Foster Kitten Update

Max (10 weeks old) and his Mom.

Sparkle (about 12 weeks old)

Sparkle's sister

Sparkle's other sister

Since we're going on vacation for two weeks, I'll be taking all the kitties back to the shelter on Thursday. I sure do hate to take them back before they are ready to adopt, but I don't really have a choice.

If you live in the Seattle area and are interested in being a foster family, give 'em a call. They need more foster homes!

Oh no! I think I've become a cat lady...

I dropped Katie off at preschool and drove from there to the shelter where I picked up 2 of Sparkle's 6 siblings. Since Sparkle and Max aren't getting along, and I didn't want to return Sparkle to the shelter, I thought this was the best way to go.

One of the new kittens was covered in poop, so the first thing I had to do was bathe him. So, I ran some warm, soapy water in the laundry room sink and dipped him in. He didn't like it so much, but didn't really fight me. That is, until I did the stupidest thing ever... I turned the faucet on so I could rinse him off with clean water. Well, the noise of the running water made him crazy. The claws came out and he twisted his little head around toward my hand and bit me hard. Even so, I managed to keep a hold of him, turned the water off and decided bathtime was officially over! Don't worry, he didn't get hurt. Can't say the same for myself, though!

I put the three kittens in a large cat playpen, with everything they need. Sparkle seemed to recognize her siblings and almost immediately she wanted to play. The two new ones were a bit on edge, not yet able to relax and play. Even now, it's been all day since their reunion and I don't think the two newbies are relaxed enough to enjoy themselves. Hopefully tomorrow they'll settle down enough to frolic together.

Every day for the next two weeks, I have to give each of the three kittens antibiotics. I was nervous about doing it tonight because they still see me as a threat. The claws came out, but if I grab the scruff of their neck, I can avoid getting hurt.

Hopefully it won't be too long before they purr when I pick them up!

Cat Spat

Okay well, bringing home another foster kitten (Katie named her Sparkle) to play with our sole-survivor kitten (Katie and Regina named him Max) isn't quite working out as well as I had hoped it would. I've resorted to having them in separate rooms!

Yesterday and the day before, I had them all in the same room, but different crates at night. Because I knew the Momma cat wasn't thrilled about Sparkle, I left her in the big cage all day while the kittens were loose in the room, in hopes that they would begin to like each other and play. Well, anytime they would run into each other (We would try to lure them together with cat toys.), Sparkle hissed and growled. Immediately, Max would back off and run over to the cage where his Mom was, climbing the outside of it, trying to get inside with her. So, for most of yesterday, I had the Mom and Max in the big cage while Sparkle was loose in the room so she could play and run around.

Later in the afternoon yesterday, I had all three of them loose in the room. The Momma growled and hissed at Sparkle, but kept her distance. Finally she couldn't stand it anymore and she lunged at Sparkle. I was on the floor with them at the time, so I reached out to pull her back. Both cats emerged unharmed, but I got a claw in my thumb that drew blood. So, that's what has prompted me to separate them.

This morning when I picked up Sparkle to move her and all her stuff, she purred, for the first time! She's a sweet kitten, but maybe she's not the right choice for Max. I don't know. Anyway, I'm thinking about calling today to see if her sibling has recovered from a case of diahrrea yet and if so, I could bring him here too, to keep his sister company until they can all be adopted in a few weeks.

New Clothes and Kitties

It's like all of the sudden the other day she outgrew 90% of her clothes! So, I hit the outlet mall in North Bend and got a few things for the warmer weather. In this picture, she's wearing one of the new outfits. She especially likes this shirt because it has flower beads on the front.

The first thing she wants to do every morning is visit with the foster kitties. I cleaned up their cage while Katie gave them some love, but I couldn't resist taking a break from cleaning to take a few pictures.

The kitten is now 5 weeks old and the Momma is weaning him. It's so hard to watch as the kitten struggles to nurse while the Momma is growling and pushing him away, harshly sometimes. He's clearly still getting some nourishment from her because he is growing, gaining weight and always has plenty of energy, but even so, I worry he's hungry. I have been trying for a few days now to get him to eat food, but he isn't interested. I'll keep trying anyway. I'm happy to report though, he is using the litter box!

Well, Katie has a birthday party at 11 this morning, so I need to get going. I'm cooking steel cut oatmeal in my rice cooker, which should be done about now. It does a wonderful job cooking oatmeal on the "porridge" setting. It's as if I have a chef downstairs cooking my breakfast!

