Mice...The Saga Continues

Ok, so the last few days, Criket has been continually obsessed with something underneath the A/C unit again. I have never been able to spot anything under there. She digs little holes big enough to stick her head under there, and circles it continuously. Figuring that it wasn't anything to be too concerned about, I let her have her fun. I mean, she gets a kick out of it...why should I make her stop just because her head gets dirty?

My interest picked up after Argus started stalking the A/C unit too. He doesn't have the same hunt drive that Criket does, but he's still a Jack Russell. I figured maybe they'd cornered a relative of the enormous rodent that visited us not too long ago. But I don't think that's what it was.

Last night, Argus had been outside for a long time, and I went to check on him. I found him sitting on the other side of the A/C unit, staring at the ground. I went over to investigate...and being the dumb human I am, I couldn't see or hear anything. The spot he was staring at was the corner where the fence meets the house where there was a small pile of old grass clippings. The rest of our fence has a hotwire around it to keep the dogs from climbing over/digging under the fence; therefore, the dogs won't get close to the fence. But when I showed him that there was no hotwire there, he moved in.

Criket pounced on the pile of grass and mice scattered everywhere. It was grown-up mice and baby mice. They scattered in all directions at once, squeaking like crazy. The dogs were so overwhelmed by mice running everywhere, they didn't now which one to chase. From the look on Argus' face, I thought his head would explode.

Of course, one or more of the mice ran up under the A/C unit that was so conveniently close. The others scattered all across the yard - into the front yard, the neighbor's yard, and who knows where else. Criket spent the next little while tracking them. Argus spent that time following her around, hoping she'd find something for him to chase. After 20 minutes, I drug them both in the house. They were panting like crazy since it was 100+ degrees outside. And I had to go somewhere.

I don't know what has caused our yard to be such a haven for rodents, especially since we have two Jack Russells that patrol the yard at all hours of the day and night. Maybe it has something to do with the hot, dry conditions. Maybe it's Non-English Speaking Neighbor's affinity for tall grass. Whatever it is, I've about had enough of it.