Kitten update
So my dad took little orange kitten to the vet today. Seems like other than being malnourished and a little eye infection, the little guy should be fine. Of course, this whole process will take a month or longer, since his muscles are underdeveloped and what not. But I am keeping him warm and fed and giving him plenty of attention when he is awake, though he seems to be sleeping more often than not. He's also been purring whenever I hod him, I think he likes me ;)
I know that one of my cats knows we have a new feline in the house, Dusty was watching intently while I was feeding little orange kitten, stood up on his hind legs to get a better look at this tiny furball in my hands. Not sure of the other two know yet. Rockie, the matriarch of the house, absolutely hated the boys when they first came into her house, so not sure how she'll react to this one. Infact, five years later, she still hisses at them occasionaly.
Today I saw two new kittens, a white one and a black one, over by the back fence and the shed, where it seems little orange kitten came from, but these two looked much healthier. So, as far as I can tell, there are atleast three distinct litters in the yard: The patio kittens (the oldest ones this year, about 2 months old), the side-yard kittens (not quite as old, maybe 6 or 7 weeks), and the shed kittens (the vet said little orange kitten is about 4 weeks old).
Then there are the mothers, of which I know the lineage, how sad is that? Momma cat is gone, but from her last litter (out of many many litters) we still have Piglet and Franky hanging out, now about 3 yrs old. I think Piglet may be part Tribble, because she seemed to be born pregnant. That first litter (the last litter to be given names) was Pandora, Loki, and Cokopelli. Pandora was a beautiful cat, but she aparently lost the turf war with Loki and Piglet, 'cus I only see her down the street once in a while, and I haven't seen Cokopelli in a long time. Piglet and Loki seem to be sharing the territory with eachother and possibly with one or two of last year's batch, hence the third litter. There is a long hair orange that's been hanging around, not sure who she is. Do cats have paternal instincts? There is one fella, Whitefoot, who shares some patterns with the side-yard kittens and plays with them and the patio kittens, hmmm.
Anywho, before the mommas get knocked-up again, we want to get them all rounded up and fixed and sent off to good homes. Easier said than done, but I know there are ways to trap them and we have options for free clinics to spay and nuter them all. I know this would mean the end of a long feline dynasty, but there are just too many of them now and we've been irresponsible for far too long about all these cats. I've listed some of the one's I know that have lived to adulthood, but I know there are many many more that never got that far, lots of little orange kittens that we didn't find, or helpless little ones that the racoons got to.
I know that one of my cats knows we have a new feline in the house, Dusty was watching intently while I was feeding little orange kitten, stood up on his hind legs to get a better look at this tiny furball in my hands. Not sure of the other two know yet. Rockie, the matriarch of the house, absolutely hated the boys when they first came into her house, so not sure how she'll react to this one. Infact, five years later, she still hisses at them occasionaly.
Today I saw two new kittens, a white one and a black one, over by the back fence and the shed, where it seems little orange kitten came from, but these two looked much healthier. So, as far as I can tell, there are atleast three distinct litters in the yard: The patio kittens (the oldest ones this year, about 2 months old), the side-yard kittens (not quite as old, maybe 6 or 7 weeks), and the shed kittens (the vet said little orange kitten is about 4 weeks old).
Then there are the mothers, of which I know the lineage, how sad is that? Momma cat is gone, but from her last litter (out of many many litters) we still have Piglet and Franky hanging out, now about 3 yrs old. I think Piglet may be part Tribble, because she seemed to be born pregnant. That first litter (the last litter to be given names) was Pandora, Loki, and Cokopelli. Pandora was a beautiful cat, but she aparently lost the turf war with Loki and Piglet, 'cus I only see her down the street once in a while, and I haven't seen Cokopelli in a long time. Piglet and Loki seem to be sharing the territory with eachother and possibly with one or two of last year's batch, hence the third litter. There is a long hair orange that's been hanging around, not sure who she is. Do cats have paternal instincts? There is one fella, Whitefoot, who shares some patterns with the side-yard kittens and plays with them and the patio kittens, hmmm.
Anywho, before the mommas get knocked-up again, we want to get them all rounded up and fixed and sent off to good homes. Easier said than done, but I know there are ways to trap them and we have options for free clinics to spay and nuter them all. I know this would mean the end of a long feline dynasty, but there are just too many of them now and we've been irresponsible for far too long about all these cats. I've listed some of the one's I know that have lived to adulthood, but I know there are many many more that never got that far, lots of little orange kittens that we didn't find, or helpless little ones that the racoons got to.