Seven Weeks Old!

Well, they're seven weeks old now, and boy are they making the most of it!

They've been running around like lunatics the last few days, sleeping where they fall, playing as hard as they sleep, and then sleeping some more. A friend mentioned today that I must have to be quite careful with the kitten herd under foot, and boy is she right. I sent her a response in an email which she's told me she found so funny that I must post, so I'll oblige!

Stalking on the carpet

Treading lightly is an understatement! I've developed an excellent Kitten Shuffle. It involves walking very slowly, saying "move, move, move" over and over again (Tia responds to that and I'm hoping they'll pick up on it and do it too), never picking your feet up from the carpet, stopping frequently to cuddle and kiss the one you've just barely nudged with your toe on the way past just in case you frightened it, stopping again to disengage the claws of another who thinks the top of your foot makes the ultimate transportation device, then just giving up and collapsing on the floor with them because the third one's crying because they didn't get any attention and the other two did! Meanwhile, the one you're cuddling is chewing on your earlobe and the one on your foot is now on your knee and shrieking because it doesn't know how it got inside the leg of your jeans, nor how to get out again! Then mum comes to see what's the matter, and she needs reassuring too... And all that just to get a drink of water!

They're incredibly cute, even if they are little ratbags sometimes. Hamster won't purr any more, and beats me up, bites me, claws my face when I rub it on his belly (I'm doing this to all of them so that if they go to little children, there's never a danger that the cat will panic and claw at their faces). The other two love this. Porker curls his body around my face, and the Baby, when she's not too excited, puts her two paws on my nose and just lets me get on with it. She beats everyone up and has to be regularly evicted from the sofa because she's hassling the other two when they're trying to sleep mind you, so she's no angel, but she's always the first to come for a cuddle.

Lap Wars!

Lap Hog

She's so funny though, and almost painfully cute. Last night she was chirrupping away to herself. She's the only one who does this actually, and has done since she was about three and a half weeks old. The others just meow and cry. Anyway, she was running around chirrupping and obviously very pleased about something, so I got down on the floor to share her achievement. It took me a while to work out what she'd done, but it turns out that she loves pipe cleaners. I was sent these by another friend in a big toy exchange package from here in the UK to America, and Tia loved them too. The Baby had found one that I'd put out for the kittens, and, as I watched, she snatched it off the floor, held it in her mouth and did a lap of honour of the living room, still chirping away. Back she came and dropped it in front of me, then waited, obviously expecting something to happen. Dutifully, I made the pipe cleaner wiggle, and as soon as it did, she was off again. She moves so quickly, and her pouncing is incredibly accurate. I have a Da Bird for them as well which I'm introducing them too, and she can now jump from the floor to the sofa to catch it. She's a clever little chicken! She's so small though that her chirp sounds more like the chirp of a bat then a cat noise! Honestly, imagine a sleepy, content bat and that's the noise! Laughing yet? I do every time I hear it.


Porker is the real lap cat this week. He wants to sleep on me or near me and just loves his grooming and his fuss time. He's mostly stopped biting now, which is more than I can say for the other two! I thought the Baby had this sorted, but she showed me she hadn't today. All of them still get a tap on the nose when they do it, but Hamster's being the most persistent with not giving up. He's also still not purring, although JP, the resident friend, says that he's had him purring for him. Perhaps he's just a man's cat. All good things come to those who wait though, right?

They all went to the vets today for their first worming. I worm with Panacur, but to measure and administer the liquid when you can't see what you're doing is almost impossible. I didn't even try it. Everyone needs to turn into an octopus to hold a squirming kitten, pull up the right amount of liquid in the syringe, pry unwilling jaws apart, squirt it in, disengage the claws from your arm, rub the kitten's throat until it swallows etc, but when you need another few to feel where the bottle is, measure accurately, locate the kitten's mouth... Well, even the thought of the carnage that would have caused makes my blood run cold. I chickened out and thought I'd ask my lovely vet to do it instead, and I'm glad I did! Even though they're tiny, it took the two of us to hold and medicate them. They all had a fine time though having cuddles from the vet and her nurses, but weren't too thrilled with the idea of travelling in a carrier to get to and from the place. Tia went too as she needed a worming, so they're all done. I'm just waiting for the diarrhoea to start now. They always get runny bums when they're wormed, but so far mine have been poo free. They've been quite sleepy today though. Let's hope they have the runs when they're locked in the pen overnight, so that my poor carpet doesn't have to suffer!

Hanging with Tia

They got introduced to a new concept today; the covered litter tray. I wouldn't have done this for another few weeks yet, but the problem is that Tia, in her usual "I'm gonna be difficult" style, has chosen to use not the adult sized tray I put out for her, but the smallest kitten tray. She likes to pee right in the corners too, but when she tries to do this in such a small tray, her bum hangs over the edge and she misses. Luckily, I'd put incontinence pads down around the trays just in case the babies had an accident (they always seem to do this right next to the tray), so it didn't get as far as the carpet. Still, something had to be done.

