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An interesting event...
Jul. 24th, 2005 08:02 pmLast night, on my way home from picking up dinner at Pluto's, I noticed this cat sitting in the middle of the road in front of Chemistry 194 on the UC Davis Campus. I stop to be sure that this cat wasn't hurt, and I notice this small grey blur use the opportunity gained by my distraction to make a run for it. Normally, I don't interfere with preditor-prey interactions, even when the preditor in question is a cat who probably shouldn't be this far from home. However, something bugged me, so I follow the cat, who was in no hurry to catch this mouse, to check her collar for some clue as to whom she belongs. The mouse was trying, unsuccessfully, to hide in the grass by staying very still. I didn't see an address on the cat's collar, so I decide that she probably lives nearby, and start to head off.
This is where things get really weird. I say goodbye to the cat and good-luck to the mouse, go to get on my bike, and the mouse darts away from the cat, climbs up my bicycle onto the seat, looks directly at me, and squeaks expectantly. Not one to ignore a plea for mercy, I slowly, so as not to knock the mouse off of my bike, wheel the bike across the street. The cat did not follow. Let me note here that most rodents have a small home range, and, not knowing anything about the common fieldmouse, I didn't want to put it so far away from home that it couldn't find it's way back. I start to look for something to cover my hand to avoid getting bitten by the mouse and to avoid getting mouse blood on me (the mouse had sustained some sort of wound from the cat. It wasn't serious enough to impede the mouse, though.) After a minute of looking, the mouse decides to get down on its own and dash for a nearby cactus. Meanwhile, the cat figures out where the mouse is and starts chasing after it. I did not stay after this. I didn't see the cat catch the mouse again before I left, so I hope the mouse was able to dash home without getting caught. I feel bad, though. I should have called the cat's owners to make sure she wasn't lost. I'll keep my eyes open and see if she shows up again.
This is where things get really weird. I say goodbye to the cat and good-luck to the mouse, go to get on my bike, and the mouse darts away from the cat, climbs up my bicycle onto the seat, looks directly at me, and squeaks expectantly. Not one to ignore a plea for mercy, I slowly, so as not to knock the mouse off of my bike, wheel the bike across the street. The cat did not follow. Let me note here that most rodents have a small home range, and, not knowing anything about the common fieldmouse, I didn't want to put it so far away from home that it couldn't find it's way back. I start to look for something to cover my hand to avoid getting bitten by the mouse and to avoid getting mouse blood on me (the mouse had sustained some sort of wound from the cat. It wasn't serious enough to impede the mouse, though.) After a minute of looking, the mouse decides to get down on its own and dash for a nearby cactus. Meanwhile, the cat figures out where the mouse is and starts chasing after it. I did not stay after this. I didn't see the cat catch the mouse again before I left, so I hope the mouse was able to dash home without getting caught. I feel bad, though. I should have called the cat's owners to make sure she wasn't lost. I'll keep my eyes open and see if she shows up again.
