There's a Mouse in my House!

I sure wish I had a cat right now!  I discovered evidence that a mouse had been in my pantry.  It tried to gnaw through my can of mixed nuts and feasted on some old Hershey bars I had stored away.  Then there were some mouse droppings on the floor.  Ew!

About 2 nights ago when I lit my awesome gas fireplace for the first time, I was sitting with the lights out enjoying  the light of the fire.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something skittering across the floor.  I figured it was a wolf spider and put it out of my mind.  Wolfies aren't poisonous and they kill insects.  Now that I have seen the evidence, I know it was the mouse.  

I cleaned out my pantry and stowed the food in my fridge.  I learned how to make homemade traps using garbage cans or mixing bowls.  All that said, I am going to the hardware store to buy some box traps.  I don't want to use old-school spring traps or glue traps.  They seem so cruel.  I hope to trap it and release it outside.  The poor mouse can't enjoy being stuck in my house, especially now that I have disposed of the Hershey bars and put the other food in the fridge. 

If only I had a cat!  I am not bothered by mice dying if they are caught by cats.  That seems natural to me.  Maybe the little critter would decide to escape the house rather than die at the claws of a diligent feline.  

I am convinced that it is only one mouse and not a whole infestation, especially since I only found evidence of it yesterday and checked all of my cupboards and counter tops.  It probably came in from the garage while I had the door open loading the recycling into my car.  Yeah, that's it.  I do live next to a field.  

So I now have a practical reason to have a cat again.  I think I will also visit the Humane Society tomorrow and see if there are any kitties who would like to live here.  

Shelter Cat

Per wyliekat 's suggestion, I am going to post a picture of a shelter cat who had her eye on me.  This was back in August when I first started looking for pets.  I looked at the Shelter's web site and it appears that she is still there!  Maybe she is waiting for me.  I was looking at another pair of kitties (they were having a two-for-one adoption special at the time) when this little girl started looking at me:



I will go and see if she is still there.  Meanwhile, I have some logistics to work out.  Where to put the litterbox and the food.  What to do when (if) I have guests stay over.  

Saw the Mouse!

My new unwanted house guest is a grey, shaggy, little mouse.  I saw it sneak across the living room while I was watching Deadliest Catch.  I guess it figured I would be totally focused on the program.  Joke's on you, Mousie!  It's a rerun.  Anyway, it skittered behind my chair and disappeared.  

The catch traps are set.  I used some of that Hershey bar it was so fond of.  I have been checking the traps every 30 minutes or so.  I hope the little mouse understands my intention to set it free outside, far from my home.  It is now dusk, which is feeding time for little mice.  I am listening intently for scratchy, trappy sounds.  

I finally made it to the animal shelter, only to find it was closed for the holiday.  The web site never mentioned that.  

Tonight we are having an informal aikido practice session.  I will be referring to this as the Turkey Tumble.  I am really looking forward to it.  

ETA:  I CAUGHT THE MOUSE!!!  I came back from Turkey Tumble and it was in the trap I set in the pantry.  I walked it a couple blocks away to the field and released it.  Inside the little trap, it looked almost cute.  It didn't seem too bothered by the fact that it was stuck in there with all those delicious goodies.  The only thing now is, I am not sure it looked like the same mouse I saw earlier in the living room...  I reset the trap.