Uh oh....

 Mom went in to feed the kittens the other day and one of the girls slipped by the door and into the airlock (which is why it is there). Upon seeing Ivy and Daiquiri, she did this:

It also makes mom laugh to watch us around the house. Normally we don't snuggle too much with each other. But the top of the bed next to mom's pillow is a prime spot. It is normally taken by the oldest cat in the house: Butterscotch, then Maestro, then Tim  then Mozart and now Ivy. 

However every once in a while Daiq decides to join her and mom will wake up to this:

A tale of two panels

 *A post by the mom

Instagram is a great place for fosters. I've seen some really great ideas for care and for room set up. 

This spring I came across a post using clear click together panels. Easily cleaned and they can configure into different (right angle) shapes.

I got more info and found put they are Tespo panels. Yay! I wandered around Amazon and finally found them.

Now.... I don't have prime but our Fairy Cat Mother does and will let me use her account. Ordered and out for delivery. 

Well the box came and it seemed small but I opened it up. 

Turns out they come in two sizes. Square and rectangle. In my hurry, I ordered the short ones. Oops....

Fortunately they served the purpose I needed. I set them up for Huzzah and her kittens. She could get over and back but no escaping kittens.

 However, I set them up for Cranberry and Blueberry and discovered that despite being little they can still get over the short ones.

 Well I'm getting some vacation time paid out from work so the tall ones will be on order.

And this time I will actually read the description. For now they are set up in the foster room cutting the room in half for the Muffin kittens to give them more space to run around but still limit HOW much space they have. So far no escapees....

weekend update

If you have been following us on instagram and facebook, you will have seen these faces before now:

Hopper, Cricket and Beetle

They had been taken in by a young local vet as bottle babies. She got a call asking her to take more bottle babies and since these three are eating on their own, the rescue agreed to take them and mom picked them up last Tuesday. They were tested (negative) and came to the house. Mom was told they were 6 weeks old (now about 7 weeks) but they were smaller than mom anticipated so she put them in the bathroom rather than the foster room.

That didn't last very long. They were rowdy and mom wanted the bathroom back. Saturday morning she took the smaller exercise pen and set it up in a corner of the foster room as their own section of the room. Bets were placed as to how long it would take for the bigger kittens to break in.

we didn't do it and you can't prove anything

By Sunday morning, Mopar had broken in to baby jail - TWICE. (to be honest, mom's money had been on Fate being the jail breaker, so she was rather surprised the first time she found Mopar inside the pen) Mid morning she gave up and took down the pen and spent some time in there supervising to make sure that the big kittens didn't beat up the little kittens....  More on that Wednesday. 

on the move

It was about that time.....  Ash, Jet and Quartz made it up to the adoption center on Friday. Mom stopped on Saturday (more on that later in the week) and while Jet was curled up in a corner (no surprise), Ash had made a friend his own size and Quartz has made herself the official greeter of the kitten room. Paws crossed we will have adoption news soon.

 The NEW baby jail. Remember we had tried this when the geology kittens were tiny but Coral and Pearl could walk through the bars. Mom did some thinking and came up with a plan. She bought a heavy duty shower curtain. The pen sits on it and then the sides were brought up and connected with zip ties.

 Pretty nice set up....more space and they can see out the balcony doors (off to the left).

 These have to be the most concerned looking kittens ever....

The problem we face now is that Sunshine can get out. She does go back in and the kittens are eating on their own, but still. Fortunately everyone here is ok with her. Though poor Spud almost had a stroke when he was sure he got away from Junior only to turn around and see another orange cat. Luckily she is pretty mellow and doesn't care.

moving around

On the 11th, mom came home with three little old lady-cats that she was watching for a friend. They are in "retirement" with the rescue (and have medical issues) and are living with our friend Miss Karen (she watched Jade and the littles when mom was in Utah). And while she was on vacation and her cold air blower was being fixed, the girls were staying with us. Which meant there had to be some rearraging of the kittens. The girls got the bathroom and everyone moved from there.....

Oh, and come to find out it is Winston the ORANGE and Miss Mona can't remember the black kitten's name so we are calling him Calvin. Now, Winston is very very shy and Calvin was very very snotty. Since they were bigger, they went in the playpen since the top zips shut (mom has visions of not being able to find Winston).

Which meant that the little girls - Jet and Quartz were moved to baby jail. Coral and Ash have been out 24/7 for a while now.

