Mice are no ordinary creatures. They not only steal food, but also take it home after eating. If you peek into the burrows of some mice, such as hamsters, you'll find them stuffed with corn, rice, peanuts, sunflower seeds, and so on, just like a grocery store. So why do mice that live in granaries and homes worry about food and hoard grain?
In fact, hoarding grain is a "tradition" of many rodents, including squirrels. They store seeds during the harvest season and use them to survive when food becomes scarce in winter. Mice generally hoard grain in two ways: centralized storage and decentralized storage. The former involves storing grain in a few centralized "warehouses". The advantage is that it's convenient to retrieve food in the future, but the disadvantage is that many seeds have to be carried from far away, and if they're stolen by thieves, there's a risk of going hungry. The latter involves hiding seeds in different places or even burying them locally, which is less effort-intensive and doesn't matter much if some are lost. However, it's very difficult to find them. Some seeds never get found and sprout, turning "food storage" into "tree planting".
Hoarding grain is a crucial matter for survival in winter. Mice also carefully select the seeds they store, rejecting those damaged by insects or incomplete. As the saying goes, "Having food in hand means having peace of mind". Only with sufficient food can mice survive the winter peacefully.
Of course, there are also many mice that don't have the habit of hoarding grain. These "lazy" mice have to venture out in the freezing winter to forage for food, sometimes becoming prey for other predators.