Search and Rescue Kitten

So, my idea was to send out a search and rescue kitten to bring Chip back home.  Sort of like a cross between a Saint Bernard with a barrel on his collar, Lassie, and a border collie...  You've heard the term herding cats - well instead of herding cats, maybe a cat can herd.  Okay, so I know it's a longshot.  Hmmm....which kitten might be willing and able for this mission.  Preferably a friendlier kitten so that I don't end up crawling under the futon with four eyes staring at me.  Pumpkin!  He's a great little kitten, if anyone can do this, he can.

Pumpkin was definitely up for the job.  He had been on walkabouts in the Room previously and was pretty good about coming back to his crate for food.  I released him and he definitely went to check out Chip.  He even moved her around the room.  She came out from under the bed, though I didn't get a chance to pick her up.  He even followed her - I'm going to go out on a limb and say he herded her :)  However, it seems that Pumpkin got a bit sleepy and decided to take a nap - under the futon.

 

After that he sort of lost interest in his assignment and I eventually rounded him up, thanked him, and gave him some chow.  The next day, Chip jumped up into the crate that Pumpkin was in during meal time and she was uneventfully recaptured.  So, I'm still thinking that my search and rescue kitten idea has some merit.  I might just need to start with a perkier kitten - I'll let you know how it goes next time :) 

Chip's Big Adventure

 

So, it was bound to happen.  The least friendly kitten always has to escape into the wild, wild, wilderness of the Spare Bedroom...  Chip finally managed to time her jump perfectly and escape my lap during a feeding and socialization visit.  She was not interested in being caught again AT ALL.  If she hadn't still been on antibiotics, I probably wouldn't really have tried too hard, but I didn't want her to miss her medication. 

So, there I was under the futon with a flashlight and there she was, sitting absolutely resolutely out of my reach.  I managed to touch her once or twice before she skittered away to some other desolate corner of Under-Futon-Land.  "Fine!" I eventually said.  "When you're dead I'll pick you up."  Yes, I said that.  I really meant it for about a second or two and then, of course, didn't mean it.  However, I did decide to leave her be.  I knew she would get hungry and come out and that I would catch her then and if she missed a dose of her antibiotic that would just have to be okay.  I had tried to use a trap to catch her, however she was still stuffy in her nose and perhaps not smelling the food or not feeling well enough to be THAT hungry.

So I had to wait... and wait... and wait...  Hmmm... I have an idea - see the next post for my idea.

This is a picture of Chip with Spook, Little One, and Whirly during some snuggly socializing with Mike...

Our First Job Interview

I'm a little late in writing this...  Our first job interview was about ten days ago, last Monday, October 15th.  Spook and Little One went with me and we chatted in the car on the way to Lyndhurst about interview etiquette.  I explained that this was a chance to meet potential new owners and check out their home and any potential brothers and sisters.  I also requested that it would be really great if they could not scratch anyone or run away and hide necessitating removal of wallboard and lifting of couches.  They seemed to understand.

When we arrived, Little One was the first one out and I held him for a few minutes to let him get settled.  That may have been more for my sake than for his :)  When I deposited him on our new friend's lap, he seemed immediately comfortable.  He looked like a totally normal little kitten (except for his still-funky left eye.)  Then Spook came out and Little One went to sit on the other available lap and Spook took his spot.  Again, I was pleasantly shocked - Spook also played the part of a normal, unfrightened kitten - she even purred a bit we think...

So after a totally successful interview as far as I was concerned, it got even better and these lovely people decided to add Little One to their household.  Little One is now known as Apollo - fitting since the big Apollo cat that I trapped could be his Dad or Uncle - and has a cat brother named Rocky who is about 8 years old.

Little One/Apollo went home two days ago (I kept him until he finished his antibiotics).  The two pictures above show Little One with his buddy Pumpkin right before we left for the hand-off and the second one is Apollo on his new Mom's lap.  I received an update today from his new Mom and Dad that he already has the run of the house, likes sleeping on the couch and had been playing for about 30 minutes straight with a furry fake mouse on the floor :)

Great words for a tired kitten helper to go to sleep too...  Good night!

One Less Kitten...

...in the Ark!  Rusty found his home last night on his second interview.  He was so happy when I left that he was snuggled upside down in his new mom's arms as she and her son waved good-bye to me - I kicked myself for not getting a picture.  So, Rusty is the first to leave the nest and he goes to a wonderful home with a sister cat and a sister dog...

 

We'll be following up with Rusty's adjustment and I'll try to post pictures from his new home, too...  A great kitten for a great family!

Three Interviews and Three Job Offers!!

