a cutie update

It hasn't been that long since our Texas boy Bristol was adopted, but mom got an email the other day from his new mom with an update and pictures to share. His name is now Archie and his new mom says he is just the sweetest thing. He loves to play and cuddle with anyone he can pin down.

Thanks to A for the update....we love seeing our former fosters in their forever homes!!!

Year in Review - Part 2

July
Miss Julie gave us a camper at Blog Paws and the rat pack kittens put it to the test. We got to know Panache and her kittens better. We talked about cat guys. It was not only the summer of tuxedo kittens, it was the summer of one eyed tuxedo kittens as Romero and Rooney lost one eye each to infection. The rat pack kittens got new collars so mom had a better chance of telling them apart in pictures. We got close up pictures of the #littlekittens Mallard, Foxy and Fish. Chanel went up to the adoption center but wasn't adopted.

August
We did a Q and A about FIV in cats. Bogart, Flynn and Romero went up to the adoption center. Panache and the kittens got new housing arrangements. We posted about the rat pack girls. It was our 9th year blogoversary. Romero got adopted. Mom took Rooney and Harlow to an adoption event - upon their return to the house they got free run and Panache and the kittens got moved to the foster room. Flynn and Bogart were adopted together. Bacall stuck around the house getting over a cold. There was a minor mystery in the foster room.

September
Bacall went up to the adoption center and got adopted the next day. Mom took Lark and the songbird kittens - unfortunately they were all pretty sick and after going back to the rescue, they passed away. We posted some pictures showing how remarkable how much like Panache that Mallard looks. Foxy got adopted. Mom played musical cats and Rooney got adopted. Fish got adopted as well. We picked up the #berrykittens as well. Mozart turned 11 years old.

October
Mom took a long weekend to visit family and they all took out a pontoon boat for a day. When she got home she picked up 4 kittens rescued from Houston after Hurricane Harvey (Bristol, Shiner, Amarillo and Marfa). Mom went to visit Chanel...and ended up bringing her home. On the 6th, our elder statesman Tommy passed away with mom's help at the vet. Unfortunately later that week, Cranberry of the berry kittens passed away as well. The Texas kittens got their names and continued to charm mom. Chanel got a harness and started making trips out in public with mom. Harlow got adopted. On the 25th mom had to make the decision to take Mozart to the vet to euthanize him after a cancer diagnosis.

November
We kicked off the month with some VERY good news - Millie, mom to the design kittens, was adopted. Blueberry and the Texas kittens got a cold so there was snot in the foster room.The Texas gangsters decided Blueberry was fun to pick fights with on a regular basis. Chanel continued to go out and about with mom and got to meet someone interesting one day. Blueberry was finally ready to go up to the adoption center. There was a Texas kitten update and mom posted about our new log cabin house. And after several weeks, the Texas kittens were packed off for surgery.

 

December
Mom had pictures taken of Chanel for Christmas at a fundraiser for a local rescue. We got more back story on the Texas kittens before they came up here after Hurricane Harvey. After surgery and a weekend of adoption events, the Texas kittens were supposed to head up to the adoption center to find their forever homes. Blueberry was adopted on the 6th. On the day the Texas kittens were to get set up at the adoption center, Amarillo started to drool and there was random sneezing, so back to the house. They went back into the foster room but managed to pull a Houdini and escaped....gaining them access to the house full time. However, after a few days Chanel wasn't very happy about all 4 kittens being out, so they headed back up to the adoption center since no one was acting sick. Sigourney and Weaver came to us as new fosters for the end of the year. All four Texas kittens were adopted pretty quickly. Weaver continued to charm mom and Ivy had a vet check for her ear. We got our Secret Paws box. Unfortunately the year ended on a sad note when mom got a call from the pet sitter that Weaver had passed away while mom was out of town.

Random Fridays

More good news:

Bristol - ADOPTED

Amarillo - ADOPTED

Not together and both will be single kittens. Mom did laugh wondering how long it will take for Bristol's new family to regret that decision. hahaha

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Some cat got her nails trimmed last weekend and then spent

time giving mom THIS look.