OMG! There's Fur Everywhere!

We've been so, so, so careful to NOT allow our two cats, Hudson and Mater, to meet the foster Momma and her baby. Anytime we leave the room where they are, we crack the door open just enough to see if Hudson or Mater are there waiting to get in and if they are, we get them out of the way, especially if the Momma and baby are not closed up in their kittie cage.

Katie has been pretty good about also being careful, but I doubt she really knew why. I've talked to her about how important it is to keep them separated, but until you see what happens when two unfamiliar cats meet, you really don't fully understand. Well... after this morning, I think she fully understands!

Katie and I were in with the Momma and baby, giving them time outside their cage to play. I was paying attention to the kitten and didn't realize that Katie had opened the door to the room. It really isn't her fault, and I told her that, but Hudson was sitting right by the door and walked in as soon as Katie opened the door. I heard her say, "Hudson!" and I asked, "What about him?" She shrieked, "He's in HERE!" I panicked for a moment as I asked, "In HERE, where?" I didn't know where Hudson was, but the Momma cat sure did. She darted over to him and backed him against the wall, her teeth and claws were out. She was ferocious. I ran over to the door, which Katie had closed after Hudson entered, and I opened it, hoping Hudson would run out. Sure enough, he did, as fast as he could. But not before the Momma dug her claws into his back, extracting clumps of black fur that flew everywhere. My heart was pounding. I was so worried the Momma would follow him outside the room and chase him around the house. Fortunately, she would not leave the room. Probably because she knew her baby was still in there and she had to protect him. Anyway, Hudson flew out of the room, I slammed the door and then realized Katie was horrified at what she just saw so we spent some time talking about it. Then I checked the Momma. She was a little shaken up, but fine. I closed them up in their cage and we left the room, closing the door behind us. Hudson and Mater were on the stairs, their eyes wide, the fur on their backs stood straight up. They relaxed immediately when I touched them. I checked Hudson and he's okay.

Holy cow! What a way to start the day! Well, before all that happened, I had taken pictures of Katie in her new outfit, playing with the kitten. It's not really warm enough to wear shorts, but she insisted.

Kitten Video

Music: Nature Boy by Shahin and Sepehr

Nearly 5 Weeks Old

Umm, no I didn't plan this "naked Katie with kitties" photo shoot. She was naked in preparation for getting into the shower, but decided she must first visit with the kitties. I thought it was cute so I took some pictures.

The kitten is now going on 5 weeks old. He's not quite so clumsy anymore. He's very active and playful. He has figured out how to climb the kittie cage in order to get himself up on the first bench. I hope to get video of that today so I can post it.

It's also about time for the kitten to begin eating soft food and use the litter box. He already has full access to the litter box, but I need to run out today and get some canned kitten food. He's definitely got his baby teeth in because we see him chewing on things often.

Regina spent the weekend with us, but unfortunately she's getting ready to leave in a couple of hours. We had a good time together and hate to see it end. ~sigh~

24 Days Old ~ Starting to Get Playful

Video of Our Foster Kitties

Music: A Love for Life by Yanni

So Cute

I know, I know - I'm pathetic with all the kittie pictures. Sorry, but these were just too cute not to post.

Darn it, more sad news!

Just called and found out we lost the other sick kitten yesterday. She said he was trying to nurse (from the bottle, I imagine, since his Mom is not there with him), but would cry as if it hurt. It's sad, but also a blessing they went early rather than lingering on in agony.

Kitty Pics

I know not everyone wants to see so many pics of our foster kitties, but I'm posting them anyway! I just can't help it! The kitten is starting to respond to the sound we make as we enter the room and open their cage. He also spends a lot of time holding his wobbly head up and stares at things. I'm gonna call today for an update on his brother. I'm hoping we can go pick him up today.

Kittie Pics on Tropical Day!

I don't have an update on the sick kitten still in the "hospital" but I do have a cute picture of the healthy kitten here at home. His eyes are almost completely open and his ears are beginning to twitch. He's sweet, as is his Mom. I still hold out hope for his brother.




I've also included pictures of Katie this morning before going to school. Can you tell what the dressup theme is for today? Yep, it's Tropical Day. So, Katie wore her new dress covered with colorful tropical flowers and took in our entire collection of leis to share with her classmates.

Sad News

Just got an update on the two sick kittens and we lost the calico yesterday. Her brother is still needing to be tube-fed since he won't suck, so he's not ready to come home today.

