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Where We Left Off:
The previous case file was about a tragic loss to the critter community as we had to say goodbye to one of the chipmunks.
The Long Good Caturday:
Professor Oliver Queen Winchester has been demanding more chicken treats lately. He wanted to prove to us that he earned them. He set out to solve one of neverending cases: indoor mice.
There was a sneaky critter scampering through the passages between the floors and walls. Ollie could identify him by scent which was confirmed by his partner, Burton Guster “Gus” Nabu. The Banana Crime Family resurfaced. We hadn’t heard a squeak from this crime family since March when we discovered Harry “Pittsburgh Phil” Strauss had managed to escape the electric chair and we sent him into relocation. Benjamin Moore, the previous mouse caught inside, was related to the Banana Crime Family, but he was not an active participant in the organization.
“Auntie!” Ollie sat up on his backside and waved his paws at me while shouting. “Clear the board. I have a new mission and need you to take notes.”
I took off my old lady reading glasses and saved what I was working on. I finished the remaining coffee in my mug. Stacks on my tiny desk got rearranged. I grabbed paper and markers and headed to the corkboard where all three of us gathered.
Gus jumped to the top of the elaborate cardboard building. Ollie went inside his office of it on the bottom floor to get fortified by the scattering of dried catnip on the mat. He came back out ready to work.
The Mission:
“I’m going to stakeout the living room with The Cook and The Grumpy Old Man. I bet I can lure a mouse from the hidden passageways out into the open,” Ollie said.
“Oll,” Gus said, “if you think it’s that easy, we would’ve been doing it all along.”
“But, my dear cousin, a holiday is approaching. The Cook has been making extra food. The Butler has gathered special recipes. Even this one,” Ollie thumbed in my direction, “has plans to make something.”
“That’s true,” I said, “and I never cook.”
More bustling in the kitchen meant a lot more crumbs. Food would be laid out on any flat surface for cooling. The aromas of a turkey roasting in the oven, squashes, stuffing, and pies would soon fill the house. What could be far enough in advance that it wouldn’t disrupt the feast preparations?
Oliver decided the best bait would be nuts from The Grumpy Old Man’s snacks. He had pistachios and almonds. Perhaps they would be irresistible delicacies for the mice.
This plan required human assistance to get the bait set up. That part was easy. A few nuts taken from the containers, handed off to Oliver, and he was ready to move forward. Ollie is great at batting things around when he’s motivated. He used to play baseball and fútbol more often.
After dinner, the elders had their desserts ready. They sat in their favorite comfortable seats. It was almost time for Jeopardy! which they never miss. Ollie waited on The Cook’s lap until heard noises by the firewood stack. Gus and I were upstairs. He takes a nap between early dinner and late evening supper. It’s a perfect time for snuggling.
I heard The Cook yell out, but not in a scared way. “Ollie has a mouse!” I paused the video I was watching and yelled back, “What?” She repeated herself. This woke Gus up. He jumped down, stretched, and headed for the door. I followed suit. Did Ollie really have a mouse while Gus was with me?
None of us completely doubted Oliver’s abilities to catch mice. It just happened to be that Gus was always the one to carry the critters around the house and up to the offices or bedroom. Ollie was always there with him, but he let Gus take all the credit. As soon as the mice were in Guster’s custody, Ollie would moved back in a defense/goalie position in order to keep the mice from getting too far away from Gus. This is necessary because Gus always lets the critters go in order to play with them and allow them time to breathe and answer questions. Most of the time, they run away. Too often, they escape.
Gus and I reached the living room where Oliver did, indeed, have a mouse in his jaws. In this instance, the mouse barely moved. It made capturing him much easier. Oliver let the mouse go and it looked dead. That offered me plenty of time to place the Witness Relocation Unit over top of it. However, as soon as the transportation vehicle was turned right-side-up, the mouse animated with newly found vitality as if it had been shocked back to life from an AED. It looked fine! Big and shiny black eyes, pink toes and nose, and a snowy white belly. The only thing unusual was the amount of feline saliva on his back giving him that intentionally messy style.
“Ollie, did you have time to get answers from this one?” Gus asked.
“I sure did. I got us a big catch!” Oliver followed me to the door where I put on my shoes, safety orange vest, and turned the giant Mag Lite on.
“Time to get this fella outta here,” I said. Gus wanted to go with me. He paced and whined until I returned. I took the mouse to the Raccoon House where he really did not want to go. He seemed to prefer the safety of the Witness Relocation Unit to being outside in the open. Fortunately, he headed in the direction of the building where he would likely be safe from predators.
Case Findings:
Oliver planned a mission involving a baited capture and release hoping to get another member of the Banana Crime Family. His plan worked to perfection! Using some nuts during a week of extra cooking and baking, a mouse was lured out of hiding from inside the secret passageways. Ollie captured the mouse and learned about him.
Suspect Name: Perry “Perry-Cristelli” Criscitelli
Associations: The Banana Crime Family
Life stage: Adult
Physical characteristics: average size, a blend of grey and brown on dorsal side, white underneath, pink nose, pink toes, black glossy eyes, black whiskers
Perry was captured and successfully relocated on November 22, 2025.
Case Status: Closed