the food and then she'd pop up and ask me to take her home. Here's a another little video of her (just a few seconds) asking me to take her home.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20141019_001319_zpsuehrctun.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20141019_001319_zpsuehrctun.mp4)
Once she was back in her cage she'd depouch and wait for me to let her out again. By the time I'd hidden some more food in the playpen she'd be chewing the bars to come out. She quite quickly learnt to open her cage door so I had to keep them chained shut. She'd also climb up on top of her sputnik and chew the bars on the roof as another way to get my attention. I only managed to get one blurry photo of her on top of her sputnik as she used to jump down as soon as she saw me.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/d551263f-d46a-4a94-b7e3-7afdec414df1_zpsucrq8ncd.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/d551263f-d46a-4a94-b7e3-7afdec414df1_zpsucrq8ncd.jpg.html)
Carmilla loved to chew. She got through so many toothbrush and crocodile chews. I gave her a cuttlefish bone one morning and she grabbed it and took a big bite. She was most unhappy it wasn't food and spat all the bits out again. Then she took it off to her lair to keep it as treasure even though it didn't taste nice. One night while I was out she chewed chunks out of her willow sticks platform. Next time we were out she chewed the end of her bendy bridge and removed the hooks. I found one of them in her nest and was so worried she might have hurt her pouches with it. I was really anxious when I didn't find the other hook anywhere in her cage but it was on the floor under her cage. On another night she chewed all the bark of her platform. When that was done she started to chew that platform itself. She chewed a big chunk out of it another night when we were out. Over the next few weeks she chewed more and more of it and eventually managed to chew it back as far as the legs. She also chewed a little hole in my partner's cardigan when he was having a cuddle with her after he'd spilled a tiny drop on Cointreau on it.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/Carmilla%20chewing_zps8v5pdadu.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/Carmilla%20chewing_zps8v5pdadu.jpg.html)
Carmilla never lost her spirit. As she aged she started sleeping more but was just as busy during playtime, running around like a little clockwork hamster. On her last night when her heart was failing she still wanted to play although she spend more time resting than exploring. When I put her home after she fell asleep in her playpen she straight away chewed the bars to come out again and her eyes were bright and ears pricked like usual, but she had so little energy. i couldn't resist her little face asking to come out so I spent more time with her resting in her playpen. Eventually I got her to stay back in her cage but I didn't want to leave her. Next morning I found her huddled in her sand dish and her breathing hard. I waited with her in the car at the vets until it was time for our appointment. She enjoyed the sunshine but didn't want to stay in her carrier. We had a cuddle but she was still restless so I took her on to the back seat of the car. She was so excited about having a new place to explore. She sniffed everything and had a little chew on the seat belt socket and slowly explored. She wanted to climb up the back of the seat but wasn't strong enough so I helped her up on to the parcel shelf and she explored that too. I'm glad she was able to have one last new adventure. We had a lovely cuddle and I kissed her so many times before I said goodbye.
Carmilla was such a beautiful and gentle hamster, full of curiosity and energy. I miss her so very much. I have lots of lovely videos of her that are helping me manage without her but I dearly wish that she was still here with me. I watch videos of her every night before I go to sleep and it's almost like having another play time with her. I can see her beautiful little face so clearly in my mind. I dream about her too. I have cried so many tears for her and I know I will cry many more. I'm so glad she was part of my life but I miss her so much.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/01b5fd95-81c6-4b7a-9ec5-c3db2ec5c3cd_zpsylydolue.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/01b5fd95-81c6-4b7a-9ec5-c3db2ec5c3cd_zpsylydolue.jpg.html)
Carmilla came to live with us on 24th March 2014 after I saw her advertised on Gumtree. These are the pictures from her advert. She was such a pretty miss and I wanted to rescue her from the tiny Crittertrail cage she was living in.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/baby%20carmilla_zpsdl2vdwxk.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/baby%20carmilla_zpsdl2vdwxk.jpg.html)
I loved her straight away. She was still a baby - about 8 or 10 weeks old. Her previous owners didn't tell us her name but we'd already decided to call her Carmilla. On the way home in the car when she kept climbing up into her wheel on the roof of the cage and then dropping back down again. I was so worried that she would hurt herself but there was nothing I could do to stop her. When we got home I took her up to the guest room and planned to leave her in her little cage overnight to give her a chance to settle in but she had other ideas. When I opened the door to give her some food she walked straight out, trotted about on the bed and climbed on my hand. I'd already set up a Barney cage for her and she was very interested so I held her up to the door and she stepped in. She was so excited and explored straight away. Her ears were pricked right up and she sniffed everything. She loved her big Trixie wheel and all the toys and she was quite sure that's where she wanted to live. She was so tame and gentle and friendly.