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Mom got our Secret Paws package wrapped up and sent last week. She said something about it going over the ocean....we hope it gets there in time (since planning ahead wasn't mom's thing this year).

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For as much time as Daiquiri spent growling at Chanel when she first came back, she now spends just as much time giving the kid a good bath.

A couple of Chanel things: the v-e-t asked on Tuesday if mom has seen any changes in Chanel. Nope. Her recovery time seems to be a little bit better, but then again she got up on the chair the other day, gave mom a good head butt...and fell off the chair. 

Oh - and she has discovered that she likes sleeping UNDER the covers at night with mom. She will come out now and then but spends the majority of the time under the comforter, on top of the blankets. 

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So far Ivy has gotten her meds every some days and her ear is looking better. Mom did laugh and say that the v-e-t may have asked the wrong question though. Dr F asked if mom can medicate Ivy. Sure. The better question is - can mom CATCH Ivy to medicate her.  MOL

Random Fridays

Looks like everyone has their plans laid out for the weekend. Mom says it sounds good to her.

Sigourney and Weaver are doing well. You need to be sure to check the Foster Kitten Cam and see what they are up to. If Weaver is awake, she is usually running around like a nut.

adoption news

On Sunday, this one went home:

Marfa

And on Tuesday, this one went home:

Shiner

Honestly, not on a bet would mom have guessed that Marfa would have been the first to be adopted.

Nothing yet on Bristol and Amarillo....cross your paws. There was a nice lady looking at them on Wednesday and mom got to talk to her.

Let's try this again

By Friday, the Texas kittens were running around like nuts....no sneezing, no drooling, no nothing. But...they were taking up mom space and Chanel was acting more and more unhappy about it. That said, mom took Chanel out on Saturday and then asked if the Texas kittens could come back to the adoption center on Sunday. Mom got them up there just as the center opened and they are set up in a wire cat tower all together. When mom left, Marfa was toward the back but everyone else was acting curious and checking things out. Mom gave their background to a couple of volunteers. As of this writing, no news on adoptions, but we hope they go quickly (and in pairs).

that was NOT the plan

We have Christmas cards....lots of Christmas cards. MOL If you would like one from us this year - no obligation - send us your address here and we will send you a card. (and delete your information)
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The intention was to take the Texas kittens up to the adoption center Tuesday night to find them their forever homes for Christmas. However, Amarillo started drooling over the weekend and by Tuesday night there was various sneezing. Under the category of "better safe than sorry", they are back with us for a few days on meds.

And of course....they figured out how to get out of the foster room. Mom didn't witness the ACTUAL escape, but Wednesday morning they were all out playing in the living room when mom came out to get ready for work. Mom walked into the living room to see three of them sitting there - all with this "We have no idea what happened" expression. sigh..... She cracked the door into the foster room, but we suspect there may not be much action on the web cam.

hooligans - all of them

adoption events

We have Christmas cards....lots of Christmas cards. MOL If you would like one from us this year - no obligation - send us your address here and we will send you a card. (and delete your information)
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The Texas kittens went out both Saturday and Sunday to adoption events. No applications though. They were fairly nervous on Saturday but by Sunday had relaxed.

 

Shiner

 

Bristol - what a poser

 

Marfa

smooshed behind her siblings

 

Shiner and Bristol

They will go up to the adoption center today. Hopefully they will adjust pretty quickly and get adopted quickly too. We would love to see them go in pairs...heaven knows Bristol at least will need someone to keep him company (out of trouble).

back story on the Texas kittens

While mom had the kittens out on Saturday, she decided to reach out to their original rescue organization and give them an update. The kittens came from Wharton County SPOT in Texas.

 the area after the flooding

 Amelia - mom cat to the kittens. We think the paperwork got separated during transport as Amelia wasn't with the kittens and neither mom or the rescue knew Amelia is the kittens' mom until we got the email from the rescue with more information.

The kittens in a crate on the front porch.

