The Christmas Mouse. On the weekend we put up the Christmas tree, Opie brought home a mouse, which, true to form was placed by the cat food dish and instantly dashed behind the stove. We set out the humane trap. No luck. We would periodically see him come out, put his front paws up on the water dish and drink, then grab a Tender Vittle and vanish behind the stove. He ignored the bait in the trap. After a few days we could hear him gnawing. He chewed his way from the kitchen to the bedroom, under the floor. To ensure that he wasn't going to get lost under there, we began placing exactly 5 Tender Vittles by the stove (so we could keep track), and every morning 4 would be gone. We began baiting the trap with Tender Vittles. Nothing. We stopped giving Opie Tender Vittles. Bingo, mouse in trap. It took us nearly four weeks to work that out. We celebrated his capture and said a fond goodbye. We named him the Christmas mouse. We placed two handfuls of Tender Vittles in the woods in the spot where we released him. A week later they were gone.