Now that's some record!!  So far the kittens and I have taken our show on the road three times to visit prospective owners and four kittens have made the cut.  I have never been so proud as I have been of these kittens on their interviews.  They have snuggled, snoozed, purred, and generally looked adorable.  Great job, Kids, great job!!

Little One was the first to be spoken for, though he is still at the Ark until he finishes his antibiotics in a few more days.  Next was Pumpkin who was chosen and gets to pick his permanent roommate to come home with him, too!  Pumpkin is also on some antibiotics for a bit of "whistling" in his breathing when he gets excited - he visited the vet and had his sinuses flushed (a little kitty neti treatment) and he's sounding better every day.

See the next post for the most exciting news so far...

Love Conquers All...

...even Chip.  Chip has spent the last week since she "checked in" to Chez Silsby, being quite clear about how she feels about me.  For the first four days or so, she sulked in the back of her carrier next to her litter box.  When I turned her litter box, she still refused to come to the front of the carrier and sat IN the litter box, as far from me as possible.  If I dared to reach gently into the carrier for any reason (to clean her litter box, fill or freshen her water, provide her delicious high quality meals, etc.) she would hiss and raise her little paw and pull it back in a threatening gesture.  She wasn't kidding.  She slashed at me when I daringly tried to pet her or, God forbid, pick her up.  I had to resort to picking her up with a towel due to her willingness to follow through on her threats.  Once I was holding her, she would eat vigorously from the spoon and occasionally, look up at me and say, "I hate you!!" with one sharp glance.  "Okay," I would say, "I know you hate me, just keep eating." 

The most improvement we had gotten was that she would lie in the front of her carrier on her towel and would only hide in the litter box when I entered the room.  Then she began to stay on the towel as long as I didn't come near her carrier.  Progress, right?  So, when she became sick, I thought, "Uh-oh, this isn't going to be fun.  She already hates me, she sure isn't going to like pills down her throat twice a day."  Even after spending much of the day together during our vet visit and subsequent trip to the barn, she was still spearing me with her "hate you" looks.  Oh, well. 

She wasn't eating so I was trying to encourage her by smearing a little food on her mouth - she didn't care for that either and tried to escape from her torturer with little spurts of energy.  "Anywhere, but with HER!", she seemed to be saying, "Give me liberty or give me death!"  I was concerned about her becoming dehydrated since she didn't seem to be drinking and wouldn't eat even wet food, so I decided what the hell, she already hates me and used a dosing syringe to squirt a little bit of "cat food soup" made of wet food and water into her mouth.  Yup, she hated that too.

As I left the room yesterday, she was sitting in the front of her carrier on her little towel and I distinctly felt her say, "I hate you SLIGHTLY less!"  I figured that was a start...

Tonight, I picked up Chip without a towel and without injury :)  Uh-oh, I thought, she must be very weak from not eating.  I had only managed to get her to eat a spoonful or so of wet food in the last two days.  I put her on my lap and when I offered her wet food, she gobbled it with close to her normal gusto.  Then she proceeded to eat a number of spoonfuls of cat food soup and some more wet food, too.  All good signs.  Then she was done for a bit and I cuddled and petted her - under restraint of course.  All of a sudden, she was purring.  Really purring.  A really BIG purr from her little tiny snuffly body.  Wow.  Then she ate a bit more too.

Who would have thunk it?  Love conquers all...with some help from cat food soup.

Must Have It!!!

Here is Little One reaching through the carrier door and frantically waving his paws around trying to reach the can of wet food...  I will not be denied!!  I must have it!!  I will wave even more determinedly until you submit to my wishes or I get it myself!!

 

Never underestimate the power of intention combined with action. Even when the odds are high :) A big lesson from Little One.

When It Rains, It Pours...

It sounds like a parody of a Christmas song - four sick kittens, three snotty noses, two big vet bills and one speeding ticket on the ride home.  Please don't let there be a partridge headed my way.

So on top of about $300 in vet bills in the last two days, I happened to decide to go to the bank and deposit a check that the ATM won't accept because of how the amount is written (i.e., I have to go when the branch is open).  On my way to the bank, I get a speeding ticket.

My challenge for today is to Accept Life as My Teacher even when things don't go the way I would seemingly prefer them to.  In other words, there is a reason why this happened and I'm hearing the message to Slow Down and Pay Attention.  I would have prefered a different delivery method, however, I may have missed the preceding attempts - I didn't hear the other knocks on the door.

Trust me, this was not my knee jerk response.  It took some effort to get here from, "Poor me...  I quit!  Forget it!  I'm trying to do something good and look what happens..."  Yes, I did go there first.  My challenge is not to STAY there.  To move on.  To Accept Life as My Teacher...even when the lesson doesn't make me smile.  It's easier to do when things are coming up roses, isn't it?