Mom was going to give you their story, but decided to just let Christine tell it to you in her own words:

Our community was devastated by catastrophic flooding. It was unprecedented and caught many county residents off guard, necessitating rescues by boat in the pitch dark/middle of the night. Some were alerted to the situation by their dogs - who ran off due to the water quickly rushing in.

We were contacted during the flooding by someone with a contact with Alley Cat Allies. As a result, we were able to transfer 24 cats/kittens to Austin Pets Alive when the water receded - these were cats/kittens already in our care or at the two municipal shelters. Alley Cat Allies also awarded us an emergency grant which then allowed us to help more cats/kittens. This was a godsend because many of our Board members/fosters/donors were affected by the flooding and are now focused on getting their lives back on track. Many community members and some businesses are living in travel trailers on their property while renovations to their homes/businesses are being done.

About 3 weeks after the flood waters receded, we received a call from a woman who's home was flooded. A stray cat had made her way to her porch with her four kittens during the flood. I went to meet with her and assess the situation (were they healthy, friendly). It can be tricky with outdoor cats with our limited resources. It costs us about $200/cat for vaccinations, exam, and other expenses.

The other positive was that Colony Cats had already agreed to take in more kittens/cats from us and we had transport scheduled the following week. As a foster-based rescue, we are challenged with having enough folks to care for cats until we can either get them adopted or transferred. And transfers are tricky because the ground transport group we use for dogs has a driver that is allergic to cats. We have found a different transporter who transported the cats to you both time, but it isn't cheap - about $700/trip. The grant helped fund the two trips.

The kittens were adorable and she had already caught them in a milk crate; I was able to handle them. The momma cat was approachable and Mary's daughter was able to catch her and get her in a kennel. I thought it best they come into SPOT's care while they were all "caught." They hung out in our office for a week until we were able to transport them to you.
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We are VERY grateful to the lady who found Amelia and her kittens and to SPOT for taking them in knowing they had a safe place to go. Thanks also to Alley Cat Allies for grants to help with transport costs. It really does take a village to help save animals.

The kittens are all safe and healthy and will be at our adoption center starting tomorrow looking for forever homes. Amelia was spayed and is in our intake department getting over a cold. Mom got a good look at her on Sunday and she is very cute and looks very much like her kittens. Once she is over her cold she will go back out to the adoption floor.

Normally we ask for your support for our rescue. But...in this season of giving if you are so moved, we would be grateful if you decided to give a little to SPOT to help them rebuild.

Random Fridays

If you would like a Christmas postcard from us this year, drop us a quick email to randomfelines at hotmail dot com (yes we spelled it out - trying to avoid the bots).
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Speaking of Christmas cards, mom took Chanel last Saturday to a photo shoot being held at a local pet specialty store to benefit a senior dog rescue. A local professional photographer donated his time and talents and did a great job. Chanel was the only cat and was wonderful. Mom was giving it 60/40 odds against her cooperation, but she got into the back area, mom sat her down on the bench and she sat there like a champ. Mom sort of wishes she had taken off Chanel's harness and just put on her collar (the photographer photoshopped out her leash) but thinking now, it may not have worked as Chanel seems to "sit" more with the harness on.

Mom is using a different one for our card.
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The Texas kittens are all spayed and neutered and ready to go. Adoption events this weekend and then up to the adoption center. Hopefully they will go quickly as they are just such a nice group of kittens and VERY people friendly.

Oh - and there were comments about how long the log cabin would last with the kittens. The log cabin in the living room where the permanent residents have access but NO KITTENS allowed (except for that tuxedo one that lives here).
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Have a nice and safe weekend.

it is that time

Well, they have been here a while,  but it is just about time for our Texas refugees to find their forever homes. They are so super sweet that we hope they get adopted extra quick. They were dropped off this morning for their spay/neuter surgeries and will be ready to go. There are adoption events this weekend and they will go with mom then next week head up to the adoption center. They are very purry and lovey and just adore people. They were a little freaked out this morning at the clinic but that was mainly the big barking dogs (with dumb owners).