Cat and Mouse

It's fall, and the mice are on the move.  More specifically, the mice are on the move into our house.  We have an old house, and this is just to be expected.  I don't really get very alarmed about the notion because there isn't anything I can do about it.  It's an old house, which means that there is a multitude of ways a mouse might find a way to enter.  Of course, it doesn't help that my chlldren leave doors to the house open for extremely long periods of time either.  A mouse really could waltz right in any time it might want.  

This fall, we are particularly happy to have good old Brutus around.  Brutus is an amazing hunter.  He's been practicing all summer, eradicating a large population of mice, chipmunks, squirrels, and all sorts of rodents from our backyard, and probably the neighbors' backyards as well.  He plays with his half dead prey for lengthy periods of time before leaving them in my path, the ultimate present.

I was taking a nap next to Dr. Peds, snuggled deep down under the feather comforter on a rainy, dreary afternoon last Saturday.  Suddenly all three kidlets came screeching up the stairs.  The screeches were of delight, macabre delight, not fear, and so I was more irritated than motivated to get out of my bed when the kids yelled out that Brutus was chasing a mouse INSIDE the house this time.  I lazily thought, "You Go, Brutus!" The kidlets ran downstairs to watch the action, not wanting to miss anything.

About a half an hour later, I crawled out of bed.  Brutus was snuggling the kidlets on the futon.  "What happened to the mouse?"  They said that Brutus got distracted (imagine that, with three kidlets cheering him on as loudly as possible) and that the mouse had scurried over to a different corner of the room.  They were pretty sure it was still in the room, though.  By that time, I figured the mouse could be anywhere, and I hoped Brutus could actually get him next time.  

I went to practice piano.  The kidlets came screeching in again.  Brutus was chasing the mouse.  I told them to go upstairs and let Brutus do his deed.  They couldn't resist sneaking down to observe, though.  After a while they lost interest, and apparently so did Brutus, and everyone went back to doing their own thing. 

Several hours later, Dr. Peds woke up from his nap.  The kidlets told him about the mouse.  "Where is the mouse now?"  asked Dr. Peds.  The kidlets said, "Oh, he's around this room somewhere."  

It was a rainy day, and they were bouncing off the walls. We sent the eldest two outside, not to come back inside in any certain terms.   I went upstairs to help The Banana get some warmer clothes on and got distracted by the fact that every single article of clothing that girl owns was in the middle of the floor.  We were picking things up, when Dr. Peds came upstairs, with a mouse trapped in a glass bowl with a cutting board.  Apparently he and Brutus had scoured the corners of the family room and located the victim.  

Dr. Peds said that Brutus went absolutely crazy, tossing and catching the mouse and batting him around all over the place, and that when he put the glass bowl over mouse, it looked at him with a big sigh of relief.  

We took the mouse downstairs to the family room to take a few pictures.  It was a very dreary afternoon, so we plunked the trap down in the only available light.  I was sitting with my back up against the screen of the patio door.  Ya Ya and Mr. SP were outside the door looking in.  

Brutus was pouncing over the bowl like crazy.  The very fat mouse was skittering in every direction, completely miserable.  

Dr. Peds said, "Now watch this!  Watch what happens when I lift the bowl and Brutus sticks his paw under to bat at him. The mouse really goes nuts."  So he lifted the bowl.  And lifted the bowl.  And Brutus snuck his paw under and the mouse came right out, running as hard as he could.  

The mouse saw the door.  The mouse crashed into me because I was in front of the door.  Although I'm fine with mice on a general basis, this was a bit shocking, a bit too close and personal for my liking, and I do admit, I yelled a bit.  Not a high pitched squeal, but a pretty emotional yell.  The kidlets were yelling too.

The mouse crashed into the door and tried to climb in between the two sections of glass, but my quick thinking girl, Ya Ya, opened the door and out went the mouse.  Out followed Brutus, who quickly caught up to the victim, and decided that he was done with this mouse once and for all.  Ya Ya took care of the corpse with the snow shovel, and things quieted down a bit for the rest of the day.  Thankfully.