Margarita

Ask any foster family out there about the cats they foster that they worry about more than others, and we bet a lot of them will tell you the momma cats. Kittens - yes even the black ones - get adopted when they are little. Momma cats, like a lot of adult cats looking for homes, seem to take that much longer. And so we worry.....

April of 2015 we had a family join us as fosters: 

 Yep - Margarita and the fiesta kittens.

She was actually back to the rescue and ready to go before her kids. Since mom wasn't sure how she would do at the open rescue center, they waited until there was an opening at one of the remote locations in a local pet store.

And honestly, mom thought she had been adopted until she was moved to the remote store location where mom cleans and does adoptions. Needless to say, mom was pretty sad to see her, but also glad Margarita was doing ok. Though, Margarita seemed to hold some sort of grudge against mom and would occasionally call her names. MOL

Well, Margarita was at this store for a while. And then one of the other volunteers and her daughter made it their mission to keep sharing her picture. A friend of theirs came to meet Margarita and after some serious though decided to take her home. As of Sunday, Margarita has been ADOPTED!!!! Mom already got an update and it sounds like Margarita came right out of her carrier, made herself at home and slept with her new mom the very first night.

A funny story: the store where she was has lizards for sale. The cages are set up along the wall next to the cat cages. It took her a while, but Margarita discovered the lizards....and it was was lizard TV for hours at a time. At one point one got out and we can only say thank heaven Margarita had the top cage. MOL

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This means we only have two foster from last year to be adopted. Nashville, who will go with mom to an adoption event on Sunday and then into the next open spot at the store. And Lille, the tortie mom to the french city kittens - the wound on her face seems to heal, then break open, then heal, then break open. Until it is fully healed, she can't be spayed. The rescue is trying to figure out exactly what is going on with that girl.

a change in the line up

Tostada went home Wednesday night. Good luck sweet girl (we bet she has her momma wrapped around her paw in no time).

Lyon will go back to the rescue tonight....he is healthy and ready to go so there is no need to wait. There really aren't any little kittens available right now, so he should (paws crossed) get adopted quickly.

Avignon was spayed on Monday. We aren't sure if she will come back here for a few days or not. She was limping again last week and the head of the rescue recommended cage rest....

However, while mom was at the rescue on Tuesday, she found this guy.....

Yep....that's Nashville. He is once again snotty and not really improving being at the adoption center. He is on Petfinder, but mom suspects the stress of the adoption center isn't helping. She brought him home. At first he was in the bathroom.....but he howled like it was the WORST.THING.EVER!! So mom let him out....which freaked out Lyon and Tostada. Fortunately after a couple of hours everyone settled back in and there was peace (mostly). He is on meds and once he is healthy, mom is going to try to get him back in one of the remote adoption locations and see if that helps get him adopted faster and keep him healthy. She had forgotten he is a night time snuggler though - she woke up a couple of times over night and found him RIGHT up next to her.

Tostada

Mom went out to run errands on Saturday and came back with this.....

Yep - that's Tostada. Our girl who was here as a tiny kitten, went to the adoption center, got sick, got better, got sick....ended up here on meds....had exploratory surgery....got more meds and finally went up for adoption at one of the remote locations.

Well, mom got an application for adoption for Tostada the end of last week. The lady is out of town until today so rather than leave Tostada up at the remote location taking up space, mom agreed to bring her back here so that another cat could have that spot. Tostada will go home tomorrow evening and in the mean time is making herself right at home.

It took her a little bit to get comfortable around the house....and the French City Kittens were REALLY not too sure about her. However, she has relaxed some and it doing well with all of us (though if she rounds a corner too fast, Lyon still puts on his stranger danger suit).

What is making mom really laugh is how talkative Tostada has become. She started it up at the remote adoption location....she would yell when mom came into the store. Looking for attention most likely. While she isn't overly chatty here at the house, she certainly has opinions about certain things. Like Sunday morning at about 3am when she decided to inform mom that the food dishes were mostly empty. MOL

Anyhow....she will be the only cat in the house and we suspect she will be spoiled rotten by the lady adopting her.

