Sparky brought us a living mouse last night (into the living room).  He meant business.  He had that slicked back ear look, with a slightly raised head and straight up tail.  He was carrying the mouse like a kitten actually, and it was a big mouse.  It was kind of freaky.  First, I don't invite live mice into my living room.  If they escape they become live mice at large in my house!  Second, it was a pretty big mouse.  The last few that we found left dead for us outside were about the size of a kid's pinky.  ....

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I recognized immediately what was going on when he entered the room (the aforementioned posture helped define what the heck that thing hanging from his face was).  I jumped up and said to Don, "Sparky's got a mouse, quick grab him!"  Don grabbed Sparky who dropped the mouse which promptly took off (ack!).  Sparky caught him again and started towards the dining room/kitchen carrying him like a kitten again.  He put him down in the kitchen hall and the mouse ran into the bathroom.  I ran into the kitchen, grabbed an empty large clear plastic container (roughly the size of a round cake) and back to the bathroom where I found the mouse confused next to the shower and after a couple of attempts I got that plastic thing over him, then slid the lid underneath it (to trap the mouse).  I sort of squished him just a little doing it, he screamed.  (There was no blood, it was just this flimsy plastic container that had contained energy bars we got from Costco).....

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We observed the mouse through the plastic and saw that it had no sign of apparently injury (like no teeth marks or claw marks or blood visible).  It was certainly spry enough (it virtually transported itself to the bathroom from the kitchen hallway).  So since I caught the mouse Don took it across the street to let it loose in the neighbor's yard. ....

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While I ran to get the plastic container, Don had imprisoned Sparky in the living room (quick thinking).  Binky was in the kitchen but she just watched the insanity of people chasing mice looking bored about the whole thing.  I let Sparky out after Don exited stage left with said mouse and Sparky half-heartedly sniffed around for it a little but didn't freak out or look accusingly at me.  He seemed to forget about it pretty quickly and went back to his perch on the couch and to sleep.....

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The weirdest thing about it all to me was how Sparky was carrying the mouse like a kitten, by the scruff of its neck.  It was such a strange sight to see, my male cat carrying a large mouse like a baby, though as I mentioned, his body language said prey.  The mouse was black so it was hard to make out the features in our dimmed alternative lighting, but the long hairless tail said "not kitten, mouse" (and set off alarms in my head that said to take action immediately or that thing is going to be loose in your house).....

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Don came back inside a minute later, empty handed (he probably dropped the container off in the recycling bin before he came down).  However, he had magically bonded with the mouse and mused aloud that he wished he could have kept it as a pet in his room and that it was a very nice mouse indeed.....

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I too like rodents as pets (as well as snakes, lizards and cats and dogs of course), and I would fancy a nice guinea pig myself, oh and a bird or two.  However, I reminded Don (and myself) of the smell factor of keeping a rodent in the house and that was enough deterrent.  Probably wasn't really necessary, Don would have forgotten about the pet mouse idea soon anyway.....

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As I sit here in the living room, writing this, I am suddenly conscious of my naked toes on the living floor and how exposed they are to dangers of illegal rodents running wild (should Sparky take up a new hobby of bringing them home).  This thought freaks me out and is my prime objection to mice running wild in my house - the idea that they might try to eat my toes.  This sounds insane (or irrational at least).  It is one of those things from childhood, spawned from one of those seemingly meaningless moments (to an adult anyway) which actually caused me a life of fear of toe eating from small rodents, usually while I slept, which is the reason I have to keep my feet covered when I sleep.  I don't know why the conscious knowledge that no rodents will crawl into bed and eat my toes, and that this fear is ridiculous and unfounded, doesn't just eradicate it from my psyche.  Henceforth, my naked toes feel a bit exposed and vulnerable now, reliving the great mouse adventure of Saturday night.  ....

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