Carmilla had so much spirit and such a huge sense of adventure. She was so playful and happy. I made a big playpen for her out of correx sheets and she was able to have 2 or 3 hours out to play each night. Her tiny cage was useful in the playpen for her water bottle and sand dish. She'd make regular visits to the cage during playtime and she liked to scent mark all over the cage door. She'd scent mark everything else in the playpen too. Here are a couple of very short videos of her in her playpen. I love the way she used to bounce out of the little cage door.
Jumping out of her play cage
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20141029_224324_zpsksdrrela.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20141029_224324_zpsksdrrela.mp4)
In her sand dish
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_TRIM_20150112_020544_zpssf5kd9py.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/TRIM_20150112_020544_zpssf5kd9py.mp4)
Exploring in her playpen
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20150702_234208_zpsgf2xrfhu.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20150702_234208_zpsgf2xrfhu.mp4)
Carmilla would chew the bars when she wanted to come out to play. She'd even chew the bars on the open door of the little cage in her playpen. She might be the only hamster who bar chewed when she was out to play. The rest of the playpen was full of boxes that she could explore with ladders up on to the boxes and bridges joining them together. For a time our rowing machine was standing folded up in the playpen. One playtime she managed to climb up it as far as the drink holder, about 2ft off the ground, and she looked so proud of herself looking down at me. She really was an adventurous and fearless hamster.
I also kept a 2ft tank in the playpen, half filled with fitch bedding and wood shavings, and I buried food in it for her. I always sat in the playpen with her while she ran around, and when she was ready she'd climb up on to my lap and ask me to put her in the tank. She'd burrow in the tank until she'd found all the food and then she'd pop up and ask me to take her home. Here's a another little video of her (just a few seconds) asking me to take her home.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/th_VID_20141019_001319_zpsuehrctun.mp4 (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/VID_20141019_001319_zpsuehrctun.mp4)
Once she was back in her cage she'd depouch and wait for me to let her out again. By the time I'd hidden some more food in the playpen she'd be chewing the bars to come out. She quite quickly learnt to open her cage door so I had to keep them chained shut. She'd also climb up on top of her sputnik and chew the bars on the roof as another way to get my attention. I only managed to get one blurry photo of her on top of her sputnik as she used to jump down as soon as she saw me.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/d551263f-d46a-4a94-b7e3-7afdec414df1_zpsucrq8ncd.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/d551263f-d46a-4a94-b7e3-7afdec414df1_zpsucrq8ncd.jpg.html)
Carmilla loved to chew. She got through so many toothbrush and crocodile chews. I gave her a cuttlefish bone one morning and she grabbed it and took a big bite. She was most unhappy it wasn't food and spat all the bits out again. Then she took it off to her lair to keep it as treasure even though it didn't taste nice. One night while I was out she chewed chunks out of her willow sticks platform. Next time we were out she chewed the end of her bendy bridge and removed the hooks. I found one of them in her nest and was so worried she might have hurt her pouches with it. I was really anxious when I didn't find the other hook anywhere in her cage but it was on the floor under her cage. On another night she chewed all the bark of her platform. When that was done she started to chew that platform itself. She chewed a big chunk out of it another night when we were out. Over the next few weeks she chewed more and more of it and eventually managed to chew it back as far as the legs. She also chewed a little hole in my partner's cardigan when he was having a cuddle with her after he'd spilled a tiny drop on Cointreau on it.
http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx42/Sprogly123/Carmilla/Carmilla%20chewing_zps8v5pdadu.jpg (http://s740.photobucket.com/user/Sprogly123/media/Carmilla/Carmilla%20chewing_zps8v5pdadu.jpg.html)
Carmilla never lost her spirit. As she aged she started sleeping more but was just as busy during playtime, running around like a little clockwork hamster. On her last night when her heart was failing she still wanted to play although she spend more time resting than exploring. When I put her home after she fell asleep in her playpen she straight away chewed the bars to come out again and her eyes were bright and ears pricked like usual, but she had so little energy. i couldn't resist her little face asking to come out so I spent more time with her resting in her playpen. Eventually I got her to stay back in her cage but I didn't want to leave her. Next morning I found her huddled in her sand dish and her breathing hard. I waited with her in the car at the vets until it was time for our appointment. She enjoyed the sunshine but didn't want to stay in her carrier. We had a cuddle but she was still restless so I took her on to the back seat of the car. She was so excited about having a new place to explore. She sniffed everything and had a little chew on the seat belt socket and slowly explored. She wanted to climb up the back of the seat but wasn't strong enough so I helped her up on to the parcel shelf and she explored that too. I'm glad she was able to have one last new adventure. We had a lovely cuddle and I kissed her so many times before I said goodbye.
Carmilla was such a beautiful and gentle hamster, full of curiosity and energy. I miss her so very much. I have lots of lovely videos of her that are helping me manage without her but I dearly wish that she was still here with me. I watch videos of her every night before I go to sleep and it's almost like having another play time with her. I can see her beautiful little face so clearly in my mind. I dream about her too. I have cried so many tears for her and I know I will cry many more. I'm so glad she was part of my life but I miss her so much.