2015 Year in Review (Part 2)

July:
The month started off with a bang (see what we did there) as we took in 3 kittens from a TNR project. To go with the theme, they were named Topeka, Nashville and Reno.

We added more to the full house of kittens here with the spice kittens and their mom.
We did a Blog the Change post about volunteering in rescue (and dealing with the public).
London and his snot were still here.

Cairo got adopted.
The TNR kittens gained some freedom.
Mom bought a tower to replace the playpen for foster kittens.
There was an update on the spice kittens.

August:
We celebrated birthdays and gotcha days.
Mom did a post about applications and being in rescue.
We celebrated our 6th Blogoversary.
Chaos broke out with 8 (!!) kittens running around the house.

We talked about the importance of microchips for Check the Chip day.
In a moment that still makes everyone laugh, mom got the DNA results back on Grandma and Grandpa's woofie Izzo.
Daiquiri turned a year old.
London was adopted.

September:
Cinnamon the foster kitten ran for the Rainbow Bridge (they think it was FIP).

Morocco the momma cat to Cairo and London got adopted.
Once again we have to convince Mo that Mo Cats Day isn't about him.
Mom got attacked by bees!!!
Spud turned 7.
Tostada was sick at the adoption center, came back to our house and needed surgery.
                THANK YOU to everyone for their moral and monetary support!!
Anise and Topeka were adopted. (mom posted that Reno was too, but that was a false alarm)
The nuts arrived here.

Mozart turned 9.
We also briefly had a mom and kittens named Devon and the Moos. Sadly mom cat didn't adjust to being in a home...they went back to the adoption center. The kittens didn't thrive and mom went back to her colony.

October:
Tim and Tom turned 12 years old.
The apple kittens came to the house and mom posted about a great adoption story.

A nut-date.
We got a haunted house.

We did a Blog the Change post about TNR.
We posted about the differences of having kittens of all ages at our house.
Mom helped others celebrate National Kitten Day by taking kittens for visits to offices with the help of Uber.

November:
None of the Apple kittens survived. They all went downhill pretty fast. Mom was heartbroken but knew that at least they were given a chance and knew some love with us.

Mom headed off to Bark World. She got to meet the Canopy Cat Rescue guys.... happy sigh  :)

Mom vented a little frustration about why we do what we do with fostering.
Mom won a MeowBox at Bark World and finally broke it open for us.
Lille and the French City Kittens made their arrival.

Orleans, the little orange baby didn't survive however. (we were never sure if she wasn't related to the rest or just tiny)
Lille ended up back at the adoption center when she developed a huge abscess on the side of her face.

December:
We discovered Margarita hadn't actually been adopted - and got to see her when she was moved to a remote adoption location closer to us (and the same one where her daughter Tostada is at).

Tostada

Margarita

Acorn was supposed to be spayed but wasn't spayed due to her eye issue.
Mom posted about an accident that happened here with one of the kittens (hard to read - you may want to skip this link).
Reno got ADOPTED!!

We got a gingerbread house and mom finally got it set up.
We had kittens gone wild around here.
Spud and Ivy celebrated their Gotcha Day.
We posted about a video done by our friend Miss Lisa promoting Our Wish for animals.
Daiquiri celebrated her first Gotcha Day.
The French City Kittens got a little more freedom (except for Avignon).
We got to open our Secret Paws box.


And then it was Christmas and New Years and wow....where did 2015 go??  THANK YOU for reading and commenting and lurking and being our friends.

2015 Year in Review (Part 1)

The end of every year we have taken a look back at what has gone on here. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Sometimes we get caught up so much in the day to day routine that we forget the things that have happened.....

January:
adoptions galore - Kahlua and Mae West and Cassidy (surrogate mom to the alcohol kittens, including Daiquiri)

Mae West sure was a chatty girl

The Lucy Pet Foundation reached out to bloggers to help spread the word about spay/neuter.
We got our new cat ladder and mom got it set up.
Mom got to meet D'Art who lives at the Dublin Art Center here in our home town.