Only here's the problem - Jet figured out how to get out of baby jail. And she is freaking out being loose in the house. So.....

Calvin was released from the playpen (and is doing much better...though still snotty). He is very friendly and very playful. When he was neutered he was eartipped as the lady who brought him in has a colony that the rescue is helping TNR. The original plan was to send him back and he was going to be indoor/outdoor. We think the plan now is that he will go back to the adoption center to find a new home.

Winston and Jet are in the playpen 24/7. Quartz (who is so friendly it is kind of pitiful) is out during the day but in the playpen at night since she is still pretty little. The old ladycats went home Monday night so mom needs to clean that up and then decide what is next......

Did you get all that???  MOL

And stay tuned....the bathroom is inhabited again.

Let's see....

Normally our random post goes up on Friday, but mom wasn't so organized last night....

With Mica, Amber and Cinco up at the adoption center, she has been stopping up there after work. Adoptions are happening, but not one of them yet. sigh....

However, mom got to spend a little time with this girl last night:

(picture from our friend Karen)

Mae is doing great. She is in a smaller room with just 3 other cats which keeps her stress down. She has gotten out a few times into the larger room and it freaks her out. Mom was up there on Sunday and Mae had gotten cornered and was screaming for help. Mom moved the other cat and Mae shot back to the door to the small room. But last night was was SO lovey. And just chatty - whoever her previous family was, someone held some serious conversations with her. She had no microchip and mom checked the local lost and found websites and didn't see anything so we guess we will never know.

This tiny terror is having a blast at Miss Alyssa's house. He moved into her foster room as she had 4 kittens also test positive. And from what we hear, he has taken over. At one point he grabbed a toy mouse and marched through the room growling at the other boys (keep in mind they are about 3-4 weeks older and about .75 pounds heavier). And then she went up to check on them and found Topaz asleep in a patch of sun, on his back, paws up in the air. :)  He has such purrsonality.

And speaking of tests, Jade was retested when she was spayed. And she was.....negative!! So she is now spayed and ready to go. :)

We did take in a couple of snotty older boys (maybe 4 months old). Calvin is an orange tabby and Winston is black. We don't think they are related. Both found as strays. Winston is pretty friendly but Calvin is going to take a little work. And they are both a HOT MESS from snot (which is why there are no pictures).

Everyone else is doing well. Quartz and Jet are getting better quickly. Quartz is pretty lovey and walks up to mom. Jet is a little more jumpy, but then again mom has to lean over baby jail and grab her from above so we can't say we blame the little girl. Mom wants to spend some time sitting on the floor with them this weekend and see if that helps.

crazy weekend...

OK - maybe not for us so much....we spent it snoozing. :)

However, for the mom and for Jade and the kittens, it came with some changes.

Someone left 3 bottle babies at our rescue's adoption center on Thursday. Mom told Miss Mona (the lady in charge of the rescue) that Jade might be willing to take new kittens. This crew is 7 weeks old and eating on their own and Jade really isn't all that hung up on nursing them anyhow.

By Saturday am, it was agreed to try it and see what happens. Mom took Jade over and the introductions were made....

As you can see, it was a success..... Jade looks a little annoyed, but she laid down pretty quick and let them nurse. There are three kittens - one girl and two boys one boy and two girls. They are probably just about 3 weeks old. And mom caught one of them nomming some dry food and another some canned food, so Jade may be off the hook sooner rather than later (though mom would like to see them nurse for a while).

 "OK - so it isn't mine, but whatever"

Meet: Jet (the black female), Quartz (the gray femal male - who looks kinda like Mica at that age) and Topaz (the tabby boy). Topaz is tinier than the other two and not knowing any background, we suspect he may not be related, but is still about the same age.

Though - you could say that about Coral based on her size and we KNOW who her family members are. MOL  Speaking of Coral, since she is so tiny, mom decided to put her in with Jade and the newbies.

Which led us to another issue..... if Jade is in the bathroom with tiny kittens, where do the bigger kittens live???

Baby jail has been reconstructed in the living room (this was before Coral moved back into the bathroom). The playpen is set up and the baby jail/gate is being used as extra space. Although Mica decided he can get over it and Ash managed to move it, so that may not work. Our friend Miss Kelly (the local one) gave us a bigger exercise pen that may get set up. Mom was using it at the bathroom door, but discovered Coral could get out - THROUGH the bars!!!

