Just When We Thought It Was Safe

It's Christmas morning and we come out to the living room.  What do we find? Merlin, the kitten, has found our present for he and the other cats and is enjoying not only the present but also the bag it came in.

Queen of the Island

The other day, my daughter was arranging cat mint (catnip) on the kitchen island to dry. Storm thought it smelled so wonderful that she climbed up onto the island and rolled in the remaining bits and pieces.  Ever since then, she has taken to lounging, where else, but on the center island in our kitchen.  (We also seem to have cured her of her resistance to jumping as she now jumps up there all the time.)  Here is where I found her this morning.  I think she has a new perch.

Resting Comfortably...

On Friday last, Merlin finally passed his bill of health, got his boosters and could be let out of his quarantine area.  We were going to keep him in his room until he could get himself out and therefore put him back behind the fence, but he made such pitiful noises, we broke down and gave him the run of the house.  As you can see, he is making himself quite at home in his expanded surroundings. I took this picture on July 7th.

The Latest and Greatest

On June 8th, late in the evening, our daughter received a panicked call from her best friend pleading for help. She informed my daughter that her family had found a tiny, abandoned kitten in the drain culvert next to their house. She wasn't sure what to do with the kitten, so she called us to see if we could help. We weren't sure if we were ready for another kitten, having recently lost our cat Popcorn, but we told her to at least come over and get some food so that the poor, little guy would have something to eat. She responded with "Ok, I'll bring him with me." We knew then that we were doomed!

Doomed, I say, doomed! Weighing in at a mere fifteen ounces (that's not even a pound!), he captured our hearts! However, we were expecting him to be weaned.  After he refused moistened dry food, we tried a syringe and milk.  Success!!

An emergency run to the pet store the next morning yielded a can of kitten formula and a kitten-sized baby bottle.  (He hasn't refused a drop since, and, less than two weeks later, he has gained over a pound.  The little piglet!)  After a visit to the veterinarian office and several tests and medications, he has been given a clean bill of health.

Khione took to him immediately and adopted him as her surrogate baby, teaching him all the necessary tricks and how to wrap us around his little paw - no nursing allowed (she gave him funny looks and batted at him every time he tried); however, when he is hungry, she comes and fetches us to feed her baby.  NOW.  The rest of the cats have been slower to warm up to the little butterball, but they're adapting.

After much debate and consideration, we have decided upon a name:  our magical little kitten, who seems to have survived despite the odds against him, has been named Merlin.  We're still agreeing on a middle name.  He his now eating wet kitten food (yes, they have wet food and formula specifically for kittens. We did not know that prior to his arrival), and he is now lapping up his formula from a plate greedily and refusing the bottle.  Such a big, handsome boy! 

Our little daredevil has become quite active and playful and has nearly figured out how to climb the baby gate.  Soon he will be escaping his comfort zone and wreaking havoc on the rest of the house, much to the chagrin of the rest of the cats.  Our little boy feels quite at home.  More pictures to come soon!

Another New Addition

About a month or two before Popcorn passed, our daughter convinced us to take in a sickly kitten and give her a warm, caring home to recuperate in. After several veterinary visits and some tender loving care, we adopted another kitten. Her name is Khione Lotus, after the Greek goddess of snow.

We Lost a Wee One

After seventeen years of companionship, we lost one of our little souls.  Popcorn was getting rather frail towards the end before she passed away.  We will miss her antics and frequent cuddles.