Something Has Shifted in the Universe

I've always had cats. Nothing against dogs, it's just that cat's are so self sufficient. Since I've installed my kitty door so they can come and go as they please it's no problem to go away for a weekend. Just load up the food and water and off you go. Cats, besides being good companions, keep the rodents at bay which I always felt was a good fringe benefit. Until yesterday. Chewy my little "millennium cat" (born 2000) has a habbit of bringing birds, mice and butterflies in through the kitty door. We save who we can, but if it's too late we dispose of the carcasses. Yesterday she brought a field mouse in which promptly hid behind the piano. Then I watched as Chewy tried in vain to catch it again while the mouse ran from couch, to entertainment center and back under piano. As I went to bed I figured I'd have to pick up the dead body in the morning as I had full faith she'd catch and kill the little thing. Wrong! Maybe it's that extra 3 pounds she's gained but Chewy is still watching as the mouse runs free and definately has the upper hand. So much so that the mouse has amassed a stash of cat food behind the piano so he's definitely in it for the long haul. So now I'll have to intervene, and I'm not nearly as fast as the cat, so this oughta be good.

3-31-06 Epilogue: After a week of random sitings, and Chewy losing all interest in the fact that we were sharing our space with a chewing, pooping mouse, it was time for action. But not before scaring the shit out of me. Max says, "hey this speaker isn't working", I say "I'll look at it" and start to re-adjust the speaker wires on the stereo, meanwhile Max goes upstairs. It only takes a moment to get the speaker back working, at which point I pull open the bottom drawer to replace a couple of CDs. Pulling open the draw, on top of the CDs is our little friend staring up at me. I scream, twice, Max comes bounding down the stairs, thinking I was being electrocuted from working on the speaker wires. Enough already. SO, we put up a few barriers, open the front door and poke under the furniture until our little mouse bolts for the door. Though last seen heading for the door, I didn't actually SEE him leave the house, but I do believe he returned to nature, unharmed.