The Dangers of Country Life, III

[oloriel]

Ok.
Early this afternoon, I found a live shrew in the kitchen.
A tiny little shrew.

The cats were somewhere outside at the time; still I put the mouse outside, too (within seconds the cats materialised on the terrace), but I could see the shrew disappearing beyond the terrace walls, and apparently it disappeared under the snow afterwards. Either that or the cats ate it whole; at any rate they didn't bring it to our door. ('náro did bring a dead sparrow to the door today, which I only found out because he kept making the typical sounds a cat makes when it's tried to eat a bird and found out that there's lots of fluff and little meat on a sparrow.)

NOW I find a tiny toad.
I assume it's tried to hibernate somewhere in the barn, amidst the firewood, and came inside when the wood came inside. At any rate, now I have a tiny little toad. (The cats haven't found it yet, and I'm keeping watch on it.)
How do I take care of a toad so it survives until Spring? Does anyone have experience with this?

EDIT: Ok, apparently a bucket filled with compost, dead leaves and twigs would be a good hibernation place. I have all of that outside.
I'll probably need a chisel and hammer to get it into bucket-sized lumps, though.

EDIT II: Right. Filled a bucket with earth and twigs, and put it in the dark, damp cellar. We find toads there all the time (in Spring, at any rate), so I assume it's good environment for toads. However they get there, wtf.

Comments

[satismagic.livejournal.com]

No idea. Put it back where it came from?

BTW that's the origin of the salamander myths... they were hiding in the damp logs, and suddenly they are scampering about in the fire, trying to get the hell out of that hot place...

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

Among the firewood? That would be a surefire (fire... hah) way to get the poor thing burned sooner or later. Like those poor salamanders.

I think I'll try the remains of the advent wreath (-> twigs) and the cellar (cold, wet, and we regularly find toads and frogs there anyway, though usually in spring, Yavanna knows how they GET there in the first place).

[chili-das-schaf.livejournal.com]

Snow is the friend of rodents, apparently. Mom reports that Niko lost a mouse in the snow today, and not even frantical dog-like digging could bring it back.

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

*g* Yeah, the cats seem to think the mouse stays put where they lost sight of it, and don't realise it took off under the snow. Invisible ninja mice!