Dante made another escape today. I'm thinking he climbed the bars of the cage and somehow squeezed out the top hatch. I don't usually latch it because it's heavy enough to foil excape attempts, but I guess Dante has been itching for adventure lately. Yesterday I found him sitting on top of the cage, today it was the floor. I was about to leave and go out to eat with my mom and sister, but I suddenly had a hunch that I should check on the rats. So I went downstairs and peered into the cage. Squeekers was there looking puzzled, like he was wondering where his friend went, but no Dante. I looked down, and he was sitting on the floor, next to the table leg. I didn't see him when I came down, because he kind of blends in with the carpet. The cage is up on a little end table. I hope he at least crawled down the side of the cage before falling/jumping. A 2-foot drop is somewhat less dangerous than a 3 1/2 foot drop. He was just sitting there looking confused, so I picked him up. He protested a little but seemed anxious to get back in, so I put him back in and headed out. I think he had wandered around a bit, because the treat bag was knocked over. When I came back, I looked him over to see if he had broken anything. He seemed relatively ok, though it seems he's lost some weight recently and felt a little bony (maybe I'll add some juice to their water bottles so he'll get more fluids). The bump under his arm just seems like an abcess, but he was squirming so much I couldn't get a better look at it. He doesn't like being held or touched as much as my other rats do/did, since he's the shy one, so I don't get many chances to examine him. He's been a bit more sluggish than usual, but it's been a slow decline since he's an old fart now (2 years and 1-2 months). He used to climb the cage bars a lot when he was younger (especially when he heard me coming or it was dinner time), but not so much any more. So why the sudden escaping and lifting the heavy (for a rat) cage door but not really going anywhere? I can't figure it out. Of all the rats, he's the least adventurous, and they had plenty of food and water, so I'm curious. Especially since he's old and lazy. I latched the cage this time, so hopefully he'll stay in. Especially since we have 3 cats who like hunting, although they've never taken an interest in the rats. I think Dude knew something was up, he kept calling to me when I was upstairs, even though he didn't want to go out or eat. Dante did look a little scared, since he probably fell, but I wonder if one of the cats was nearby and gave him a fright. If that was the case, I'm glad they left Dante alone. We get enough dismembered rodents on the back deck, I don't think we could deal with any in the basement (though there was an incident several years ago where Belle brought in a live bunny and ripped its head off in front of my neighbor).
Well! On a better note, when we were coming back, the Indigo Girls were on the radio, and they played "Galileo," which made me happy.
And when we were at Eat 'n Park, Katie knew the waiter. Apparently he had asked her out to a movie last year, but she blew him off and went to a football game instead. Such a meanypants.