The momma is doing fine. She's energetic and no longer has symptoms of the infection. The kitten here with her seems to be doing fine. I don't see him nurse very much though. He searches for a teat and sometimes gives up if he can't find one. I try to show him where one is but even when I do, he still won't latch. Crazy! It's like he's saying, (with the attitude of a toddler), "I wanna do it myself!" I have seen him find one and nurse for a minute or so, then quits. I worry there isn't enough milk there anymore. I mentioned that to Missy at the shelter and she suggested I express milk now and then to keep it in production. Yikes! She wants me to milk a cat! Reminds me of that movie Meet the Parents. Okay well, I guess I need to go upstairs and give it a shot. They need their antibiotics too. I definitely don't like doing that. If I could do it gracefully like the vet does, it would be different. But I can't seem to. Oh well, here I go.

Another Kittie Update

Well, this morning I woke up to the momma cat's meows. That was a first. She's usually very quiet. I think it was 5:45am. I got up to check on her and she had made quite a mess of her space. She didn't quite hit the litter box last night and overdid it trying to cover it up. There was litter all over. The towel she was sleeping on was no longer neatly folded, but it was all crumpled in a pile, as if she had been digging in it. The kitten was in the middle of it all, sleeping. The momma was sitting up, looking sad. She's got to be upset about losing her babies, don't you think? I keep telling her it's only for a couple of days, but she just looks at me, wondering what in the world I'm saying. I didn't call about the two sick kittens today. I am planning to call tomorrow morning (Wed) to see if they are well enough to come home.

Sick Kitten Update

I called the shelter today and described the situation to her. She said bring them in right away. Turned out they all have respiratory infections. The calico and one of her brothers were not fighting it well at all on their own. Both are dehydrated and very sick. They kept those two and put them in an incubator. They'll be fed for the next couple of days by putting a long tube down their throats and simply inserting milk directly into the stomach. They don't even have energy enough to nurse or suck on a bottle right now. It's amazing to me how quickly they went downhill! It was only yesterday they began exhibiting symptoms.

So, I brought home the momma and one of the boys who isn't dehydrated and is doing okay nursing. It'll be his job to keep momma's milk flowing so when we pick up his siblings in a couple of days, they'll have something to eat. I have antibiotics for both momma and baby. Oh, and the kitten we brought home is starting to open his eyes!

Momma and baby are all settled back in their kitty cat playpen/cage thingy I'm keeping them in. Momma growled a bit as she looked around searching for her two lost babies. Poor thing. That must be confusing. She'll welcome them home in a couple of days, won't she? Or will she not remember they are hers and reject them? I guess we'll know soon enough!

Calico's Got the Crud

Over the weekend it was brought to my attention that the momma cat was bleeding through her nostrils. So I called the shelter and they weren't worried as long as her appetite is normal, which it is. Probably just a burst capillary in her nasal tissue caused by sneezing from her cold. All day yesterday I didn't see anymore blood and this morning too. Her cold symptoms are also diminishing. I think she's fine.

However, two of the babies aren't doing so well. I began to worry about them yesterday evening. Especially the calico. She's lethargic, seems to have lost her voice, coughs and sneezes, her body feels cool, and I rarely see her nursing. I was really worried we would have a dead kitten this morning.

I was awakened early this morning by migraine pain. Yuck. So, I got up to take imitrex and went in to check the kitties. The calico was lying apart from the group, very still. I was certain we'd lost her. But no, she responded to my touch and when I picked her up she managed to get a few squeaky meows out. I put her next to momma's belly and held the other two back while she nursed.

It's the funniest thing about nursing kittens. Instead of looking for their own teat, they simply go toward the kitten who is already latched on and try to steal theirs. I didn't want anyone stealing the calico's teat, so I stood guard for a few minutes while she nursed.

I know there are already too many kittens up for adoption, and one or two less would not be such a bad thing overall, but I find it incredibly upsetting to think we might lose one or two of these kittens.

5 Days Old

I'm pretty sure the momma came to us with a head cold, but in the last couple of days since putting a humidifier next to her, she is sounding less congested. Poor thing. She's such a good momma, even though she probably doesn't feel great. She purrs and knits all the time, when we're with her, so maybe she's not as miserable as I imagine I would be in her position. Anyway, she's much better now. For about the first 24 hours or so, she didn't eat, drink or use the litter box at all. She is finally now doing all those things, resulting in a noticeable increase in energy. Even so, she won't spend more than a minute or two away from her babies.