February:
Mom watched the kitten bowl (and so did Daiquiri) and Daiquiri got to see her first snowfall.

We got our first litter of kittens for the year - Strawberry and her kittens Fanta, Faygo and Rootbeer. (the soda kittens)

We got an update on the orange kittens (Tangerine and Clementine).
The soda kittens continued to get bigger.
The mom posted about sometimes getting what you need rather than what you thought you wanted.

March:
The soda kittens got their first taste of freedom.
We discussed what we would do if we had thumbs
The soda kittens decided freedom was pretty awesome.
Mom took some of treats for a review at the shelter.

It was time for the soda kittens to get fixed, or so we thought.

that Rootbeer lurved his momma

And Rootbeer and Faygo both got adopted!!

April:
Mom trapped an older kitty that had been running our neighborhood and posted about her thoughts about strays and TNR.

Fanta got adopted (and the story was pretty funny)

The Fiesta kittens and their mom Margarita arrived:

We Blogged the Change about transports
The fiesta kittens had their eyeballs pop open and continued to get bigger (and bigger).

May: 
The fiesta kittens turned a month old.
Mom put a Great Dane in the Beetle.
We did an Allie (our feral) update.

The cute was seriously strong with this group:

yes, that is Tostada

The kittens all weighed in at over a pound.
We posted about a huge adoption event in our area.
A 6 week old fiesta kitten update
A wordless Wednesday of our girls.
Then mom headed out to Blog Paws.

June:
BLOG PAWS!!! (part 1 and part 2) Mom took Queso, Salsa and Taquito.

Margarita was spayed and went to a remote adoption location.
Morocco and her kittens joined us.
Mom got the sads when we learned our first bottle baby Bug passed away suddenly.
One of Morocco's kittens ran for the Bridge.
The fiesta kittens were spayed and neutered.

Then mom had to solve the "case of the missing meezer".

The kittens did some serious house trashing:

Queso and Salsa were both adopted (separately). And the heat caused London to melt:

*Be sure to check back tomorrow for part 2!!

like mother like daughter

A while ago mom reported that Margarita (mom to the fiesta kittens) had been adopted. Come to find out the lady that was approved changed her mind. Mom found out when Margarita got moved to another remote adoption site....ironically the same one where Tostada is residing.

Tostada (on Sunday)

Margarita (on Sunday)

They look VERY alike. These pictures don't do any justice to Margarita, but they both have the same round face and expression. Margarita does have some white on her chin and chest. And they sound alike too. Tostada doesn't talk as much now that she has Reno for a roommate. But it is funny how much they resemble each other in so many ways. They haven't been reunited....and mom doesn't think they will since it is unlikely Margarita would recognize Tostada as her "kid". Margarita was very unhappy at the other store and we are hoping that with a bigger cage and some access to seeing outside that she will relax some. She can go to the adoption center for the rescue but the fear is that she will find a place to hide and not get seen at all.

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Don't forget that today is Giving Tuesday....after several days of shopping madness (not by us or mom, but still), we hope that every one will stop and take a few moments today to remember to be thankful and give back to those less fortunate. There are so many great organizations out there helping people and animals that run on shoe string....give local and give what you can. Thanks!

Random Fridays

That house gets some action. It comes off the foundation occasionally, but there is usually at least one occupant if not more. Poor Tim never seems to get a chance to sleep in there by himself. Someone (in this case Tostada) will end up climbing in with him.

aww - sleepy Tostada recharging in the sun

she is feeling so much better

Hey look - tiny kittens. The gray is the boy Cortland and the black is his sister Gala. They are eating and howling and (mostly) using the litter box. Mom set up baby jail and they are allowed to run around in there a couple of times per day while mom is cleaning the tower or feeding them.

Their sister Fuji however isn't doing so well. Mom got home from work on Monday and Fuji was cold and howling. Mom ran to a nearby v-e-t and ended up at the 24 hour clinic. They are giving her fluids and she is eating some on her own, but her temperature and blood sugar seem to go up and down, so she will be at the vet until they get her stable.

