Knights Becoming and a Lady in Waiting

Footloose and Fancy Free

My 2DS4, Prince Derryboy, apparently named the new rat very well.  Last night, when I was cleaning the cage, Miss Heidi escaped... and hid.

Now, some of you are totally taking this in stride.  Di took pity on wild mice in her home and used them for a science experiment.  That's not me.  While I appreciate the variety of creatures God has blessed this earth with, I also believe quite firmly in the verse in early Genesis that says to take dominion over the earth and subdue it.  This is my home.  Do not try to invade it or I will become territorial.

Some of you are up on chairs, swinging a broom at the monitor, even though I am likely miles away from you.  Maybe thousands of miles.  That's not me either.  I rather like our rats.  I don't intend to carry them around in cute little pouches or get specialized rat-leashes so I can walk them with me everywhere.  I won't boycott a restaurant because they don't allow owners to bring their pets in.  But I do like them.  Well, I like Sally.  Miss Heidi is not currently on my happy list.

How could a full-grown woman let a little thing like a rat get away from her?  DH and I were watching TV and Princess Moo decided she wanted some Daddy Time.  Mommy took this opportunity to clean the rat cage.  It wasn't bad yet; it wasn't even time.  But I won't be around Friday and Saturday, so I didn't want to take a chance. 

First, assemble all the paraphenalia.  Trash bag, shredded paper, rat ball, rat box (box for one, ball for the other), food, treat.  Next, wash hands.  I didn't wash my hands before I cleaned the cage once.  Sally thought *I* was the treat and took a little taste.  I have washed my hands ever since.

Next, reach in to get Heidi and put her in the ball.  Theoretically, this is an easy step.  I should've been warned by Heidi running around the cage like a crazed... well, actually, like a normal boy in my home.  I didn't take the sign.  I proceeded in blissful ignorance to pick up the rat, cup her in my hands, lower her toward the ball, and...

... watch her run away behind the stand we have the cage on.  Since this also holds our VCR tapes, it's pretty sturdy.  Fortunately, it's in a corner, so she wasn't going anywhere.  Unfortunately, there wasn't really any way to get to her (are those spiderwebs back there??  Good thing we haven't gotten to "Family Room" in the CHCH Challenge!), so I just left her and moved on to Sally.

Sally was easily put into the ball (she loves to run around in it), and I cleaned the cage, keeping an eye on Heidi as she peeked out of either end of the VCR cabinet.  She only ventured out once and, when I tried to grab her, went back into hiding.  I wonder, are names that influential??

I didn't worry about it too much.  I went ahead and finished cleaning the cage, then put Sally back inside.  She squeaked a gracious thank-you and went about covering her food dish.  Now for Miss Heidi.

It shouldn't be that hard to pick up a rat.  Yes, they're small and squirmy.  Yes, they're fast.  But they're only rats.  Did I mention squirmy and fast?

DH eventually had to put Princess Moo down and help me out.  Heidi went back and forth between the two possible exits from her self-imposed prison too fast for either of us to catch her.  We were still pretty calm.  As long as she was back there, she was still trapped.

I thought that way too soon.  She made a mad dash for it, slipping out of our desperate grasps not once, not twice, but more than five times, to hide behind the COUCH.  The couch.  Okay, now she has multiple escape routes, not to mention a soft bottom she could probably chew a hole into if she really tried.  Not good.

Princess Moo started fussing, but not yet crying.  Maybe this was a new game with Mommy and Daddy.  Daddy went and got the mop, but the squeeze mechanism got in the way.  He went back and got the broom. 

The next 20 minutes are a blur of "There she is!", "Quick, grab her!", and "Aaargh!  She went back under!".  Every time she came out, we'd make a grab at her.  Every time we made a grab at her, she would squeak a rather plaintive protest, wriggle that squirmy little body, and retreat back under the couch... until the last time.

We have no idea how it happened.  None.  One second, there she was, running for dear life away from us (again).  The next second... there was no rat.  We more or less tore the room apart, with Princess Moo slowly taking up an angry squall, but to no avail.  There was no rat.  There was no where she could've gone, but she was gone.

We haven't found her yet.  I told my husband if we found her, just hit her on the head with a broom and we'll take her back to the store to feed a snake.  I was kidding... mostly.

Untitled Comment

9:51 AM, Apr. 6, 2006 .. Posted by DiWilliams

You'll be happy to know I caught 2 more mice last night, and killed them this morning!
Blessings ~ Diane

Untitled Comment

10:02 AM, Apr. 6, 2006 .. Posted by eyecorn

I hope you find her soon, and I hope you don't have cats, too!

Thank you for your house selling advice on my blog. It really did help...I was torn between coming down more than our agent felt we should, just to get out and get settled in the new house. This a.m. I have raised what I feel is a good counter...now, if only DH wasn't on the road. We have started the ball rolling on a bridge loan, but the payments are going to be outrageous, especially if this goes beyound 4 months...we figured we could reduce the cost of the house by that amount now and maybe save the bridge load thing. (Sigh!) What to do? What to do?

Untitled Comment

9:54 AM, Apr. 10, 2006 .. Posted by flapjacks

Been there, done that - at a less advanced stage. It seems hamsters are non-starters compared with rats! Good you got her back eventually.
My friend's daughters gerbils escaped and got under the floor boards. They (friends not gerbils) borrowed some humane rat traps and next thing you know - gerbils are safely caught again. I don't know if that might work for Heidi and Sally - or do you enjoy the exercise? (Ducks and runs, but not behind the video unit - you already know to look there!)
Alice