WHISKERS ... R.I.P.

As many of you know, nothing means more to Emma than her pet mouse. Anyone who has known us for a while probably has heard the story of the freezing-rain, night-time funeral we had for her previous mouse, White Socks.

Well, we've now had the unfortunate opportunity to attend our second mouse funeral. Whiskers the mouse died this week. Consider the following to be his obituary ...

Whiskers Van Goh Murray, 2, of North Mankato, died Thursday, Aug. 24, 2006 at his home. Services were held immediately, with burial in the backyard Murray Garden.

Whiskers was born at Pet Expo, a pet store in Mankato. He had dozens — heck, maybe hundreds — of brothers and sisters, almost all of whom probably died within months after their birth (the vast majority of mice born in captivity exist to provide food for their fellow pet store residents, the reptiles.) Whiskers was one of the few mice who escaped and went on to lead a long life that saw him become a rather rotund rodent. He feasted heartily on the peanuts, pellets and other traditional mouse food, but his favorite food was Cheerios, and he consumed them with mucho gusto.

His life, while well fed, was not without peril. Whiskers came close to death from fur mites, an affliction that caused him to scratch himself nearly to death and his ear right ear completely off, resulting in the official changing of his name to Whiskers VAN GOH Murray. He survived that trial only by a last-ditch family effort to save him that involved a trip to the vet — who confessed having never treated a mouse before — and several weeks of bovine itch medication for which no known dilution formula existed to bring the dosage down to mouse size, but they made a good guess and it worked. Within a few weeks he was feeling better, while perhaps not hearing quite as well.

Whiskers' participation in the Pet Expo Halloween costume contest may have been his shining moment. With his owner Emma and her brother Samuel dressed as hockey players, Whiskers was tucked inside a box labeled "Penalty Box: Two minutes for squeaking." The trio took the top prize in the contest.

Whiskers is survived by his owner and best friend, Emma, and friends Samuel, Amy and Robert Murray. He will truly be missed.

Good-bye, Whiskers ...