Tha's SO gross! But....what is it?

After an enjoyable afternoon of listening to Conference at Mom and Dad's, we're sitting around enjoying each other's company when Matt looks through Mom and Dad's back windows.

"Hey! What's Caramel got in her mouth?"

Since Mom and Dad had moved near Rigby Lake, their scatter-brained golden retriever has brought home an array of items from baby diapers to a really nice sneaker (which is still in their garage). Mom just sighed and didn't want to think about it.

"Man! That's so gross! What even IS that?!" Matt continued to exclaim.

Unless it's a sport game, nothing really keeps Matt's attention for long when he's at home, which led us to believe that it wasn't just an old slipper she was carrying around in her mouth.

"It can't be a mouse...they're not that big...squirrels don't have long skinny tails like that...Man, what IS that thing?!"

After the last musing about potential rodents hanging limp from Caramel's mouth, Mom and I popped up from our chair and rushed to look as well. The dog had just gone around the side of the house, and Matt decided to follow her.

We anxiously waited on the back deck, and then Matt quickly came running around the other side, saying, "I think she has a giant rat in her mouth!"

"WHAT?!" Mom and I both yelled.

"I've never seen anything with that long of a tail before, so I'm not sure, but she's sitting in the front yard," Matt informed us.

Quickly Mom and I ran to the front porch, and sure enough, something definitely furry with a long, skinny tail was hanging from her mouth, but it was too big...

"That's SO gross! But what is it?!"

"What is that thing? It stinks!" and so on the commentary went.

Matt decided that he was going to get it from Caramel, which is why I don't have a picture of said ball of matted fur and scaly tail. HE DECIDED TO CHASE US WITH IT!!!!!! AROUND THE HOUSE!!!

Now, all who know me know that I have an unhealthy fear of mice, especially dead mice. As in, I need extensive therapy just to get over the tormenting that my dad and Ryan (and later on Matt) would do by goading me with mice dangling from traps, etc... I really don't want to get into it....

Mom told Matt to throw it out in the field behind their house, so he got some latex gloves, but then he decided to detour with the still unknown and very large...rodent. He brought it in the house to see what we'd do, and I quickly discovered two things: Mom and I have the same exact yell, and locking yourself in your bedroom just spurs the attack.

I dashed downstairs and sat next to Chris who was watching COPS, shaking like a leaf. Mom, on the other hand, locked herself in her room to get away from Matt. Well, he just went out to the back deck and started thwacking her bedroom window with the furry carcass (it had been dead for awhile).

Finally, he went outside, but not before taunting me with the lifeless body one last time (I thought Chris would've protected me better) and then ran out to the field and heaved the vermin away.

So, what was it?

A muskrat, which apparently reside near dry beds and ponds. It looked like the offspring of an ROUS from The Princess Bride.

I should have had Wesley there to save me... ;)

At least Matt didn't want us to do this to it for dinner. Make sure you read the comments below the picture as well.

YUCK!!!!!!!