A Mouse in the House and Other Maggie Tales

One evening earlier this week while we were watching TV Roger spotted a "critter" scurrying across the floor into the kitchen area.   He was sure it was a gigantic spider and being a bit of an arachnaphobe it really freaked him out.  We searched and searched but didn't find anything.   An hour or so later he saw it again, only this time it was near my chair.  We turned the chair over; we checked all the corners; we got out the flashlight and looked everywhere,  but found nothing.  I had not seen anything but we figured that the "critter" was traveling in the air ducts and going in and out of the registers on the floor.  Roger went out to the Walgreens and bought a can of Raid.  When he returned he took off all the registers and I vaccumed them out (wow, was there a lot of dirt and dog hair), afterwhich, we liberally sprayed the Raid into the ducts.  Satisfied that he had chased it away, Roger was able to get to sleep - which we thought would not be a happening thing.

Wednesday night Maggie was sprawled out in the middle of the living room floor when all of a sudden she jumped up and went running into the kitchen.  She had her nose in one corner where the kitchen slideout meets the wall.  She would not leave it alone.  Roger, being the brave soul that he is and still thinking it was a spider from another world, went outside and crawled under the slide out with his flashlight.  There was a little field mouse about an inch long sitting on one of the cross beams under there just looking at him. Roger was quite OK with that - it wasn't a spider!   In the meantime, Maggie is checking every corner and crevice in the place.  She didn't relax the whole evening and it was tough getting her to bed that night.  

The next day we went to Lowe's and got some rodent repellant which we placed outside on the underside of the RV near the slider openings for the kitchen and living room.  That smell drove Maggie wild for a while, but then she decided that she heard something in the cold air return ductwork.  The registers are in the risers of the stairs leading to the bedroom.  She spent the evening on alert with her nose in the register and she would not move.   Friday morning, Roger took off the registers and cleaned out those areas and let Maggie stick her head in the ducts to check things out.  Tonight is the first evening she has not stationed herself in front of the stairs on high alert.  She is currently sprawled out on her back in her day bed on the couch. 

But, during the daylight hours when we are sitting outside (the weather has been phenomenal this week and in the 80s during the day) she has decided that she needs to check out the area around the tires under the tire covers.  She "worries" over it whenever she is out there and Rog had to take the covers off to show her that there was nothing under there before she tore them up.  He hoped there was nothing there and was very cautious taking them off.  

Our little terrier is doing her job - watching for rodents!!!  

Maggie has a treat ball - its a rubber thing that we put treats in the shape of a disc inside for her to work on.  It is supposed to keep her entertained for hours but she usually manages to get the treat out in about an hour.  Her latest  thing is to bring me the empty treat ball and look sad until I fill it again.  We can't keep it filled - for one thing it's too expensive and for another she doesn't need the calories.  Yes, we have her on a restricted calorie intake and she has lost two pounds since we have been here. The vet will be very happy when she goes in for her check up in April.  She is looking slim and trim.  

We are supposed to have her leashed or tied up or penned when she is outside but we don't as a rule.  She stays right on our little patio area or sleeps under the RV - when she isn't hunting little mousies.   She doesn't go after people or dogs when they walk by and doesn't bother anyone.  Yesterday she spotted a cat crossing the street.  She tore after it and chased it down the road.  I grabbed the leash and started after her not knowing where she was going to end up.  She must have lost the cat because, as I got a ways down the road, I spotted her trotting home looking so proud of herself.

We (mostly Roger) are still the computer gurus for our neighbor and it's paying off in desserts.  First it was a slice of apple pie fresh out of the oven and today it was a baby bundt cake.  Wonder how long this will last?  It's a pretty good gig but I can see the weight gain coming!  

We have a storm coming in tomororrow and the low pressure arrived today giving me a headache for most of the day.  I had a nice nap this afternoon and woke up feeling better.  Tonight is my night for TV - Masterpiece - so it's a quiet time here this evening.  

On Tuesday we will have our 47th anniversary.   Talk about your time flying by.  It is so hard to believe it has been so long since we started hanging out together.  

We've  been here two months this week and have two to go before we head home.  I had such plans for getting geneology stuff done and crochet projects and books read.  I also planned on starting in on a family history.  I'd better get cracking because I am seriously behind!   I need a schedule!