happy/sad

.  .  .  .  This is why I drop everything and enjoy every minute with my babies.  You never know.  They got the mom of my babies and are coming for my little ones.  They belong with their mom, no question so back they go to her.  Just like last summer when I had the "R" babies for just over a day.  They will be welcomed back and loved with their mom and will be where they should be--loved by their real mom.  This doesn't mean that it will be easy to see them go.  I have to do the right thing, always for my babies.  It is just hard to see them all go at once but they will be happy to see their mom.  They are now washing themselves in their warm bed after the supper they just got.  They will be fine and are very lucky little babies.  Every baby who comes in must leave one way or another.  It is just sooner than I thought.

"O" baby update

The babies are doing great.  We have a routine which they love.  They are allowed to run and play in the livingroom and certainly do love their toys.  Then back into the 4' X 2' cage for a meal (2 at a time so I can watch if they eat well enough) and into the warmed bed for a nap.  You can tell they are young as they are all on the same page at the same time.
.  .  .  .Names have been chosen.  The two boys are Odie and Oy (one of my kittens got adopted and had a ferret named Oy for a friend.  I fell in love with the name and am happy to use it now).  The girls are Oxana, Oasis and Oprah.

Baby season again

I am back.  I left last October 3 until October 20 to take my daughter on her graduation trip to Bali, Malaysia and Thailand.  It was a much needed break from a hard 2011.  It was wonderful to have 20 carefree days with only having to figure out where and what we were going to have for supper.  I also changed jobs after 14 years at the end of December.  Now for the best year ever in 2012.
.  .  .  .  I got my first babies yesterday.  Five little angels who were living outside with their mom.  The mom is still out there with one remaining baby.  I went picture crazy this morning as they are the first babies and were playing and playing and I couldn't get enough of it.  They are good little ones.  The smallest little girl is a mama's girl and comes to the end of the cage crying to be picked up.  So I spent a long time this morning holding her.  She knew she had my heart because she purred and rolled over on her back and my heart melted.  Names will be picked soon and lots of love to be given and received.

So much happening that it is hard to take in

On Sept 15 Flynn, Fenway, Foster, Fiji, Fortune and Firefly arrived.  They were about 4 weeks old.  Then on Sept 21 Gumdrop, Garvey and Gibson arrived.  With 9 babies to look after I was a busy mom.  Last Sunday the trouble began.  Fiji crashed and died in the evening.  Okay, bad stuff happens but it was only the beginning of a disaster.  On Monday morning the kittens were all not doing well.  So I gave fluids to all, started antibiotics and gave a bath and dry job to Garvey.  They had diarrhea and were vomitting so keeping their cage clean was a big job.  When I came home from work at lunch time Flynn was in trouble.  I had been keeping a close eye on Garvey too and since I was holding him when Flynn crashed I took him with me to the vet too.  I left both babies there.  Flynn died in the afternoon.  I brought Garvey home with an i.v. catheter in his leg.  I was to give fluids at 7,8,9,10,11, metronidazole at 10 and ampicillin at 11.  Keep in mind I have never dealt with an i.v. before so a new experience in a scary time.  I kept him in his warm bed in the cage on the couch beside me so I could keep a close eye on him.  Whatever he needed was his, my world revolved around him.  The 7 pm fluids went well.  He was upright and sat quietly while I helped him over the 3 minutes.  Then I was doing the 8 pm fluids.  Garvey went limp in my arms.............he had died.  I was in shock as I didn't expect it at that moment.  On Tues at lunch I noticed Fenway was 10% off.  Usually not a worry but because of all that had been going on I took him to the vet during lunch hour (eating lunch is highly overrated).  As Rekha and I were discussing the blood test results from the last 2 kittens I looked down and said Fenway was crashing in my arms.  What better place to crash than at the vet's with a vet right beside you.  They worked on him all afternoon but he slipped away in the late afternoon.  On Wed Fortune seemed a little too quiet for my liking.  I called Rekha and she said to bring her in.  When I got there I admitted I might be oversensitive and overreacting but with all that had happened during the week I was taking no chances.  Rekha said no, she was not acting like a normal kitten.  She was started on metronidazole and came home after work.  The conclusion to this story to follow.

Caesar, Cedric and Carlton

Cedric (black) and Carlton (black and white with black nose) arrived on Aug 31.  Their brother Caesar (black and white with white nose) arrived on Sept 1 after he was caught.  Their mother and sibling were killed by a coyote.  The boys were not at all sure about being in a house and everything was scary for them.  So I put them in the 2' X 4' cage in the bedroom.  I went into the bedroom dozens of times to pick each one up to get used to hugs, kisses and being held.  Then I moved the cage into the living room so they could get used to real life in a house.  Carlton was the first one to handle sitting on my lap.  It took a while for me to trust that I could catch him if I let him wander in the house.  If you have to traumatize them to catch them you undo the progress they have made.  Next day it was Caesar.  Little Cedric was reluctant to turn the corner but once he was alone in the cage and watching his brother play and have fun and begged to join them.  So the next day he was able to join in the fun.  The boys learned over the next week to love being in a house, sitting on a lap to be loved and where the meals are.  It is nice to see a kitten open its heart to a better life where they are loved. 

Panama, Pacific, Piper and Perkins

It was a short love affair.  These kittens were trapped at McNab Park where the health of a lot of the cats is not good.  I loved my four babies (they were about a month old)  for a while then they had their vet check up.  Two were feline leukemia negative and two were faintly positive.  This meant we had to wait 2 more weeks for a retest and until then they had to be kept separate from the others so no one else in my house would be at risk.  It was a long 2 weeks as the babies were kept in my spare bedroom.  I spent a lot of hours in the bedroom keeping them company.  Then came retest day which I went to with a heavy heart.  Piper had been failing for 2 days.  I kept giving him fluids but I could see he was hardly holding his own.  The test showed 2 negative tests, one slightly positive test and a very, very positive test.  I ended up leaving the babies at the vet's as I knew in my heart that things were not very good.  I called the next day to check on my babies only to find out Piper, Perkins and a tortie girl were gone.  I went to the vet's to identify the one surviving kitten.  This was hard because it hit home that 3 babies were already gone.  I gave a lot of love to Panama who looked so lonely by herself.  Panama went to another foster home where she has had health issues too.  It is a sad story.  I was glad to love those babies as long as I had as I gave my heart to them.

update on Ivan and Ike

The two little boys have grown and turned into beautiful little kittens.  Ivan finally went to his new home who have been waiting patiently for weeks for him to be big enough to leave my home.  Ivan was adopted on August 30. His new name is Cairo. I so miss him as he was "so cute" as he heard many times every day.  Ike went to Petsmart the last week of August and got adopted on Sept 1.  His new name is Shamrock.  I miss him too, emptiness when babies leave but in a good way.
.    .    .    .Nutmeg arrived Aug 3.  She was 2 weeks old and a beautiful black/gray tabby with white.  She had a brother (unnamed) who died on August 5.  He was not a strong baby but still it is hard to see them leave.  Nutmeg is a big girl now and will be ready for adoption when I get back Oct 23.  She was having a lot of bloating problems so she went to the vet last Thursday.  She got her spine realigned and put on Gastro vet food.  She has more energy to play and her tummy is less bloated.  She will be fine.