oops

Every once in a while, I forget to close a cage and a rat goes for a walk. Usually they don't go far, and if they are in the main rat room, the rats in the other cages let me know something is wrong because the "stranger" walking around makes them mad, and they fight with their cagemates. Or a particularly active/clever female rat manages to not get counted when I shut her cage door, and I find her minutes or hours later sitting on top of the boys' cage being a tease. (Some people say that rats can mate through the cage bars, but I don't believe it.)

So tonight, Esther went for a walk. Except she went into the kitchen, and under the heating vents, and eventually I found her, whiskers besmirched with grime, by the newspapers. Silly rat! She is one I really wish I had babies from, because she is gorgeous and friendly and healthy, but she never stayed pregnant :(