So, how was YOUR weekend???  MOL

a four pack of trouble....

Mom plans to hug us.....so we plan to make every out there squee over kittens.  :)

Well, baby jail was disassembled in the living room. Mom needed it to make into a gate for the space kittens (as seen yesterday). So the beer kittens are on the loose. Mom waited until Friday to do it as she was afraid the kittens would be ALL over during the night. We lucked out....the kittens sleep in the living room on the ess or the tree.

Killian on the loose

serious crash out session

The babies are gaining weight and running around like nuts. Mom has to weigh them but we hope they are big enough for surgery this week so can be available to go home next weekend for the adoption event.

Miller and Killian are the most outgoing. Busch is coming around. And Stella growls at mom. But they love playing and being out with everyone here. They are a nice bunch of kittens.

Well, that's a problem....

hey lady - what's with the bars??

lemme out!!!

Rapunzel, the momma cat, went back to the shelter last week. She was SO skinny and wasn't nursing the kittens. Then Monday and Tuesday night she spent YOWLING at the bathroom door. Ugh.... So mom asked the cat advocate if Rapunzel could go back to the shelter to gain some weight.

And then they made a discovery.....Rapunzel has coccidia. Which means all the kittens have it too. It is an internal parasite so the kittens are on meds. And they are a HOT MESS!!!  The parasite and the meds gives them the runs and while they are being very good about getting to the box, they are still pretty messy. Add to that the fact that they are eating canned and are getting that all over themselves and each other......  let's just say we suspect mom is going to spend an evening this week in there with the kittens and the shower will get involved. :) Mom has an old pair of flip flops in a bag by the door she uses when she is in there too.

You may have noticed that baby jail has been moved to the bathroom door. Since the space kittens are having issues and can get over the baby gate (sigh....) mom moved baby jail back to act as a gate back there. She would prefer to leave the door closed but it makes the kittens nuts to be closed in.  So the gate is up and giving them some air and space.

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Responding to some comments:
1. We think that is Sputnik signing in the second picture (he is bigger than Gemini but it is hard to tell unless they are right next to each other).
2. Yes, everyone could catch it. However, the space kittens have been in quarantine since they got here (with the exception of baby jail which is a relatively new development anyhow). So, with them being on meds and the exposure being low, not much chance of it happening.

easy Caturday

We are hopin' to spend the weekend chillaxin'. Mom said something about laundry, but we don't have to help with that. Thank Cod....

But, there is a certain momma cat who is now escaping from baby jail. We would like to think she just figured it out, but we suspect she knew all along and is just getting comfortable leaving the boys in there without her. Plus - the pepper boys are beginning to make it sound like they are practicing mortal combat in there anymore....they need more room to run around. Mom asked the rescue lady about letting them out since we still have Emma and her cooties, but she said since Emma has been in the house (and truthfully has been exposed to the boys though not for long periods of time), to just let them run. Mom thinks they may be close to 2 pounds too. Time flies. :)

And, it happened last night for the first time. Mist is good about the boys being out and playing. And in fact was chasing them at one point. But Tommy is not liking Mist much, so mom is keeping an eye on everyone. Luckily Mist is laid back about it so nothing has happened.

 

Random Fridays.....

To all our friends in the northeast US - PLEASE stay safe and warm in the coming storm!!
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Faraday, Maxwell and Allie mentioned on the post about the new playpen for the kittens that it might be useful for other animals in case of emergency. Mom hadn't even thought about that. Not that she thinks shoving all of us in one of those would work, but it is a good idea. This is the one she bought for the kittens.

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 Mom has read on several blogs (she would give you credit if she could remember them all (love and hisses is one) - darned mom is getting old) about using auto windshield shades as self warming cat beds. She liked the idea for Allie and her boyfriend. It has been SO cold here recently - it has been in the 20s F all week during the day and colder at night. Mom found a cheap one the other day and dismantled it and cut it into pieces to put in the carriers in the garage. It was big enough to cut up another piece to have upstairs....mom was hoping Maestro would use it as he is old. Nope.....

