I doubt any of us would have gotten much sleep had the hunting party’s return been at midnight. However, all our family are light sleepers.
In the darkness just after 4 AM, I heard shuffling of flip-flops, a thump, and a muffled “S***!” Our son must be up early for work, I thought. Then I heard the sound of the living room slider opening and shutting. And meowing.
My wife, awake, got out of bed to check on the commotion.
“The cat has a present for you”, she called to me.
I got up to find a large grey rat, quite dead, laid out in the hallway. As with each of her last several prizes – a (partial) bunny last year, a couple gophers and rats, Kitty brings her trophies to show us. Or perhaps only for me, as I am the one who gives her lots of praise and caresses for her hunting prowess. Sheri brought me a dustpan and disinfectant for the tile floor.
Hickory dickory dock. The mouse ran up the clock. The clock struck four, The mouse ran down, Hickory dickory dock -from Wikipedia (nursery rhyme, ca. 1765)
As I bore the corpse out through the front door, Kitty followed purring proudly. I deposited her breakfast on the front patio and shut the door. I was silently glad for the darkness- my neighbors did not , and do not, need to see me in my underwear. That’s gossip I do not want to read about on the Neighborhood app or hear sung to the tune of Hickory, Dickory Dock.
It's a Dog's Life 