Blanket-murderers anti-handmade rodents

Something more than a month ago I adopted a lovely rat couple, both males, who were supposed to be used as a snake food after the series of behavioural experiments were finished on them at the Science Academy. Though lovely, always curious and very interesting, we have been through all possible problems with them - from the noise they make at night to their fights over who will be the dominant one.


Because the cage they live in is a bit small, I let them walk around the room every night to get some exercise. They only walk on the armchair, play with a pillow and make a nest in a blanket that covers the chair, walk on the radiator, then return to the cage and so on. BUT! Today I woke up and had a look at them and I was terified! The edge of blanket was pulled inside and holes were bitten into it at several places in such a way, that I cannot repair it now. Apparently, after their evening games with the blanket I left it too close to the cage so they could reach it with their teeth and tried to pull it in to continue playing with it.

Well, this is what happens when a handmade item meets with pets of anti-handmade persuasion. The best idea that I got was to wash it and - after it dries - try to get as much undamaged yarn from it as possible... I know it is their nature to bite things, but I crocheted the blanket during the last year of high-school and it has taken me several months and I was really happy when I finished it and loved it... And all of that was destroyed during one night.