My brother, an actual genius, was interested in both rocketry and astronomy when very young (7 to 9+). He had a subscription to the Griffith Observatory Newsletter with articles such as JPL's Mariner Mars Spacecraft, Make your own telescope, solar geometry -- stuff way over my head. He bought some mice and a rat from a pet store and used to shoot them skyward in his rockets, and they would detach and the critters would return to earth in a small cylinder via parachute. He kept the mice and rat in cages in our swimming pool changing room in our backyard.
One mouse was himself rather smart. My brother named him Algernon, after the cognitively-enhanced mouse in the short story "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes, which won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in 1960 and which was the basis for the 1968 film Charly. Because my brother soon moved on to other scientific projects, I took over caring for the mice and rat (named Ginger). I soon discovered that Algernon knew how to get out of his cage. During the winters, I placed the cages on a pet heating pad, to help keep my rodent friends comfortable. Algernon had learned how to get out of the cage and sleep directly on the heating pad, but when he heard me coming to the pool changing room to feed and water my little friends, he would dash back into his cage to access his new food and treats, as he knew that his human friend expected him to be there. LOL.
Ginger the rat's favorite treat? Raw hamburger. She was the only rat I've ever had as a pet. I now do cat rescue, and no rat or mouse in his right mind would come anywhere near our property. Too many felines ...
Your dinner guests appear to have had a working social conscience. Crows do something similar. It's endearing, as well as thought-provoking.
Only 96? We have to fix that!
97 now but yes, our niche in the baseboard is fairly small.
My brother, an actual genius, was interested in both rocketry and astronomy when very young (7 to 9+). He had a subscription to the Griffith Observatory Newsletter with articles such as JPL's Mariner Mars Spacecraft, Make your own telescope, solar geometry -- stuff way over my head. He bought some mice and a rat from a pet store and used to shoot them skyward in his rockets, and they would detach and the critters would return to earth in a small cylinder via parachute. He kept the mice and rat in cages in our swimming pool changing room in our backyard.
One mouse was himself rather smart. My brother named him Algernon, after the cognitively-enhanced mouse in the short story "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes, which won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in 1960 and which was the basis for the 1968 film Charly. Because my brother soon moved on to other scientific projects, I took over caring for the mice and rat (named Ginger). I soon discovered that Algernon knew how to get out of his cage. During the winters, I placed the cages on a pet heating pad, to help keep my rodent friends comfortable. Algernon had learned how to get out of the cage and sleep directly on the heating pad, but when he heard me coming to the pool changing room to feed and water my little friends, he would dash back into his cage to access his new food and treats, as he knew that his human friend expected him to be there. LOL.
Ginger the rat's favorite treat? Raw hamburger. She was the only rat I've ever had as a pet. I now do cat rescue, and no rat or mouse in his right mind would come anywhere near our property. Too many felines ...
My son had a couple of rats for a while. They're very engaging as pets.
Sounds like they were "hunting" to help out, or just plain saying thank you. My cats used to "feed" the family with their hunting successes.
What an endearing story! Thank you
Payment, using the same currency that was used to purchase the island of Manhattan.