Someone (the culprit remains a mystery – but with a full house, anything is possible) had left open their little loft hatch and we think the two troublemakers were able to knock it off and jump out.

Needless to say, we didn’t know where to start looking. They could have been anywhere. And we didn’t know how long they were alone in the wild. Leave it to my husband’s animal instincts, however. After a few minutes of a panicked all-points-bulletin search, Papa ordered Chloe to look behind the shelves in the dining room. Sure enough, Gloup was crouched in the corner, sweaty and scared. And then Papa told Chloe to look in the desk area corner, and sure enough, Alubus was there, happy as a clam (he’s the independent type). We returned the rodents to their cage, where Gloup proceeded to monopolize the water bottle for a VERY long time.

This story has a happy ending. The two brothers are back in their cozy home, which happens to be spanking clean now as well, and we don’t think they’ll be escaping again any time soon. Honestly, I was quite afraid we’d discover two very dead, very smelly hamsters. It was a lucky day.