RatPalace.com - Pet Rat Care and Discussion

Mon Jan 05, 2004 9:33 pm

Last night I lay awake in bed from about 2:30 am til almost 4 am, watching the mice. It's awfully hard to get to sleep when one is lying there giggling.

When I went to bed, Thimble was in the mushroom house by herself with her little face sticking out one of the holes. I talked to her for a bit just to make sure she was okay, and she yawned and stretched, then fell asleep as I was talking to her. lurve

Soon as I turned off the light, Crazy came out of the tree stump house and started on the wheel, Yoli came out of the igloo and started eating, and Thimble came out of the mushroom and started climbing upside down all over the cage ceiling, defying gravity like a bug. Then they all interacted like kindergarteners at recess: run, jump, tumble, leap, bounce, chatter, roll, giggle, flip, squeak. For over an hour. They also made snowballs, like in the cartoons: a ball of mouse that rolled around and then exploded into three, hilarious.

I think I've figured out why no one else uses the wheel but Crazy. For one thing, she's always on it, but I saw both Yoli and Thimble approach it a few times and Crazy immediately leaped off and chased them away. She chased them all the way down the ramp with her nose up the butt! Then she teleported back to the wheel and kept running. I was thinking maybe it was play, but now I'm thinking I definitely have to get another wheel cos Crazy has claimed that one -- she even comes running from elsewhere in the cages if someone approaches near the wheel, then either jumps on it herself or nose-butts whomever is near it.

I also watched them leap on and cling to and gnaw the hanging seed stick. For people who can walk on the ceiling, they sure have a hard time with that stick. Leap, miss; leap, cling, chew, fall; leap, cling ...

I was happy to see Yoli acting much more like a mouse should, even though she's probably only had 2 1/2 doses altogether of Baytril in the same amount of days. She sneezed a lot at once point last night as they were playing, but it didn't stop her. Her eyes are still a bit squinchy, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the Baytril will really work.

I wish I had a video camera. Mr. Green

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Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous

Tue Jan 06, 2004 3:00 am

They sound so awesome! I'm so glad you have the meeces to watch and love. lurve

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Christy
RP Admin
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Frodo, Zorro, Erzulie, Maeve, Clara, Molly & Emily

Tue Jan 06, 2004 4:12 am

They sound so adorable and entertaining! lurve

I would love to see some more pictures of them..*hint, hint* wink

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~Briana~

The ladies and the Lads

Tue Jan 06, 2004 5:59 am

Hmm.. I had thought of moving one of my mouse cages to my bedroom so I could watch them during their waking hours, but if staying up half the night watching them is the result, I had better pass. I get too little sleep as it is!

Sure sounds like your crew is having a blast.

Tue Jan 06, 2004 6:48 pm

I'm glad Yoli seems to be improving! But who would have thought a mouse would get all possessive over a wheel?

I'm convinced that mice are noisier than rats. Charlie is in the room next to the bedroom, and I can still hear him gnawing and running in his wheel in the middle of the night.

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Linda and the RMDs

Many have forgotten this truth but you must not forget it. We remain responsible forever, for what we have tamed.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

Tue Jan 06, 2004 9:11 pm

Again last night, all night.

But before we went to bed, I snuck in and watched them all cos they were out. Yoli was eating (duh), Crazy was in the Hagen cage, and Thimble was sitting in the wheel! I started whispering to then talking to them (sometimes Crazy will stay around if I'm there and talking), telling Thimble to run. She finally did and I about fell over laughing. She is so much more powerful than the other mice that a couple of runs had her doing loop-the-loops. She had a little bit of fun before Crazy came along and chased her all over the cage for violating the Wheel Act.

Sometime after 4 when I had finally fallen asleep, somebody gave a horrendous screech and holler, and there was running about. I figured it was Thimble yelling cos it was so loud and strong. I don't know what they did to him in the middle of the night.

_________________
Kate & the M.O.U.S.
If you saw a man drowning and you could either save him or photograph the event ... what kind of film would you use?
~ Anonymous