Rie's Ride: Chapter 7 - "The Cavalry Arrives!"

"The Cavalry Arrives"

There was a story I read a while back about farmers trapping mice in their barns, and how this method always worked for them. It seemed reasonable to me and worth a shot – with a few modifications, of course.

Get a bucket, fill it to within five inches of the brim with water, and add about a bottle or so of soda pop. For good measure, float some peanuts or other floatable goodies on the top. Get a long stick or board and place from the ground up to the top of the pail, leaning it against the pail. The idea is that the mouse climbs up the stick or board, and tries to get at the sweet liquid and the food floating in the pail. If all goes well, he falls into the bucket and (I’m so sorry to say!!!) drowns. Too gruesome for me, it was an idea that could be worked with, I felt.

I got one of those small 2-foot tall garbage pails with a lid. Then, taking a long stick and just breaking the top of the stick ever so slightly, so that it reminded me of a figure “7”, I leaned that up against the pail. I slathered the end of the stick with lots of peanut butter, just for good measure. Now….don’t worry….as a wildlife rehab volunteer, I have certain codes that I live by, and drowning this creature was a huge no-no. Besides, was I not trying to do the neighborly thing and catch a little boy’s pet? Good Lord of the Rings, I hope so!

So, instead of water in the pail, there was simply air with a little cushion of cut grass and more seeds, nuts, etc., at the bottom. Now, this garbage pail was plenty big enough, I thought, for Wicky to remain in without getting out of it, until I could safely put the lid on it and take him to our clinic. Then, my friend, Cindi, told me that yes, of course….rats of any type can jump—about 2 feet high, even! Eeeeee-Yikes! That did it for me. All I could picture was me approaching the pail and having Wicky jump up smack into my face. Oh, no! No way, no how!! So, I dismantled my new and unimproved mousetrap, wiping smeared peanut butter off of my hands, my shirt, and my shorts, and everything within a five-foot distance.

Later on, I heard Max barking like mad way in the back of the yard. Grabbing my cell phone, I shot out the door and went outside to see what all the fuss was about. It was oddly reminiscent of early this spring, when he spotted a certain “other” intruder. Sure enough…..he was standing in front of his old post, right in front of Chuckie’s old escape hatch. Could I be seeing what I thought I was seeing?? Was the concrete somehow pushed to the side…and the boards and other junk I tossed down the hole also moved over? I better check escape hatch number 2. Sure enough! That one was also strangely disturbed – with junk scattered about, and I stared right into a nice, fresh, groundhog-sized hole leading into Harry’s yard.

Another clue:

My Mary statue appeared to be missing! Mary never lies down on the job – yet here she was, flat on her back, with dirt smudged all over her cement dress. This used to be one of Chuckie’s favorite pastimes. Why, I don’t know, but he would love to taunt me by knocking over my garden statues. Could it possibly be that Chuckie was back??! Oh, Happy Day! The Cavalry has arrived!

With renewed vigor, I reset Wicky’s trap and for good measure, put my plastic owl along the fence line, at the bottom of our shed. Now, I’m playing hard-ball! I’ve got a trap, a plastic owl, and best of all, Chuckie going for me. (The theme song from The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly played somewhere in the distance. So much for Patton’s trumpets!)

It shouldn’t be long now, I reasoned. In no time at all, Victory shall be mine!