Christmas with Kittens

Zelda climbing the Christmas Tree

 There was a rustling of branches and swinging ornaments.  Who should it be, but Zelda, the adventurous kitten climbing the Christmas Tree.  Quickly fetching her from the tangle of lights as she clung to the plastic pine needles, she was no sooner retrieved and brother, Link, was right behind her.   Look... what fun! 
Tarragon, the good kitty, watched them climb, knowing this was forbidden, having been ever so compliant to this point, but the temptation was too great.  Now 3 kittens in the tree.  There was no averting this mischievousness, so as much as I was enjoying my tree and hoping to leave it up until New Years, down it came, 2 days after Christmas. 

Tarragon, our unofficial Christmas package on Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve Tarragon was no where to be found.  We searched the house high and low, calling his name.  We had even checked for rustling branches on the Christmas tree several times.  Silence, no bounding kitten. We were in a hurry, now running late for Christmas Eve Service and not wanting to leave him to his own devises while we were gone.  Finally spotted, among the gifts, perhaps making himself one of our gifts, our little boy, sound asleep.  We have not completed the paperwork, but before the New Year we hope to make his adoption official. 

Zelda and Tarragon

Look, something new.  Is it safe?  Can we play with it?  These two are like big brother and little sister.  Tarragon loves to make her squeal, then runs off and she chases him down looking for more rough and tumble play.  We keep a close eye on them with the size difference of more than 3 lbs.  He could do some damage to the little girl, but is so gentle, mostly pinning her down and licking her.

Zelda and Trash Tummy

Little Zelda almost 7 weeks old

Zelda, my plastic bag pooping kitten, made a trip to the Vet.  It was becoming clear that she was more than just a feisty girl, but was experiencing pain.  As anticipated, the x-rays could not confirm a blockage, but it did show lots and lots of gas in her intestines, which can result from a blockage.  An enema was ruled out and considered a non-useful treatment, and from here we will work with natural foods and methods to help her pass the rest of the trash in her system, as well as calm down her sore insides.

Diet for weening or troubled tummies.

All hard kitten food is being taken away and only wet foods will be feed 4 to 5 times a day.  Each feeding will consist of Approximately....a teaspoon of pumpkin, a teaspoon of whole milk live pro-biotic yogurt, a Tablespoon of cooked Cream of Rice and a Tablespoon of Beech-nut Baby Food Chicken.  Plus a few drops of fish oil will be added to one of the meals and the rest of the oil will be shared amongst other cats and kittens that day.  This diet should help calm her stomach and help move out the trash.  I will also give her some massages to ease out the gas.

Eventually I will need to add in some canned kitten food.  We have been through a few brands and will try yet another in one of the feedings to ensure she is getting all her nutrients.  Most cat food has only caused her further irritation and diarrhea.

This same diet combination is also very good for weening kittens.  Against popular belief, whole milk works for kittens and it can be used instead of water with the cereal.  Zelda's situation is different and I'm not using  milk with her at this time.

She's playful and eating, so her condition is not critical, but certainly warrants watching.

Plastic in the Poop

The two new fosters are doing well, putting on weight, eating, pooping, all the important stuff.  It took about 3 days for these feral ones to decide that people are ok.  The little boy is very fond on burying himself in your hair.  The little girl likes to nibble on ears, "ouch".  She is a typical torti, with lots of personality and a bit on the feisty side.

Link

The estimated Birthday for these two is Halloween 2012.  That would have made them 5 weeks when they arrived.  Having observed their behavior, watching their weight, the very sharp teeth that eat hard food with ease but still need canned food, and the 5 inch tail are my main indicators.

Zelda

Having spent the first part of their life outside, with little to eat, our little girl must have found a plastic bag that tasted good during her starvation mode.  The other night there was vomit with pieces of plastic, and the next morning her poop was stuck.  Being the designated "mommy cat" I help her out only to discover I was pulling 3 more inches of plastic bag from her behind.  We will keep a close eye on her to see if x-rays are needed, but the hard lump is now gone from her belly and she is behaving like a normal kitten of almost 6 weeks.

The Challenge of Undernourished Kittens

Have you guessed their age yet?  I have an idea, just checking to see if anyone has been learning from the posts.  These kittens are underweight and certainly are lacking in energy, but there are enough other clues.  I had one guess of 7 weeks....that's too old.  Look again at the ears and the tail length.

We need names

Knowing the age lets me know what they should eat, if they can use a litter box, what activity level to expect and a few other needs.  As undernourished feral kittens there are added challenges.   The litter box is a new concept, so one hit the target and the other used a nearby mat.  I definitely have a load of laundry to do today.   For some reason their system is full of poop, so there was black poop, formed normal poop and a couple of puddles of poop.  

 

Today I will focus on keeping them hydrated and warm.  Any food intake will be considered a success.   They desperately need baths, but for now a wet washcloth will have to do.  I'm concerned about them getting too cold and then sick with so little body mass.   So thin and weak, the little girl's meow is broken.  She tried to play with a foil ball and fell over.  Subcutaneous fluids may be needed.  I'll be discussing that with someone more knowledgeable than myself later today.

15 Weeks and an Adoption

Tarragon helping me with my blog.

Please be my friend.

Tarragon is the last of his litter still with me.  He adjusted pretty quickly to being alone by following me everywhere.  I've grown rather attached to the little fellow and we are testing out if he and my very old cat can co-exist.  There's been some hissing on the part of the old Lady, but nothing too serious.  Tarragon rolls over and tries to get close from a different angle.  This goes on for a bit and then he gives up and leaves her alone.  

His stats at 15 weeks are 4 lbs 12 oz, tail length 11.5 inches, very fluffy and eats from any available food dish.

Colby Jack and Pepper Jackie

Rosemary found her new home.  They have named her Pepper Jackie.  This loving home has another kitten that we fostered back in May of this year.  We had named the other kitten Patrick, but now he is Colby Jack.  The two are quickly becoming friends. 

Just in...can you guess their age?

DMH Torti Girl

DMH Black Boy

Taking in more kittens at Christmas wasn't really the plan, but somehow we will make time and room.  These two were found in someone's back yard, perhaps abandoned by mom or maybe something happened to her.  They are nothing but bone and fur, weighing 14.7 oz.  The torti is a girl.  Her ears are up and have started to thin.  The medium hair black kitten is a boy.  His ears are up but still have some thickness to them.  Both  have sharp teeth, tails 5 inches long, and the blue eye color is almost completely changed to a beautiful gold.


Anyone have a guess for their Birthday?  Wish I could give a prize to the closest estimate.