Mo "the hot man cat" was caught sleeping on it. Mom snuck up and him and bent back the blanket from Miss Connie so you could see the reflective thingie. Although considering he weighs less than everyone else here except Maestro, guess we can't blame him too much. :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We have seen several comments asking us about baby jail. We do love it, but it isn't fool proof. And it sure isn't adult cat proof. Mom bought ours here. But keep in mind that the walls are only about 29 inches tall (according to the website - mom has never measured). The bars are about half of that - once kittens get to a certain height, they can get over by climbing.....see the paws on the middle rail:

(the Gs from November 2011)

So it works for little kittens, but even Maestro (the old man cat) can jump it. OK....Ivy can't but she and gravity have a love-hate relationship.  MOL
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tim saw Dr. Tom for a checkup on Tuesday. Tim is on one week more of antibiotics. All of his stitches haven't fallen out yet, but it looks good in there. Plus he is back to eating dry food. AND..... no fights for a couple of weeks. Mom has found some serious scabs on both Tim and Tom, so those fights were a little worse than mom thought (though Tommy's ripped out toenail appears to be slowly growing back). Glad that is over with - it gets everyone here worked up.....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Comment from yesterday about Emma and the baths:
"I have been there, too! Ask your vet about a "dip" that you apply at home and leave on. It's miconozole. Vet labels as to how much medicine to mix with water and you wet kitten with dip and leave on to dry. No smell like the lyme stuff and far more effective. I used a cloth wet with the dip to wipe over head/face area so as not to get in eyes or ears. The same miconozole comes in towelettes (handy-wipes)."
The shampoo is miconozole - and weirdly she smells like mint toothpaste.  But we didn't know it came in towelettes.....gonna have to look into that.  THANKS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Random Fridays....

Well, we were destined to be disappointed. Mom didn't bring any turkey home. Something about grandpa making a small one. sigh.....
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Oh, and mom was going to try to get a picture of Bourbon's double fangs while he was snoozing.... only he lost his baby teeth as well. So much for that. But at least is is one less thing we have to worry about. :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Miss Gin is heading out for an adventure today. There was another adoption at Petco, so mom is taking Gin back up there. There is a very nice and adorable male kitten up there named Uncle Bill. Mom is hoping having her separate from Moonshine and with an outgoing kitten will help her find her forever home. Paws crossed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 It was kitten-palooza here on Thursday morning. Those kittens DO NOT want to stay in the bathroom and the gate created by baby jail is just useless at this point. So mom has been letting the kitts out for a while when she is home. As you can see, they have discovered the cat tree. Emma tends to climb up and then yell for help:

 

Jail break

  the auction is on. There are so many great things over there....be sure to stop by.

Mom is still having difficulties getting the chip-in to do math, but we are getting any donations that are made - THANKS. Plus she MAY have figured it out...something about verification, so it may take a couple of days to show the updated numbers. Once again, the adventures of living with a techno-dork. MOL

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We just read that Huffle Mawson ran for the Bridge. There isn't anything on their blog yet, but we are VERY sad and sending them purrs.....

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And, now onto the main event: the reason for the auction

Don't believe for a second that these faces are innocent. Nope, not a chance.

Cory: in the back with the white stripe on his head. He is the second biggest (just behind Opal) and is very sure that mom is out to get him. He will come over but mom is still working on him. But he and Kyan are up for any game....real or invented.

Emma: next to Cory, more color on her face. She is the tiniest of the crew and the most cuddly so far. She is willing to play and run around....but mom suspects there is a girl out there that will be more than happy to buy Emma a shiny collar and carry her around like she is sure she deserves. She is a princess in training.

Kyan: the other boy, left side of the picture. Master of trouble and the second smallest kitten. He is always up to SOMETHING. That being said, mom picked him up the other day and he touched her nose and started to purr very loudly. aww.....

Opal: our other girl and also up for any and all adventures. She is also the kitten most likely to pounce on someone else. Like Cory, we are still working on her cuddling. But she will sit there with this look and it melts mom's heart.

But, we have other issues......they have discovered how to get over the baby gate!!!

Mom was hoping to have a little more time. Mom was working on the laptop Saturday evening when she noticed Emma coming down the hall, closely followed by Kyan. We have no idea how the littlest ones got out first.....but there it is. They don't like having the door closed now but that is the only way to keep them in there now. They are pretty little yet and can get into too much. So over the weekend they have been out for short periods of time.

Miss Emma the cute in the corner tent

The alcohol kittens are still here as well and Gin and Moonshine DO NOT like the little ones. And the little ones don't seem to care...... MOL

Marg requested video: we aim to please!!!