“Hmm, kemosabe. Herd of cats stampeding this way… two, mebbe three miles due south… and it doesn’t actually help when you press my ear to the ground like that.”
Whoever heard of a herd of cats, Heidi B.?
Tonto Senses Danger!
July 21, 2010 By
“Hmm, kemosabe. Herd of cats stampeding this way… two, mebbe three miles due south… and it doesn’t actually help when you press my ear to the ground like that.”
Whoever heard of a herd of cats, Heidi B.?
normally I would not respond to a rodent post …afterall I am a crazy cat lady but could it be that I am the first and Theo is not here to take down the post- bwhahaha I am queen of the world (also need to get out more)
Is the one on top wearing red fingernail polish?
My rats are like that. They walk all over each other like they don’t even know the others are there.
I hope it’s fingernail polish… if not. big gut needs to tapout!
Oops, big GUY!
Typing one-handed really bites!
Hey, if you’re trying to boost reception, try moving your tail left. No, right. No, left.
LOL This is so full of WIN… High ho silver AWAY!
for some reason, this reminds me of the time our hamster picked up our white mouse and attempted to stuff it into his cheek pouch, or bite it’s head off – we didn’t wait to find out
1) @ Theresa: Don’t you mean “your OTHER right”????
2)YAY @ NTM as always, wonderful slightly mental storytelling
3) Alternative capshon: “Can you hear me, NOW???”
Best captions EVER by Mike… They brought so much extra to an already adorable post.
What’s the squeekency, Kenneth?
Hahaha, TONTO. Is he really dumb? XD
They are so adorable~ Lookit the tiny fingers!
OMG! Here we have the little rat sitting on the big one, grooming his ears *whether he likes it or not, Bwahahah!*, and then he gets caught by the human and the sudden, surprized, guilty, “Oops, busted!” look.
My mice used to groom each other’s ears willing or no, but they never had the grace to look guilty about it. This picture is the best!
Is that rat trying to do the Vulcan Mind Melt?
REMEMBER…..
Squee! Ratties so cute! Every time I see a Rattie post I squee and give a little nod to my
sweet little escape artist Koolaid. That’ll do Rat, that’ll do. *sigh*
(edit:)
Meant give a little nod ~in my head/memories~ to my sweet little escape artist Koolaid.
The red on the little rat’s nose and fingers is probably porphyrin, a chemical in their tears that is almost the exact color of oxygenated blood. When they get porphyrin staining on their noses, they usually have sniffles. It gets on their paws when they wash, or while they sleep.
Funnily enough, this is a common dominance thing among rats–the dominant rat will hold the submissive rat down and groom them, often eliciting pitiful peeps and squeaks begging them to stop. Size doesn’t usually matter much…it is more about personality and an aggressive little ‘un will sometimes rule the roost over older, bigger pudges who are more interested in lazing around in hammocks.
Here’s a herd of cats!
(hopefully that works)
I think the smaller rat is trying to give the larger one CPR.
–bossgripes.com
I. LOVE. RATS.
That is all.
~~c==^>
SQUEE!!
My ratties powergroom too, and they always give me the same ‘guilty’ face LOL
“Uhhhh..we were just playing, Mom, honest!”
My vet (who has a LOT of rodent experience) confirms that the whole “I’ve got you by the ears!” thing is indeed dominance. It reminds the groom-ee of when Momma used to pin them down and clean them up which is why they will sort of freeze up and not fight it. Of course the best fun was when my delicate little mamma mouse Fyrd would grab one of her huge (neutered) sons and pin him down and do his ears just the way she did when he was the size of a pencil eraser.
There is however a certain amount of truth to the fact that it’s hard to clean your own ears and face with the precision that a friend can put into it, which is why dogs lick your face. I am sure that the small rattie is just showing his great love and affection and willingness to help out his big white buddy yeh, right, that’s it, that’s his story and he’s sticking to it….
Hey, why isn’t this tagged as “I shall leeck you”?
@Wvaden: I was hoping someone would post that video, I love it!
It’s not porphyrin, if you look closely, it’s on the rattie’s back foot too.
@Colonel Stratton, I hate to get all icky-behavioral on you, but dogs lick your face for a different reason. Dogs are basically wolves with a few differences. One is that they retain what for wolves would be juvenile behavior into adulthood. When the grown wolves come back from a hunt, they regurgitate food for the babies. The babies lick the grown wolves faces to stimulate the regurgitation. Dogs do this as a kind of a “Hi, Mommy/Daddy, I’m the baby, take care of me,” kind of greeting.
