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Wildlife at the Library
I came down the stairs from the reference department into nonfiction today, and was stopped by a patron about half way.
"You have some wildlife," she said.
My first thought was that she was in the craft area, not in science, and then I noticed it. On the floor near her feet was a tiny little mouse.
I don't remember if I wrote here about my first mouse capture. A year or two ago, I had a mouse in my office, and not having the appropriate equipment to catch it, I let it skitter around most of the day. I heard a thump at one point, looked over my shoulder, and realized that the mouse had climbed my box fan and had tumbled into the half-empty, open box of office paper next to it. The result was an adorably trapped mouse, which I promptly took down the stairs from my apartment and released in the yard.
So thinking of that same trick, I went back to the staff office in the library, got a box top and returned to the nonfiction section, where the patron was still watching the poor thing.
"He's going to jump right out of that," she said.
I shrugged, because she was probably right. "It's the best I could come up with," I answered.
I lowered it to the little mouse, whose head was bigger than the rest of his body, and he panicked. Whiskers quivering and lungs jumping, he dashed down the aisle. I followed after, calmly, slowly, and watched as the mouse ran into the corner--dead end. The patron walked with me, and I held the box lid steady, talking in a very calm voice, until I could scoop him onto the cardboard. He was so terrified he still didn't move, but I walked very carefully, holding the box top as still as I could, as I transported him back through the staff offices and outside. We let him go in some of the bushes in our yard, and I hope very much that he'll find a new home. If he was an outdoor mouse that accidentally found his way into the library, I think his chances are probably pretty good. If he was born in the library, though... well, I tried my best.
I really, really think I need a pet.
"You have some wildlife," she said.
My first thought was that she was in the craft area, not in science, and then I noticed it. On the floor near her feet was a tiny little mouse.
I don't remember if I wrote here about my first mouse capture. A year or two ago, I had a mouse in my office, and not having the appropriate equipment to catch it, I let it skitter around most of the day. I heard a thump at one point, looked over my shoulder, and realized that the mouse had climbed my box fan and had tumbled into the half-empty, open box of office paper next to it. The result was an adorably trapped mouse, which I promptly took down the stairs from my apartment and released in the yard.
So thinking of that same trick, I went back to the staff office in the library, got a box top and returned to the nonfiction section, where the patron was still watching the poor thing.
"He's going to jump right out of that," she said.
I shrugged, because she was probably right. "It's the best I could come up with," I answered.
I lowered it to the little mouse, whose head was bigger than the rest of his body, and he panicked. Whiskers quivering and lungs jumping, he dashed down the aisle. I followed after, calmly, slowly, and watched as the mouse ran into the corner--dead end. The patron walked with me, and I held the box lid steady, talking in a very calm voice, until I could scoop him onto the cardboard. He was so terrified he still didn't move, but I walked very carefully, holding the box top as still as I could, as I transported him back through the staff offices and outside. We let him go in some of the bushes in our yard, and I hope very much that he'll find a new home. If he was an outdoor mouse that accidentally found his way into the library, I think his chances are probably pretty good. If he was born in the library, though... well, I tried my best.
I really, really think I need a pet.
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We ended up holding vigil over the darn thing, because we knew if he jumped into the house he'd get lost in all the clutter in that room and we'd find a little tiny bird corpse weeks later.
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Man, I need to toughen up. ;)
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;-)