SPCA Foster Babies

A bit belated, but I had to share this pic:

“MOOOOOOM, I don’t need a baff!”

Ringo (pictured above) purred for us for the first time today, such a sweetie!

So we were playing with the kittens and noticed something about Roxy.

“Who, me?”

Yes, you.

She seemed to have something that a “she” shouldn’t really have.  Apparently our kitten-sexing skills have something to be desired.   And this may also explain why “Roxy” was so loudly protesting when she first arrived… she is really a HE.

“I IZ NOT A GURL! STOP CALLING ME ROXY, MONKEYGURL!”

So, meet “Rex”.

“HMPF, that’s better.”

“Silly monkeys, but they bringz me fud so
they is gud for SOMETHING.”

Babies and momma went in for vaccinations today and all are looking good!

When I went to put them in the carrier, I took Ripley by surprise I think.  Then her kittens were all “Where did she go?  What do you have there?” And I was all *YOINK* *YOINK* *YOINK* *YOINK* and then Riker was left.  He looked at me and the carrier, then turned and ran away!  My smart little boy!  It wasn’t long before I’d grabbed him too.  :)

More pictures soon, I promise!

Riker is doing much better now, he's eating quite enthusiastically and has a big full tummy.  Looks like the antibiotics helped.

This morning Roxy was feeling a bit under the weather, she didn't want to come eat, she just wanted to stay curled up on the futon.  We will watch her carefully, it's possible that she just felt odd, and she still seems bright eyed and interested in the world. 

The babies are doing very well, but little runt of the litter Riker suddenly stopped eating.  We started forcing him to eat some kitten milk replacer, but when he continued to be uninterested in food, and then threw up a little, we took him to see the SPCA's vet.  She put him on some antibiotics, so hopefully that will have him turned around.  For now we have to keep him away from his siblings so we can monitor his inputs and outputs.  It's so sad because he's lonely.  We put his mom Ripley in with him at night for company.  We can tell which outputs are hers quite easily.   And of course Riker gets playtime with his siblings.  He's definitely feeling a little under the weather, he plays a little but not nearly as rough and tumble as the other healthier kittens.

The kittens all have names now, and they've been moved from the smaller cage into the big bedroom! 

This is Riker.  He's about the same colour as Riker's beard, don't you think?   He's actually the smallest kitten.

This is Ringo.  He is the biggest and spends a lot of his time lolling around being full and happy.  If he could talk I'm sure he'd have a British accent too.  He has a cute white ring on his tail.

Here's Rascal!  We call her a Rascal because even though she is the one with the clearest white ring around her neck, she's female, so we couldn't call her Ringo.

Here's Reba looking pretty!

This is Roxy, otherwise known as "I HAZ A COMPLAINT". 

"YOU CALLZ THIS A BED? IT'S JUST A LITTERBOX WITH A TOWEL IN EET!"

"AND RASCAL'S TOUCHING MEEEEE MOOOOOOM"

Babies!

They are being weaned right now, and so we provide wet food mixed with KMR and water.  Rascal, Reba and Ringo are picking it up quickly, Riker and Roxy are a bit behind but they'll watch their mom and catch on quickly.  They're all litter trained already at 4 weeks, which always amazes us.

It's definitely the start of kitten season, so we have our first babies of 2010, and thankfully, a mother!

Here is the mother, Ripley:

Why Ripley?  Well, she is a protective mother, and things did come bursting out of her unexpectedly…
she is a beautiful and friendly cat, with a glossy coat, but is quite skinny from being out on the streets.

Here are the babies!  The tabbico is a girl, of course, and the all-black is a boy, and I forget what the others are right now. We'll have to take a look before naming.

They're about three weeks old, they are getting around on their own wobbly little legs a bit.  The white-faced one is the shyest of the bunch, and hung back when the others surged forward.  It's always amazing how they have different personalities even when they're so young.

One of the babies has a white ring around its neck and providing it's a boy, will be Ringo.  

Great news, Lucy was adopted today!  She is such a loving and snuggly cat, and she's going to such a great home. 

Lucy definitely has a cold.  Her nose is mostly stuffed and she has to breathe through her mouth.  She is still wanting tons of cuddles and will purr, but she snorts on the in breath and purrs on the out breath, so it's like "SNORK-purr SNORK-purr". 

I spent some time with her in the downstairs bathroom with the shower turned on HOT.  It got nice and steamy in there and she eventually was able to breathe through her nose, but she didn't really like the sound of the shower.  She still stayed and snuggled, and after the shower was turned off she enjoyed the rest of her mini sauna and started to purr again. 

It's just frustrating because cats actually can be vaccinated against colds, unlike humans.  (Cat colds don't transfer to humans either, different beasties.)  Lucy didn't have to get sick.

Lots of gooshy food and huggles will make her feel better though.

Lucy came into our care because she is recovering from an emergency spay.  One of the many good reasons to have your cat spayed is that giving birth is not always guaranteed to go smoothly.  Sadly, none of her kittens survived. 

Lucy is anemic but improving, and she also managed to catch a cold, so we're taking care of her for a bit.

Mario set the bar quite high for being snuggly, but I have to say that Lucy has met that challenge.  She loves snuggles, and will flop in our arms in ecstasy. 

Her tummy had to be shaved far more extensively than for a regular spay.  Poor naked belly girl!