First Impressions

Last Wednesday was the first day I met our rat, Princess Fi-B, and I could not be more nervous. One of the most appealing aspects of PY 408 was the fact that we get to train our own rat. However when the official day came, I had a difficult time. When I think of rats, I picture the creepy, black and hideous-looking rodents that you may see scurrying around some witches cupboard. Fortunately, our rats are Long-Evans rats. They are black and white with cute (yes I said cute) pink ears and a pink nose. The first day, I was too scared to hold her, but I was able to pet her. Surprisingly, her fur was silky soft. I left that lab period proud of myself and looking forward to the next time I could visit her.

My partner, EP, and I have been visiting Princess Fi-B for about 20 minutes each day so that she is accustomed to being held by humans. Today was the first day that I held her. She was a bit skittish at first, but that was most likely because she could sense my anticipation. The tail still weirded me out a bit; however, overall she was fairly calm and I enjoyed finally holding her. EP and I had a little photoshoot with her so I've posted a picture below. I'm looking forward to tomorrow as it is the first day we will begin to work with them!