As for the rest of us, we are taking a cue from Nashville and plan to snooze the weekend. Though there is rumor of a kitten heading to an offsite adoption center and adoption events all weekend, so we suspect some kittens won't be getting much peace this weekend.

kittens of all ages

Mom gets questions all the time about what ages of kittens we foster and what it is like. Since we have a variety right now, we thought we would discuss the differences.

Normally we get two variations of kittens: ones that are old enough to eat on their own but need time to get bigger before they can be adopted (think Almond and Acorn) or ones that are tiny but come with their mom (think Margarita and the fiesta kittens).

Of those two groups, both are actually pretty easy. Almond and Acorn had their own space while they were tested and got their first vaccines and mom got to know them. Once they were a little bigger, they started getting time out of the room to run around but still spend nights in the bathroom so they have access to kitten food without adult intruders and also to keep them out of the bedroom (the bedroom door is closed during the day).

Moms with kittens are pretty easy - keep mom fed well, the room warm and the litter box clean. Mom will show her kittens how to use the box and teach them to eat on their own as well. And again, once they are big enough, they will start to get some free time out to play.

At the moment, we also have two other age groups: tiny and teenager.

Our rescue will take bottle babies, but mom doesn't step up for those since she works full time and is about 20 minutes away from home (presuming traffic isn't bad). There just is no way to be able to feed kittens every 3 hours...plus she likes sleeping at night. However, she agreed to take the apple kittens knowing they were pretty close to eating on their own (their teeth were already coming in). Here's the thing....kittens at this age with no mom are MESSY!!!! No mom to clean up after them, they have to learn to eat on their own.... you get the idea. These three are eating on their own now, but food goes everywhere. Mom is doing a ton of laundry and they are getting a bath every few days. Hopefully within a few more days they will get the hang of everything.

Cortland managed to avoid a bath over the weekend

His sisters were not so lucky

They do seem to be eating better on their own but

are still pretty messy about eating...food goes everywhere

As for the teenagers - when we foster kittens we make a commitment to them. So when Tostada got sick and then Reno and Nashville got a cold, mom agreed to bring them back here. Teenage kittens (Tostada is about 7 months old, Reno and Nashville about 5 months old) are a whole different game. They are bigger, wild and crazy and generally on the move. Put three of them together and it is a PARTY!! With the other kittens in the bathroom and the tower, these guys are out 24/7. Which means running around at all hours and even sleeping on the bed.

Reno taking a snooze

Here is the interesting part....while it is fun to see the little ones grow and get ready for adoption, it is also fun to have the older ones come back and see how they have changed. Tostada has no use for cuddling, but then she never did. But she loves to play and now that she is feeling better is constantly on the lookout for something to entertain her - and she LOVES the other kittens and of course Uncle Tim. Nashville will come over looking for attention and even sleeps with mom at night. But Reno is the one that interests mom the most....he was the last TNR kitten picked up - and he hissed, growled and spit at mom all the way home and for the next couple of days. He was aloof until he went back to the adoption center - never seeking attention and a little shy. He was kind of that way when he came back....and then mom discovered that the kitten sleeping with her at night isn't Nashville, it is Reno!! He is all kinds of lovey and will roll over for scritches and purrs and licks mom's fingers.

Of all the age groups, the teenagers are the most fun, but mom says she gets tired just watching them. MOL It is fun to see the little ones with moms grow up from jelly bean size to ready to be adopted. Those bottle babies though - no thanks.  :)

Tostada update

Our tabby girl seems to be feeling much better. The head of the rescue had been ill and mom and the vet decided to see about other options while decisions are being put off. The vet and mom talked and decided to try a pretty high end antibiotic to see if that would help. Tostada did seem to do better on the prednisone, but the cough came back after she was done with the meds. So this time she was put on azithrymicin for 10 days. After about 4 days she seemed to be doing much better.

