Ha Ha.. Just kidding!!

I went down this morning to make sure the foster moms (man they need names) had food and water, and to see if they had babies. Two fat bellies met me at the door with out a care in the world. I was sad, and usually in the AM I just throw down food and water and off I go, but for some reason I sat down with them - maybe hoping that if I rub some belly I'd get kittens. Well a few moments after I sat down I heard a squeek. A very faint squeek. Well the moms don't have very strong cries, so I thought it might have been one of them complaining at my choice of food (it happens) but then I realized that both of them were looking at me and were not moving their mouthes... so either I had a vantriliquist kitty, or ...

I HAD KITTENS!

Ok, one kitten.

The solid black mom gave birth in the little teepee hut. One little boy kitten shoved on the side of the pad inside, kinda cold, a little unresponsive, didn't know what to do when I put it next to mom, mom didn't know what to do either. So I took him upstairs and got a very warm damp cloth, wrapped him in a dry one, then wrapped the wet one around him while I took my microwave teddy bear (has rice in it so it heats up) and put him in the microwave (and yes it looks horrible watching a teddy go round in circles in my microwave) but I let the kit snuggle up to him (once he was out of the microwave) and he liked that a lot. I went back down stairs with a heating pad and the bear.

all this activity caught the attention of Kit. Kit LOVES to play with kittens, and has been very mad at me since I sent the last batch of kittens away, and has been very eagar for me to let her play with this batch. She doesn't get that they are still "baking" and even once they are born, they aren't going to be very playful. But I let her sniff the little boy, and she was almost instantly beside herself! oh how she wanted him.. but not knowing what she'd do, and not knowing how mom would take to a strange smell on her kit, and not really having a lot of time I had to take him away. She followed me around and tried to get into the kitten room with me when I went back down.

I put mom and the kit and the bear in the cage.. more room, less suffocating places. She snuggled up to the bear as well, so I removed it, and she snuggled up to her kit. She had very VERY strong obvious contractions.. so I massaged her tummy some more, and put a small bowl of water in the cage with her, and locked her in. Why? cause her sister was growling at the kittens. She so doesn't get that she's about to have a brood of her own! I went upstairs and finished my morning routine, and then went back down to check on them. There were now three kittens. Mom was doing a great job of taking care of them, but in giving birth she knocked over the water. Not wantingn to leave them in damp bedding, I took the kits out, changed out the bedding, and went off to work (leaving the cage open this time.

Well I went home for lunch, and found no kitties in the cage. Mom had moved them back to the little teepee. Mom came right out for attention and approval. I removed the kittens to see how many we had (four) she was very concerned about them not being in the teepee, and tried to sit on them. I finally determined we had only four kittens, all alive, and what looks to be one girl and four boys, all totally black! Two are smaller (the girl and one of the boys) but not drastically so..

so all in all, today is a success.

Tax Day kitties.. should I call them EZ, 1040, W9 and 1099? :D