Kitten Update

I don't know what's come over me lately. I just have no inclination to write, and I can't think of a reason. Every time I've thought of updating the blog, something else has happened, or I've found something else to do, or I've been too tired... The list goes on, but underneath it all, it's this lack of motivation to write. This often happens to me, but usually when I'm in the middle of penning a short story, or, more commonly, the night before an article is due and I know I have limited time. I do know it passes. I just hope you'll stick with me until it does.






I'll tell you right off that there aren't any photos this week. I've had a job offer which has necessitated an awful lot of really quick organising as they want me to start in 3 weeks. My photo snapping friend is also back at work which means he's only available on weekends, so this weekend I'll get him to take a load for me. No doubt you'll see them at the 10 week old stage.





Well, they've had their vaccinations. Vets and other breeders, knowing what a worry wart I am and no doubt wishing to avoid the numerous, panicked phone calls from me, warned me in advance. "They'll be quiet and withdrawn," they said. "They might not play or eat the same for a day," they said. "You'll enjoy the peace," they said. Really? Nobody told the kittens that! They slept for about 2 hours after bringing them back from the vets, but then going there is a big adventure for them, so no wonder they had to sleep off the excitement. After that though, they cleared a whole bowl of food, ran around like lunatics, and generally partied just as hard as any teenager whose parents have gone away for the weekend. Peace? This word means something, yes?





The Baby's weight gain over the last week has been awful again, and even with nutri-drop dosing, it's done little good. I was worried sick (yes, that's getting familiar now, isn't it?) about her when I took her to the vets on Tuesday. I was thinking heart problems, lung problems, liver shunt. They checked her though and said they could find no obvious problems. I took advice from other breeders and increased the variety of foods I set down... And I found her weakness. This baby absolutely loves Hills food. Typical really, as I've worked so hard to get Tia off that and eating something with a better meat content. I'm not giving in though. Even though there's a bowl of Hills down, there's also a bowl of Animonda, and I won't take it up even if she does prefer the Hills. I've caught her sneakily eating Animonda quite a few times though, so perhaps she just wanted the choice. Either way though, she's eating like a little piggie and piling on the weight again. It really doesn't take them long to catch up, does it?





They got wormed again this week too. Thankfully, this time they're big enough to use Milbamax which means no battle to get them to swallow icky liquid. I've noticed that it doesn't give them the same level of diarrhoea either. Thank goodness!





Well, Hamster has turned into an absolute sweety. This week, he's the only kitten who actively seeks cuddles. In fact, sometimes he'll be sleeping on the back of the sofa and start whimpering in his sleep. As soon as you talk to him, he wakes up just enough to stand, half stumbles half tumbles off the back of the sofa, drags himself into your lap and snuggles down to resume dreaming. He will quite happily come for cuddles when he isn't sleeping too, and now the Baby's following his example again.





She's such a happy, confident baby. She flitters around the place, usually chirping, tail stuck straight up in the air. And she gets so, so excited when it's time to greet someone. When I come out of the bedroom in the morning (for the sake of my sanity, they're not allowed in there to disrupt my sleep... yet), she runs like crazy to be the first at the door, then stands at my feet, that little tail quivering, purr rattling her whole body. The boys are always close behind, but she's the first to get attention thanks to her winning ways!





Porker has decided this week that laps are for girls, and he couldn't possibly ever dream of sitting in one. That is until either someone else is in it and he thinks they've got something better than him, or until he gets tired and wants a cushy, self-heating bed to lie in. He has also decided that purring is not on the agenda, although I've sneakily caught him at it when he's half asleep and forgets that he's supposed to be pretending to be too tough to purr. They really do go through stages, don't they? They've all been through what Porker is going through at the moment, and I'd be surprised if it lasted longer than a week!





And breaking news. the Baby has just come and plonked herself in my lap and settled down. Yes, you did read that right. The busy little bee made herself comfy, then clambered to lie against my chest, started purring... And stayed there, without moving, for a whole five minutes! Amazing! Of course, the boys have mastered the staying still skill weeks ago, but for her, there was always something more interesting, a spot on the floor that needed investigating right now, a toy to play with that she hadn't seen in, oh, a second, that she had to beat up right now! It was always right now with her, so this is a milestone! And she's just done it again. Amazing!





The pen is totally gone now. It stayed up as long as it did just in case the wormer gave them the runs so bad that they had to go back in there until it had worn off, but when I saw they were still managing to make it to the trays, or almost, I knew there was no need for it. So down it came. Tia has thus reclaimed her scratching post as her own, as they can't jump that high on their own yet, and were using the pen to climb onto before stealing her post as a sleeping spot. She seems grateful to have a peaceful area back all to herself! The kittens now all sleep on the back of the sofa. It's terribly nice to lean your head back, have one of them cuddle it while you get stereo purring from either side. Tia will sometimes join them up there too.





I've left her without her jacket this week just to see how things go. I've also allowed kittens to suckle when and where they want. Thankfully, her milk isn't coming back in in great supply, even though when they suckle, they do it hard!





They've also now been given access to the hall which they love. Firstly, there's more room for all their toys, and secondly it means that they have a nice long stretch to run up and down, stalk each other, and generally create mischief. They move so fast now. I hadn't got the full experience of a term that so many cat owners use, Thundering Herd of Elephants, until these kittens showed me how it goes. It's crazy to here the noise one mum cat and three tiny bodies can generate when they run!





Hmmm, what else to tell you. I think that's about it really. I feel like I've talked for ages! Hope it was worth the weight, and I promise, pictures will come as soon as they've been taken. As usual, here are their weights. Remember that these are from Monday, just for consistency's sake.





The Baby: 833 grams Hamster: 1032 grams (he gained loads!)
Porker: 1114 grams (Well, he's called Porker for a reason!)