Early last week mom sent a picture and text to the vet. "She seems to be feeling better. We may have to get used to hearing 'I told you so'. Do you want to try more meds?" The vet responded and said 'I told you so' is always better than more surgery. They agreed to keep Tostada on the meds for another 10 days. So sometime next week she will have had 2 rounds. Mom is completely ruling out her final judgment until after Tostada has been OFF the meds for a week or so, but for now it is nice to see Tostada feeling better. She is much more active and having fun with the other kittens. She doesn't sleep with her head tilted. No more cough. And she stopped sleeping in front of the refrigerator.

Of course, now that she is feeling better, mom has to chase her around the house to give her the meds each night. MOL

For those who sent purrs and lots of positive thoughts....and those who donated to her medical care. THANK YOU!!!! Mom says that this rescue is great for going above and beyond helping cats that need help. But we can do more because you support us. 

video Wednesday

Acorn and Tostada

random Fridays

Tostada will be dropped off at 8am this morning for her surgery. We know mom will be a wreck most of the day. Not sure when it will be done, but we will put an update on our facebook page when we know more.

THANK YOU!!! for the purrs, prayers, positive thoughts and donations. Mom stopped by the rescue Tuesday night and the head rescue lady mentioned she had gotten some donations through the website (she was shocked by the Canada thing haha). She didn't know we were going to put it out there. Again - we know things are tight all over and we are SO grateful for those that are giving...and understand that not everyone can give. But keep up the purrs....right now that is most important for our girl.
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kinda a weird form of cat tetris

Nashville headed off to the adoption center on Wednesday night. He sure came out of his shell once his siblings left for the adoption center. He is much friendlier with mom. And boy is he a flirt!! He LOVES the ladies around here....and of course snuggling with Uncle Tim. He wasn't very happy about the car ride....or any part of being left. Until mom put him in a tower with other kittens - he curled up in a hammock with his new "girlfriend" Inge.  :)  (picture on our facebook page)  Hopefully he will go home with another kitten or cat.
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A Moo update:
The Moos are actually are not here at the moment. Mom went to Tennessee last weekend and before she left she noticed that Devon wasn't doing so well. Since mom was going to be gone, Devon and the Moos transferred back to the rescue to be watched over. Devon has mastitis but is still nursing the kittens. They have just started eating canned food on their own, so the plan for now is leave them where they are (being in a crate seems to help Devon remain calmer) and when the Moos are eating well on their own, they will come back to us and Devon will go back to her colony. Mom stopped to see them on Tuesday and Devon hissed (go figure), Mac was busy eating, and Mollie walked right up to mom to register a complaint about something.

However, since kitten season never ends, mom brought home two other kittens on Wednesday when she dropped off Nashville. A lady had a cat that had kittens (don't get us started) and the rescue agreed to help with the kittens ONLY if mom cat was spayed. The lady got it done and we got kittens. We aren't sure if they will be honorary Moos....probably, even though they are about 2 weeks older. They are both black and white so there is that. If that is the case, we are thinking 2 more "M" names. The one on the left is a short hair male and the one of the right is a fuzzy girl.

They were a little hissy and jumpy when mom first got them home, but settled in pretty quickly. By a couple of hours later, the girl was all playful with mom even. We suspect they will figure it out in no time.
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Adoption update:

In case you missed it on our facebook page, Anise, Topeka and Reno were all adopted last week or over the weekend. Topeka has a nice young girl to spoil her. Anise was adopted with another kitten (not one of ours) and mom didn't get any info on Reno. But we are glad it didn't take too long for them to find homes.
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Bee update:
Mom tried to kill them with no luck. She found a removal company and the guy came out yesterday and took the pot, the plant and the bees. There were a few bees left but the guy said a spray would kill them or they should die on their own in about 36 hours. The bee guy did say that these were yellow jackets and they are indeed evil bees and that no amount of spray was going to kill them due to the size of the hive and it's location in the pot. He said he would know more once he froze the whole thing to kill everything, but he estimated the whole hive contained about 3,000-5,000 bees. Gives mom the heebie jeebies just thinking about it.