Monday, November 5, 2012

and then there were..


Well we had a pretty event filled weekend.

Friday I went to the shelter to pick up some more shredded food for Elsa.  But not the chunked food, or the shredded by that OTHER company, the RIGHT shredded foods or she won't eat.  While I was there one of the staff members mentioned to me they had some not so social kittens in the back that could use my touch.

I went to go see them.  They were hunkered in the back of the cage trying to be invisible and I so needed to help them.  And Ella so very much needed a sibling or three, so I agreed to take them.


Elsa has always seemed very interested in The Crew.. never aggressive or upset when they sit in the window, so I figured it would just be a matter of time before everyone could be fully integrated.  I'm not a huge fan of doing this, mixing litters, but sometimes the benefit does outweigh the risk.  The risk being that even though they were all tested for disease, they could still be harboring something or have something they can't test for. Sadly it has happened to me in the past, so I know how real the risk is.  The benefit would be better socialization of the new three kittens, a better mannered Ella, and very possibly new communication skills for Elsa.  So home they came.
a positive first step
Well look at that, they are all out at the front of the carrier.. pretty impressive for kittens that just a few minutes ago wanted to be invisible..   I cleaned out the cage and reset it for kittens..
What's this??  What's that??  OMC FOOD!!!
Hey, what are you?? 
Momma Momma.. LOOK!!
Why hello you three
Why are you locked up??
I must say overall I was very impressed with the way the intros went.  I brought home that little carpeted cubbie for them incase Elsa got annoyed, but she was so open and accepting of them, and they were so open and accepting of her, that I decided to speed up intros.  I sat by the cage and opened the door.  The boy (gray and white) is the most outgoing and the least fearful of me.  He flinches a little when I go to pick him up in the cage, but loves being patted and having the base of his tail scratched.  The girls were much more leery of me and prefered that I not deal with them at all, but I was able to get them to eat, and I was able to touch them and hold them until they relaxed, so I let them explore the litter box area.  Elsa came over and groomed them and things were going so well.  I knew it was going to be a bit of a risk letting them have full run of the room, but at some point you do have to trust a feral kitten to come near you on their own (well with the help of a fishing pole toy... or food)

What's with the flashy box
That gray kitten in the far left side is a photo
You so need to be licked.. 
lick lick lick
What about me??
ooh, what is so interesting?
a twist tie - more on this later
Hi pretty girl
Handsome boy
and this is where it starts to go down hill... 
Shortly after that last picture was taken Elsa started growling and vocalizing in a not quite so happy way.  Since she doesn't like being restrained, and the kittens don't want me coming right at them to pick them up I was at a bit of a loss what to do.  Finally Elsa came out and I was able to get my hands on her and I locked her away in a carrier.  This was NOT what she wanted, and she kept trying to break out by pawing at the door and turning herself upside down.. This of course freaked out the kittens and getting them was nearly impossible.  I ended up trying to grab the fluffy girl and she turned on me and it got bad.. but in the end everyone was fine and where they should be.  I left the room so everyone could calm down.

continued tomorrow...

19 comments:

  1. Wow, never a dull moment! At least the intros went well....Here's hoping for full integration very soon!

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  2. Gosh, so much has happened in one day. It all sounds very positive. Maybe they will all be getting along just fine really really soon. Such a good start - or it seems like a good start to me. Kittens are so open too. The 3 new kittens look very special. They have very noticeable markings and somehopw they look very exotic because of them. Can't wait to see how its going to continue...

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  3. Not a bad start. We are glad you are willing to take the risk to make sure these kitts get some social skills. Funny how tiny Ella looks next to the newbies. We know with a little more time and work they will come around. :)

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  4. Never a dull moment at your house! Those three kittens are gorgeous (I love when cats have interesting patterns like that). I'm sure things will settle down quickly and soon everyone will be playing together.

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  5. Yes, a good start. I guess it sometimes turns bad later on; some cats get tired of the new situation or can take it only in small doses. But pretty good, over all, eh?

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  6. That was a very good start. I'm sure with time, everyone would benefit from this.

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  7. thats was pretty good even with the growling it will work out with a little time

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  8. A good beginning! And there's always tomorrow. Elsa seems like she is simply a short-tempered kitty.

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  9. It sounds like things mostly went well - those are awesome looking kittens, I hope they warm up to human touch sooner than later.

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  10. I was so very happy for efurryone right up until the end -- and that ruined it! I can't imagine how you feel. I hope part two will return to some sort of harmony.

    Elsa was doing a great job. It makes you wonder what made it all turn around so suddenly.

    There are some very interesting patterns in this group of little kitties -- each of quite unique, and beautiful in their own way.

    Of course, Ella is still a little sweetie-pie (even if she's vicious with your toes). Speaking of which, she's on the LOLSpot again. She's just too irrestible!

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  11. Oh! and it was all going so well!! :(

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  12. Oh boy.. Hopefully it starts getting better quickly. It was a good beginning, hopefully that means it'll be better next time. We got all our fingers and paws crossed for you!

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  13. Oh they are so cute! Glad the intro went mostly well :-)

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  14. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Have a great one, Lee and Phod

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  15. I think it's going to end up great. Those spotted kittens are too cute!

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  16. I think they will get used to each other eventually. Probably a little overwhelming for Ella. That girl kitty is so cute. They ought to be able to get homes really quickly. You are doing such a good job and it is so great of you to being those three home. Take care.

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  17. Anonymous2:01 PM

    They are adorable! And probably very thankful that they have someone loving to take care of them.
    Sorry to hear about Ella. Maybe it was a bit too overwheling, like Marg mentioned?
    You're doing a super good job tho!

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  18. Hi,
    I have recently found your blog and I am addicted! I find my self sitting on the lounge reading posts from years ago and showing my whole family the videos. I am also a foster career for the RSPCA. I have been doing it for 5 years and it's the most rewarding experience! I really hope Elsa is ok, she looks like such a beautiful cat. Last year we had a kitten that looked like Ella. We named her Bella Trix and she was the cutest kitten ever! She was so affectionate and tiny. Her brothers name was Olivander (I love Harry Potter) and we also had a single kitten from another litter that had no tail and was a little bigger and we named him Voldermort. Voldermort loved to cuddle but as soon as he was with the other 2 her would pin them done and really hurt them. We had never had that situation before and were quite alarmed, we separated them and we called the shelter and we had to take him back. But after reading your post about single kittens with no siblings not knowing how to interact with other kittens it explained it all. Now I know for next time. I don't have any kittens at the moment so your blog is helping my kitten blues  :) 
    Thanks for making such a brilliant blog!
    Krystal 

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    Replies
    1. Hi Krystal! Unfortunately I have no way to get in touch with you, so this will have to do. :)

      thank you so much for the complements, they mean a lot. I too have had "Harry Potter" kittens ;) but they were gingers and I went with the more obvious Weasley names.

      I'm both sorry and happy to hear you don't have kittens. Always such a mixed blessing when there aren't kittens that need help. Be careful though, you spend too much time on kitten blogs you are bound to get 'kitten fever'!!

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