The Day My Pet Hamster Passed Away…
On 31st August, on a soft and calm Friday, my cute little pet Hamster called Leo passed away in my mother’s arms. Just like any other kid, I cried even though I tried to hold back my tears.
We all knew since the past few days that he would eventually take his last breath soon. It was quite a tense week for me and my family. Even my dad who isn’t quite attached to animals felt sad whenever he saw Leo sleeping in a corner in his cage. He wouldn’t eat anything, he wouldn’t drink water, and he wouldn’t even jump on his wheel and cycle away as he used to when we first brought him. He had also become light as a feather and his hair was rumpled.
I spent most of my time searching for reasons on Goggle on why my hamster was behaving like this. Some sources were genuine, while other sources made me feel scared. I thought he would have an underlying disease that we are unaware of, but when I continued to search, God showed me a clear-cut article that spoke about why a hamster would behave just like my Leo did.
After reading the article, I concluded to my family that he was old; that he wouldn’t have much time to live. It was the saddest thing I had to articulate. However, we were also relieved to find out that he didn’t have any illness and that he was healthy. We had treated his wounds which my other hamster, Lily had given him after she bit him and even cured his eye infection.
But seeing him shrinking every second of the day destroyed my feelings. I couldn’t take my mind off of him. I prayed to God to cure him if he would be live and to give him a peaceful death if he was going to die.
The next day, while I was working on one of my client’s projects, my sister came to me and told me that Leo was thirsty and was trying to eat his food but was unable to. So I went to him, took him out of his cage, and hugged him. I caressed his tiny head and my sister made him drink water from a small dropper. He drank and drank as if he hadn’t drunk any water for days.
My sister had already begun crying when I realized and told her that he didn’t have long to love.
I tried to feed him some boiled egg, but he didn’t eat. My sister then gave him some water and called my mom. She wrapped him in a towel and hugged him. We gave him some more water and after his last sip, he crossed his arms while watching us and passed away.
I don’t know how to describe that day; it was sad but it was also a moment where I went, ‘ah, he died a peaceful death.’ I was drowning in so many emotions that my mind had stopped working for quite some time.
My sister and I put Leo in an empty matchbox and buried him in the garden. We continue to remember him and talk about him. He was such a cute and happy hamster but apparently, God only gave them 2–4 years to live; maybe even less.
A hamster’s 24 months is equivalent to a human’s 80-year-old age. We weren’t even sure how many months or years they were when my mom bought them home.
I’m just glad that Leo was able to die peacefully instead of somewhere in a dark pet store where no one would have even noticed. I don’t think I would ever be able to buy another hamster after Leo and Lily. Maybe years later but not now.
Leo was my first hamster and he always will be.
I love you, Leo.
When a pet passes away, they take a bit of ourselves with them too. We are never the same again but we must be strong for them as they were strong for us. We must keep their memories alive and never forget the times when they used to make us happy and smile. Pets are our companions and even if they leave this world, we should respect them and give them a proper burial.
Have you ever lost a pet of yours?