@Theresa
Count me as someone who really does want to know the reason for animal behaviour. That explanation makes perfect sense to me. Our dogs see us as the best hunters in the world. I wonder why they lick our faces, even when no food comes out. I wonder why they lick our feet.
The best thing I ever learned was that dogs are saying “i love you” when they blink at you. It takes a few times to get them started, but it’s been tested and proved many, many times (around here.)
Now if I could just find out if there is a name for birds who protectively dive-bomb my car when I pass their territory. It’s obviously futile, but daring and discomforting.
Ewww…are we supposed to barf for them when they leeck our faces?
Knowing goggies, they would probably find that absolutely awesome!
Oakley is Outstanding! I LOL’d!
“My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts…”
Okay, I think I can be calm now. That is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen, the caption is perfect, and the hovertext… I laughed until I cried and then I laughed some more. I was still snorting and giggling as I walked my dog. Happily, the neighbors all know I’m crazy but harmless and, if I do say so myself, rather loveable.
Has anyone else read that there was no real meaning to the word, “kemosabe?”
Can you detect some Roman coins while your there?
ahhhh, rats! Need I say more? Of coure I do! I see this alot, and even see them shove under another rat hoping to get groomed. It is also fun and crazy to enjoy them cleaning our hands too, cuz they grab our fingers and twist and turn to get between all the wrinkles. Ew, i know, but sweet!
@shadowtiger . I know huh?! My biggest fattest rat is often ‘thrown down’ by my smallest! I think he really appreciates being cleaned in the area his fat butt cannot reach!
Fern: “Kemosabe” may have had some genuine origin in Native American languages, but according to Wikipedia, it found its way into “The Lone Ranger” because it was the name of a summer camp. Wikipedia has this article flagged as needing more research, so bear that in mind while reading.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ke-mo_sah-bee
Rat phrenologist sees a bright future for you!
It reminds me of my rats
even though her sister Charlie and brother Finn are twice the size of her, Maggie is the one on charge<3
Ohhh, so that’s what the possums on the road are doing? Listening for oncoming cars?
This is SUCH a typical rat photo! My girl Frida will squish her sister’s face and fluff it up, and then use it as a pillow
Well, I’ve heard of a herd of cats!
I LOVE this, thank you so much! Laughed so hard I almost choked – really should dust this keyboard sometime.
I know that sometimes, a big adult rat will actually LET a youngster pin him in the spirit of good natured kid-indulgence. I’ve seen this, but it seems to apply only to the very young. Once they reach their “teens”, they have to earn it.
The innocent look on the rattie’s face is typical and priceless: “I wasn’t trying to suffocate him, Mum, he’s got something in his ear!”
Theresa, thanks for the reminder, I should have remembered better about dogs licking faces. I’ve had enough reminders from my mom’s dog whose dream of a perfect day includes regurge… I believe it was on a PBS special about dogs that I heard they lick ears friendly-wise.
(One of the best minutes of Cricket’s life included the moment I tried to choke on a piece of steak. I had to spit it out NOW, and there she was and very happy to help she was too.)
@Colonel Jenna: I’ll bet she was. “Oh yay! Mom finally did it! …Wait, how’d I get her to do that? *puzzle, puzzle*”
“I squeesh you!”
I love rattie posts! I have three of the little boogers, they’re just the cutest things!
Well, according to Gary Larson (the cartoonist), Kemosabe is an Apache expression for a horse’s rear end. I think I’ll go with that one.
@janet2buns: *snerk* I remember. This one:
http://www.readingreview.com/comics/nightofthecrashtestdummies.html
If you’re trying to increase reception, you just can’t hold it at the bottom. So I guess Mr. 2-colored ratty is doing it right
What I meant to say was “No, you’re holding it wrong!”
@ pyrit: “Why YES dear, that’s exACTly what they’re doing!!! ”
*patting you affectionately on the haid*
(JK!!)
You’re the primary pyrit, ’round these parts!!!
It’s a remake of Julie and Julia, where Julia is making beignets on the show and Julie has problems with ingredient availability and portion control. Madcap hilaraty ensues…
Or:
Rat chiropractor will fix that stiff neck right up.
Awww… These guys make me miss my 3 rats from college. They don’t live very long but make great pets while they do. Ratty antics are always photo-worthy.
lol..”You dont hear that….how ’bout now?! LOL