Meet the new guests at Casa de Gato

Yesterday I teased you with this photo

That is because I brought home some new kittens. I knew the time for the girls was coming to an end so I wrote into the shelter and asked for new kittens. I was told there was a mom with three week kittens. My intention was to bring her home and bring the girls back later on this week.

When I got there, I learned that she had been sitting in the shelter since giving birth, so I am glad I could get her out of there. When I held the kittens they felt light for their size and mom felt dehydrated. The shelter gave her some fluids and I brought her home. I set her up in the cage in the kitten room and covered it with a towel. I assumed that since she had been at the shelter she would be okay with that, but it became apparent pretty quickly that she wasn't. So I brought her and the kittens upstairs and put her in my bath tub.

Unfortunately what had ever caused her to be dehydrated was still going strong because she wasn't eating.  I gave her some more fluids several times and brought her back to the shelter for a check up on Sunday and they gave her some more. She seems fine, bright eyed and attention seeking, but she isn't eating.  Once the girls were back at the shelter I cleaned up the kitten room and brought her down to the kitten room. She spent about an hour examining the room and walking around. I found out she is a nipaholic..

The kittens are a little small for their age. I have started supplementing them. That is going very well for three of the four of them. The fourth, the biggest black male kitten, wants nothing to do with it. That is okay since he feels hefty for his size which leads me to believe that his nipple is still producing a good supply of milk. This, of course, means he has no use for me while the other ones love me and purr easily.  I am so going to enjoy these guys. The girl already reminds me of Muffin.

Tiger boy

Tiger boy

Tiger girl

Black and white boy

Other black and white boy 

Mom has started to eat a little, which is nice. Hopefully this goes smoothly from here on in. If not, that is okay, I can continue to supplement and give fluids and do what needs to be done.

A sad goodbye and a hello

Technically these kittens should have gone up for adoption weeks ago, but because they still needed some work in the socialization department they hung around. They ate hot dogs and I became a chew toy. It was getting to the point that while progress was still being made, it was very slow going and it was becoming apparent they needed to move on. The stress of going to a different place and living through it can help some kittens come out of their shells even more. I thought this would be a good time for it and it turned out it was. Because of Columbus Day the shelter is closed today, so I brought the girls in just as the shelter was closing on Sunday. This will give them the night in the quietest time of the shelter day, and then be there tomorrow when just staff come in and clean and feed. Tuesday the shelter will be open, but if they aren't adopted then, the shelter will be closed again on Wednesday and hopefully by that time they will be used to it all and show better for the weekend.

I spent a good part of yesterday afternoon feeding them chunks of hot dog and playing with them. I spent time snuggling each one of them and had a little talk with Sarah about people and how she could rule them all if she would just put up with a little snuggling. She told me that she could do it without the snuggling thank you very much.

It was finally time and so I packed them up into the carrier and brought them down. I took them out of the carrier, gave them another snuggle and a kiss and brought them to the cage. Each one voluntarily walked into the cage. You could tell they were freaked out, but they were investigating, which was a good sign.

I guess I did get some good photos of Sarah. :) I got such great shots of Winifred and Mary right away that I didn't spend a lot of time trying to get a good facial shot of them.  Sarah seemed to be turning away from the camera each time I tried to take a photo so I got a few more.  She's such a pretty girl that I am sure you all don't mind.

After I dropped them off, I was getting a bit emotional so I went grocery shopping, but I did need to get home and clean the kitten room because of this..

but this sweet tail tale will have to wait until tomorrow.

Former Foster Friday - guess who!

Anyone want to guess who this is?

His mom named him Scoresby but you will know him better as

Yes, that's right, it is The Kraken!! and no, his mother didn't keep the name and no I don't blame her, I don't think I ever officially called him that anywhere other than the blog, he was always 'cutie' or 'sweetie' because The Kraken is such a huge name.

The Kraken was adopted by the same family who adopted Lyra, formerly Tawny, so this particular update is double sweet for me. It was reported that Lyra initially had a problem no longer being an only child, but has come to appreciate having pesky younger brother.

The kittens, the hand and the hot dog

So our jackpot food is still working its magic on the kittens. More so on some than others. If Mary doesn't smell hot dog then my coming at her is a bad thing, but if she can smell it she will let me reach out to her and touch her and in most cases I can pat her. Winifred is pretty much completely turned. She will run up to me, meow at me, rub all over my ankles - but she still becomes frightened when I reach out to her if she isn't expecting it... so I would say she is 90%

Sarah however.. *sigh* she doesn't like the hot dogs I have as much as the bacon, and she isn't as willing to come to me and give me the benefit of the doubt. I have a feeling if she is adopted by someone who is willing to work with her she can come around. She may never be an 'up in your face' kitty, but not everyone likes that in a cat..

I know it makes sense, but I do have to say it amuses me to no end how much good will I have after giving them treats.. When I walk in the room it is all 'oh go away!' but get one sniff of hot dog and they are all like 'well you could leave the hot dog' and after they eat half of a hot dog they are all like 'this leg needs attacking' -  well by they I mean Mary.

Don't forget the kitties #breastcancerawareness

When the world first started talking about breast cancer it was a very very good thing. Too many people suffered in silence. Back then one simply did not talk about any part of the body that was even remotely sexual, so if anything went wrong with them you were embarrassed and hid away from the world to deal with it. Today it is such a common topic that it has almost turned into a punch line.

Terms like 'pink-washing' are starting to permeate this 'save the boobies' culture and we are starting to see that a lot of what is going on in support of breast cancer is a sham. This is also a good thing, but I hope that because of all this people don't stop talking and learning and saving people with breast cancer.

But in all of this, and as a cat blogger, I want to say: Do not forget the cats.

Mammary cancer is thought to effect 1 in 4000 cats, roughly half the rate that it does in dogs, but when it happens in a cat it is often malignant. It is the third most common form of cancer among cats and it generally strikes cats between the ages of 10-12 but is not limited to that time frame. Siamese, Oriental and DSH are affected more frequently.

Mammary cancer in cats is hormone driven. Cats who are spayed before their first heat cycle have a 91% reduction in their chances of developing it and cats who are spayed before their first year have an 86% reduction. Be aware that there is still a risk. Also, having a male cat doesn't exempt you from keeping an eye out for this. While it is rare, male cats can and do develop it.

Discovering mammary cancer is as easy as patting your cats belly. Some cats love this and some cats don't, but it is necessary to put your hands on your cat on a regular basis so you can feel the lumps and bumps on your kitty and find any new ones while they are small and hopefully easier to take care of. It is a good idea to do a self kitty exam on a fairly regular basis, not only to discover any possible tumors, but also cysts, matted hair, even arthritis.


I am guessing you are probably thinking that you have no idea what you are feeling, and if so you aren't alone. It isn't important that you know what you are feeling, but that what you are feeling feels the same as it did last week and the week before. Not sure if a lump you are feeling is 'something', make note of it.  Try to make a reference in your head of what size it is; is it the size of a lentil? pea sized? lima bean sized?  You will want to see if it grows over time - but do yourself a favor, don't play with it every day, you'll obsess. If you can't ignore it, then it is time to get your kitty to a vet for a professional assessment if it is an issue or not.

Early detection is key. Knowing your cat is key to being able to detect these things early. So manhandle your kitty and do it in the name of keeping them healthy.

references for more reading:

• manhattancats.com
• vet.cornell.edu
• acvs.org