This work is supported by the generous backers who adore my cat stories at Patreon.com/amberunmasked and they also get first access to what’s happening with my books and podcast.
Where We Left Off:
In our last case file, we found remarkable evidence that Ancient Egyptian energies are still in the æther reaching out to us.
Moving Target:
I cannot believe it took this long for another mouse incident. Gus was chasing a hefty mouse around in the early morning of June 1, 2023. I was too tired to give a shit. In fact, a couple hours earlier, he dug at the closet in a way that let me know he wasn’t asking for a routine inspection, so I opened the closet door for him.
Then I heard racing, but I was still unable to fully wake up. I went back to bed leaving Gus to hunt in the closet and follow any trail presented.
Closer to normal wake up time, I heard Gus racing around the room again. I saw him go under the bed which he frequently does before I get up. I’m not sure why. Maybe he can keep watch over me by being underneath the bed. I turned my head away from the bright spring sunrise coming through the windows. That’s when I saw Ollie sitting by the door (in his role as goalie) and knew they were working on a real case.
I couldn’t in good conscience ignore the case presented right there in my bedroom. Also, Gus has a tendency to let his targets go thinking he’ll be able to scoop them up immediately and keep wearing them down. He does a great job of wearing me down. Some of his outside adventures have been two hours or longer. It’s one of Guster’s talents.
Gus had the intruder in his clutched jaws. I crawled out of bed sliding onto the floor between him and Oliver. Gus dropped the mouse on his yoga mat where his puzzle game is set up. I got a look at the house mouse and was shocked at how large it was. No, it wasn’t a rat. Every once in a while, I get comments about “rats” and I have yet to see one in the New Jersey wild. I’ve seen them only as pets here. Fat mice are just fat mice (or quite pregnant). Voles—now those cuties are the size of rats, but in my opinion more adorable and without the long bald tails.
Thank goodness, Gus was able to hunker down and easily reach under the furniture to pull the intruder back to him. I’m unaware of Oliver’s movements at this point. I think he stayed by the door. Gus took the mouse under my desk chair and again released it.
“Ughhhh. Oh, Gus. Come on,” I said, or something like it.
Fortunately, as I reached for the mouse with my bare hand and missed, Gus was able to catch it before it found freedom inside the heating system as others have. Oliver moved aside as Gus walked around the labyrinth of furniture and made his way to door. He went downstairs and I followed carrying the witness relocation transportation unit in the event the target survived.
Here’s where I attempted to change tactics. How dare I? I decided to give up on following Gus under tables and back up the stairs. It was daylight that early in June so I decided on a bold plan. I opened the back door and told Gus to take his target outside without being dressed in his gear. I was sure this would work. Gus is always begging to go outside nekkid.
I opened the door and this cat would not go out! But when I opened the door and repeatedly said, “Take that outside,” he wouldn’t go.
At least as I passed by my adventuring stuff on the coat rack, I thought to grab my leather gloves from my bag. I was on hands and knees on the slate floor (not good for the joints). I think we were under a table when I managed to get the husky intruder and place it in the witness “transpo” unit.
It was time for relocation since the critter was still alive and well. No injuries noted at all, only cat saliva coating its fur. I put on my boots without socks which cut up my left foot. I carried the culprit down the road to release where there are a variety of options for living spaces: a nice building and a decrepit one; working vehicles; and an abandoned school bus. Unfortunately, the culprit was able to get fat and live a blessed life here in the house, so it might try to find its way back despite two large house cats.
Case Findings:
This critter was not talkative, but didn’t fight like the mean-spirited brawlers we’ve encountered before. It seemed like a genial fellow who was not interested in causing trouble for the humans nor cats of the Winchester-Nabu estate. The most challenging part of the critter’s capture was chasing Gus around the house and getting the mouse into the jar before it could escape back into the walls. The intruder was never identified and was released outdoors safely in a grassy area near some woods, vehicles, and buildings.
Case Status: Closed