Thursday, May 23, 2013

Odilia - aka the most awesomest kitten in the world..


recycled pict, sorry.. 
So last night when I went down to feed her, I was late and tired and I didn't have a heck of a lot of energy left for her.  I ended up laying belly down on the ground, which she really likes.  She crawls up into my arms and lays on her back and plays with my hair, and swats at my chin. It really is incredibly sweet.  I was attempting to rest my head on the bear chair, and she ended up in the crook of the bear's foot, getting gobs of kisses and love.

At one point she decided to crawl on top of my back. I LOVE when my cats do this, and I like when kittens do it. Kittens do not give as good of a 'back massage' because they are so darn little, but having her run around on my back did feel good. After a few minutes of it, I was starting to nod off and I knew I had better make it up the stairs before I fell asleep right then and there, so I attempted to get her off my back.  She was having nothing to do with that as she was having fun.  After a few feeble attempts, I decided to slowly roll over, figuring she would jump off eventually.. nope, not Odilia.. she decided to follow the movement and moved up to my side, then over to my front as I rolled over.

I laughed so hard at her clever attempt to keep me there.. that she did get a few more minutes of love and attention before I called it a night.

She almost got some friends yesterday.  I got a flurry of emails about one set of kittens and then another. By the time I got to the shelter all of them had been promised to other foster homes.  As much as I would like to bring a friend home for her, I also worry about it.  When she met Triscuit it went well enough, but Odilia couldn't read the signals that Triscuit was throwing off to play and it was just confusing for her.  They stayed on their own sides of the hotel room when ever they were in it - which I have to say was pretty amazing.  I am also a little fearful in that young orphans would not have been tested yet for Felv and there is always a risk when you mix litters of kittens that there is something being harbored that could be passed.  I'm trying to decide if the benefit of a friend or two will outweigh the risks.  I wasn't worried about her going to "R's" house since she had the mother cat who could be tested, and Triscuit was old enough as well.  So I figured I'd play this one by ear. If it happens I'm offered and no one else swoops in to take, she'll get a friend.  If not, she'll be an only..

Considering that she is *at least* seven weeks old (a guess of three at the time and I've had her for a month) but more likely 9 or 10, and she only weighs 1lb 3 oz.. I'm guessing I'm going to have her for a while.. Even if she did get friends, they would soon outgrow her..

18 comments:

  1. She's a doll for sure.

    Stupid question, though: How will she ever be socialized with other felines if she doesn't get kitten company and be given time to learn to interact with them? Or is the intent to have her adopted into a single-pet household? Just curious, not judging or forming opinions! I know she'll be deeply loved in her eventual forever home!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. it can be done when they are older, it just takes longer. I so very much want her to be socialized with other kittens, hence the playing by ear.. if kittens happen, they happen.

      and it is not a stupid question :)

      Delete
  2. I wonder at what age it becomes more difficult, or even if there's a general age. Mostly I'm curious because of memories of Annie, I guess. She was fine with Chumley, for the most part--maybe because he was the resident cat? I don't know. I didn't know a thing about integration back then and when I brought her home, all I did was open the carrier and let her go.

    But when I adopted the boys...It was another thing entirely. Even knowing proper integration, etc., etc., Annie hated Nicki and only tolerated Derry (Derry being passive, not an "alpha" kitty like Nicki). So I always thought that Annie, who had been a stray for who knows long before I adopted her, just hadn't been well-socialized with other cats.

    Hence my interest in Odilia's socialization--though I'd express the same interest no matter what kitten you were fostering, if it were a single kitten. If you understand. LOL. It's not specifically Odilia that makes me wonder how this works, what age is better to do this, etc.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Odilia is really adorable. I wonder if she'll benefit from an older kitty friend? Perhaps a mellow adult who'll play with her but isn't boisterous? Do you think that might help?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh, an "uncle!" One of my former co-workers used to foster kittens, and one of her resident cats, Jasper, a Ragdoll, was a fabulous "uncle" to all the kittens, taking them under his paw, so to speak. :-)

    Okay, I'll stop leaving comments now, I don't usually return to a blog to check further comments anyway. LOL.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You leave as many comments as you want, there is no limit :)

      When is all on the kitten. Some kitties will always like other cats, some never will. In general, the younger you do it the better. Love-and-hisses.com stuck a kitten in a litter on the day of birth and he's doing just fine. I've done it at four weeks before with very little problem. I introduced Bug to Kate and Pippa when they were all having issues about a year ago, and at that time Bug was probably what.. four months??

      At about 9-12 months they start emotionally maturing into adult cats and they start being more territorial. Just like humans they have their physical maturation and then their emotional ones. For humans it is about age 25..

      Cats care more about resources then anything else. If you provide an over abundance of resources it makes it a lot easier to introduce older cats to one another. make sure everyone has an abundance of food (so the new one coming in is associated with good things) and lots of love and play time and if possible additional trees and toys.. it makes things generally go a lot easier..

      Might Odi do well with an 'uncle'.. sure. Might she do well with a kitten her own age.. yup. Odi does seem pretty bomb proof and I'm sure will adjust to what ever her circumstances turn out to be..

      Delete
    2. Just heard Jackson G say that very thing about ownership/resources/territory. And the thing about maturing into an adult cat explains a comment Marty Becker made to me a few years back about the reason Ryker freaked out on him (yes, I was totally doing the nepotism thing and had brought Ryker in for Marty to hold while we filmed an interview for Animal Planet. Up to that point, Ryker had been extremely outgoing and loved to meet strangers. This time, though, he clawed Marty's hand up pretty good - and I felt terrible!)

      Marty asked how old Ryker was and I mentioned he had just turned 1. He said, "oh that explains it. They change at about the 1 year mark." I'd sorta gotten it but until you said what you just did about emotional maturity, combined with the Jackson comment about territory - lightbulb just went off!

      Delete
  5. Bomb proof, LOL! She really is a special kitty, though I did not realize she was so tiny for her age.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think she would do well with a friend....I honestly think another day would have had her and Triscuit running around like friends. They were making progress Sunday morning - and then we all left. :) But the uncertainty makes it hard. Too bad we aren't closer....I could loan you "uncle" Tim.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Such a sweetie and is was such a joy to see you both at BlogPaws!!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have no idea what the future holds for Odilia as far as kitten companions... but she sure has humans wrapped around her tiny paw!

    ReplyDelete
  9. She is remarkable! I hope she gets a friend. Another kitty would learn pretty quick I think. I'm very fond of the books by Deric Longden - "The Cat who came in from the cold" etc. Deric's wife is blind and they had several cats. When the cats were first introduced to her they realised pdq that she was different. They learned to adapt their behaviour and could almost say, made allowances!

    ReplyDelete
  10. We think it would be very hard to let Odilia go to another home. We have all fallen totally in love with her!

    ReplyDelete
  11. A kitty massage? That sounds like fun, I may have to try lying on my living room floor to see what the cats will do. They'll probably think I'm nuts, but I think they already do!

    I certainly hope Odilia is able to get a friend. Even if they outgrow her. She must be just a little mite...sooooo adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Some more kittens will come along so its not to much of a problem,why not let some of the crew socialize with her a bit under super vision of course?

    ReplyDelete
  13. Our angel Steamer always slept like that with Mom. She get on top of her and just rode along to whatever position Mom was in. None of us have figured out how to do it. Purrs and hugs from the kitties at The Cat on My Head, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Josette

    ReplyDelete
  14. So great to meet you and Odillia at BlogPaws! It's so nice to see her again. I hope she gets a buddy soon......

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...