I catch my second mouse and transport him to Grand Canyon Airport.

I can tell that the mouse problem is one I’ll be dealing with all summer.

Less than a month after catching my first mouse and letting him go at Grand Canyon Airport (see a previous blog entry for details), I realized that another mouse had taken its place. (I seriously doubt that the first mouse returned, since it is about 30 miles from Howard Mesa to the Airport and mice have very small legs.)

I set the trap up in the middle of the floor one night, with a dab of peanut butter for bait. That night, I heard tiny noises that woke me. (I had had a rough day and wasn’t sleeping very soundly anyway.) At one point, I thought I heard the trap bang shut. But I must have dreamed that, because the little noises continued, on and off, all night and the trap was still wide open in the morning.

Mike, Jack the Dog, and Alex the Bird came to visit me the next day. They spent the night. No mouse is dumb enough to show its face when a dog is around, so I didn’t bother setting the trap.

The next night — last night — I set the trap up on the sofa. I threw some extra special treats in with the peanut butter: some broken up cashews. I climbed up to bed and read for a while. By 9 PM, I was falling asleep, so I killed the light and pretty much passed out.

Crash! It was the sound of the two sides of the trap dropping shut that woke me. And, moments later, my little captive trying to get out of the trap. Knowing I’d never be able to sleep through the continued noise, I turned on the lights and climbed out of bed. It was only 9:30. That little bugger hadn’t wasted any time going on the prowl. I put the trap outside on the picnic table and went to bed.

This morning, I happened to be flying back to the airport again. So I loaded up the trap and its occupant with the rest of my gear. At the airport, I had to literally shake the trap to get the mouse out. He hit the tall grass and disappeared.

I wonder if he’ll find the other mouse I relocated….