A Not So Chipper Chip

Our newest kitten, Chip, isn't doing too well.  She sneezed a few times, and, though I noticed, I didn't think too much of it because she was eating vigorously and hissing and swatting at me if I tried to reach towards her - both good signs in some ways :)

Tonight however, it's different.  Chip sounds congested and isn't wanting to eat her wet food.  She also was a bit more half-hearted about injuring me when I reached into her carrier tonight.  Instead of actively eating the wet food on a spoon as it approached her, she just didn't.

Tomorrow morning, it's off to the vet we go.  Fingers crossed that Chip just has the sniffles from the stress of captivity.  She's been with us for about 10 days now and is beginning to relax and come out from the back of her carrier.  It's one of the things that I struggle with on this mission - how much stress am I causing in the interest of reducing their long-term struggle?  How much short term "pain" is needed to achieve a happy, life-long home with loving people?  I'm taking it one day at a time and really pushing for homes now - foster or permanent.  It's time for our kittens to fledge and find their homes.  One day at a time, one home at a time, one kitten at a time.  One at a time - or two :)

Here's Chip before her capture - gorgeous isn't she?  She is really stunning - I'll post a newer picture tomorrow...  Please cross your fingers for our vet visit tomorrow.

More Purring!

Look to the left of this post.  See that beautiful kitten?  She has been a bit of a mystery to me, in that she doesn't resist me picking her up, she eats from my hand, has never hissed or swatted at me - yet doesn't care for me much either.  She sort of gets a little smaller when I reach for her, like, "Oh no, here comes the hand [eyes squinting and squishing closer to the floor of the carrier], I bet she's going to...touch me..." 

So today, I was holding Whirly on my chest after feeding her some wet food off a spoon and she was quite relaxed - I was almost falling asleep, so I was pretty relaxed too...  All of a sudden I heard something...  Hmmm....  Could it be purring?  Then the pretty calico kitten began vibrating with her first purr in contact with a human.  So just about when I start to think, "Sheesh, this isn't working at all.  This kitten is never going to like people, no matter how many pets I give her."  It appears to begin to work.  So, my lesson is patience and attention and surrender to the divine timing of kittens.  We'll see what happens tomorrow...

TNRelease, Re-Release, Re-Re-Release...

I believe that there is learning for us in everything that happens...should we choose to look for it.  So last week, when I kept trapping the same cats over and over and over and, in the case of Blaze, over again, I began to wonder.  Hmmmm.....what is the message here for me?  I could focus on Blaze and ponder whether he is not the brightest bulb on the tree or perhaps he is very brave, or perhaps brilliant and has figured out that he gets a safe place with no competition to eat the wet food and then I'll let him go.  On another level, what might Blaze, and Cairo, and Kismet, and the raccoon :), and Dewey and the previously ear-tipped-cats-that-I-haven't-named-yet be offering me?  Since I caught them all more than once (okay, the raccoon I only caught once...)

Blaze

Kismet

Cairo

Suddenly I saw an opportunity to practice releasing.  Literally experiencing releasing.  Releasing cats (who could represent anything in my life) every day, sometimes multiple times a day.  For Blaze it was a daily practice for a while - he must have gone into a trap at least five times.  So letting go of these wonderful beings can also help me to let go of other beings, things, jobs, ideas that I care about and might come back to me...or might not.  That might not serve me any more to hold on to.  That might be just fine, or even better, if released.

Much to ponder here, thank you to all the brave cats who have offered me experiential learning in release and re-release and release again...

The Power of One Blink

It doesn't sound like much - one blink.  However, in the world of feral kittens one blink can be huge.  Rusty blinked once while I was holding him the other day.  I was slow blinking while holding him - slow blinking is a technique to calm animals and communicate peace to them.  Basically, if I were hunting him, I wouldn't be blinking.  So, while I was holding him, I was slow blinking and then all of a sudden, Rusty blinked.  Why is this so fascinating, you might ask?  Because Rusty normally has a perpetually surprised/terrified expression on his face when I look at him.  His eyes get so big, I think that he must be part owl.  See what I mean?

So for Rusty to have normal sized eyes :) and then to blink is really something. I'm reminded to catch those small moments that are really the big moments. I could rush past that blink and on to, "Why isn't he purring?" That would be a very common human response. Perhaps slow blinking is good for people too.  Perhaps my slow blinking communicated slowing down, relaxation, and peace to ME, too... Enabling me to catch the blink.

Go ahead, try some slow blinking, see what happens :)