Losing a Pet

Sorry it's been such a long time since my last post... Recently, our pet Robo Dwarf hamster, Dale, passed away. While this type of hamster usually lives for only 1-2 years, Dale was a part of our little family for 2 years and seven months! We feel very fortunate and honored to have had him in our lives.

It was very hard to accept that he was gone at first. No longer did we hear him rustling his bedding as he was waking up or the sound of his wheel spinning as fast as he could make that blue cylinder go. The room he occupied now felt empty. You might be saying, "why all the fuss over a hamster?" Well, Dale was one of our first pets (besides our goldfishes) that have been with us since college. My boyfriend and I attended separate colleges and had joint custody over him which meant, I would have him one month and my boyfriend would have him the next, etc. Dale was over at our parents houses after we graduated and was our room mate at our new apartment... We had a lot of history with that little guy.


I did a lot of crying and talking about our memories with him and how it was crazy that in an instant he was gone forever. Grieving the loss of a pet is never easy and everyone deals with it in their own ways. It took a week before I felt okay talking about Dale. It did help to have someone to talk to and reminisce with about him being the fattest and 3rd fastest at the Petco 2009 Hamster Derby, I'll have to share those photos later :)

I've learned that unfortunately death is inevitable. It's very difficult to see the positive side of such a sad occurrence when it's fresh, but hopefully over time it will be easier to eventually accept your loss. Dale will never be forgotten and I thank him for teaching us the beauty of wonder, patience and that even the tiniest of pets have the biggest hearts.