Back in August 22, 2011, I had started a blog about pet rats, as I had 11 of them at that time. When I wasn't playing with them, making them things, creating my own researched pet rat food that I was selling to many other rat fanatics, I was researching everything I possibly could about them and writing. Always writing. It consumed me, and was my one true hobby.
The more I wrote, the more attention I was receiving from it. Businesses were contacting me to do reviews on their products for my blog and it was awesome to get all these neat things for my pet rats, the more they got, the more I had to write about, and the more I learned about these misunderstood but loving little pets. I was even contacted by a college textbook printing company, requesting to use my photographs of my cage setups to be printed in their child development textbook. The subject was discussing enrichment activities and how they relate to the mind's development. My rats were super spoiled and of course had plenty of enrichment in their enclosures! I was paid about $150 for that one photograph, which all went right back into the care of my pets.
Then in 2013, my blog about pet rats, The Rat Whisperer, was a finalist in the BlogPaws' Nose-to-Nose Pet Blogging and Social Media under the category Best Wiggle Blog along with two other nominees. The BlogPaws Pet Blogging and Social Media Nose-to-Nose Awards were created by the founders of BlogPaws to judge pet bloggers and people who write about pets online for their expertise, creativity, performance, and achievements in one of more categories. I had never felt so honored in my life! I had complete strangers from all over the world nominating me for this award, a following, and recognition! It was an amazing feeling, not at all my intentions when I started the blog, but man, it felt amazing to have others love my blog as much as I did. I was so very proud of that blog and the work I put into it. I didn't win the award, but I didn't even care. Just to be nominated was all I could have ever wanted.
Sadly, as my beloved pet rats passed away, so did my drive to continue the blog. I let my domain renewal slip away and it was sold off. What is left of my informative articles and day to day blogging about my furry companions are a distant memory. But my love for writing lives on! And while there may not be any more BlogPaws conventions or awards to compete for (the last awards ceremony was back in 2018), I hope to find as much pleasure writing this blog as I did that one.
I am now the happy 'parent' of an adorable sable Marshall ferret, Sid who I had spent countless months researching everything I could about these slinky little guys before I welcomed him home on April 11, 2020. I had only wished there was more reliable blogs and sites about ferrets to learn from, which was the driving force behind starting The Rat Whisperer- there just wasn't enough information about pet rats on the web for my liking, so I figured, why not make my own? So that's where I am today, writing as my passion about something I love dearly, my ferret. This blog may never get to where The Rat Whisperer did, but that's totally fine by me, I am just happy to start again doing what I love!
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