Cube wretsling

It was the tray they used least, so I wasn't too worried about removing it for something they potentially weren't going to be able to use. My covered trays are deep, so it's quite difficult for them to climb in. Still, when I put them in one by one, they seemed willing enough, and thanks to the depth of the litter inside, they could get out easily. So I folded a towel to give them a step up, and they loved it! It's been an adventure for about the last hour to go in there, have a dig around, come out again, run around like a mad thing, then race each other to see who can be the first back in again. Of course, Tia has now started using the adult sized tray in the other corner. Typical, eh? I don't mind though, and the covered tray will stay. The sooner they use those ones, the better. I'm going to try and find some low entry covered ones to use instead, and I think I'll use them from the start with the next litter. The open ones are so, so messy, and terribly stinky too!

I've just said not so long ago that Hamster's not much of a cuddler this week, so guess who's just come up and snuggled right into my arm? Yep, that's right. Sometimes, I love sod's law!

Face washing

I've got pictures for you too! Again, I'm relying on my usual friend to post them, but I know she will. The problem was with getting them, that's where the hold up was. you should have them later on today, so please do check back! I'm hoping she'll post some five week ones as well as some seven week ones.

As usual, I'll give you their weights. I'll give you them as of last night just for the sake of continuity!


The Baby: 674
Hamster: 770
Porker:866
The Baby and Porker didn't quite gain their 100 grams for this week, but he doesn't need to as much as she does. I wish she wasn't so much smaller than the other two! Oh well, just gives me something else to worry about, right?

(note from the photo-adder:  More pics at Tia's blog, Cuddles & Catnip!  There will be better captions as soon as I get straightened out which kit is who, stay tuned...)

Day 48

I did think about not updating today, because if I do, I'll have very little to tell you tomorrow, and I'll definitely update then because they'll be a whole seven weeks old! Isn't that amazing? Doesn't seem like yesterday when I was telling you they were six weeks, and doesn't seem like a minute before that that I was whining and complaining about all my sleepless nights trying to get Hamster to suckle. Time flies, and they develop so quickly.





There's so many things to tell you about. The Kitten Attract litter is doing reasonably well. There were a couple of accidents in the pen, but not too many, and none since I changed the inco pads again. It's probably my fault. I hadn't needed to change them for a few days thanks to the litter, so I guess their little feet tracked eaux the poo from the tray and onto the pads. Natural then that they should poo there. I'm starting to think that it's associative too, as the poo is always in the same places. They've never had an accident while out, she says with crossed fingers, or if they have, they're hiding it so well that I can't find it. Anything is possible though, and I haven't seen too much usage of the outside litter trays. Only time will tell I suppose.





They've been coming out more and more frequently. Yesterday they spent half a day out, and as they coped well with it, today they've been out since this morning, and won't go back in until tonight. They're very sociable, or they are with me anyway. JP, a friend who's spent a fair bit of the summer here, is a nice guy to play with, but they purr more readily for me than for him, and will fall asleep more quickly on me too. It's a nice feeling to know that after all my hard work I'm flavour of the month!





The Baby did a wonderful thing yesterday. For the first time, she actually jumped on me for attention! Previously she'd climb, but yesterday she launched herself at my leg, hung on and squeaked until I picked her up. As soon as my hands were on her, she was all purrs and wiggles. She's a very busy little person, and even when she's loving on you, she rarely sits still for more than a tenth of a second! I've started to stop touching her as soon as she walks away from me now though, and she's getting it. Today she thought about walking away, then changed her mind and crawled onto my shoulder instead. The mood was somewhat spoiled when she attacked my earlobe, but it's the thought that counts, right?





Porker has started a trend which seems to have gone down very well in this house. Yesterday, he sat down, thought long and hard about it, then jumped straight onto the top edge of the sofa and climbed up. Then he proceeded to make himself comfortable and go for a snooze while his sillier brother and sister contented themselves with the less comfy carpet. However, it didn't take them long to realise he was missing, and once they did, they had to find out where he was. The Baby was next up, closely followed by Hamster who needed a little bit of help. They were so proud of themselves when they got there! All three decided to have a celebratory nap in the human's lap. Said human was very pleased with the arrangement until I realised that I had been sitting there for two hours barely moving, and I had things to do!





Hamster had his turn at being the leader too. He climbed right to the top of my largest scratching post. This is about 3 ft high, so when he looked down from the very top, which he'd gotten to surprisingly quickly actually, it's no wonder he felt a little panicked! He came down almost as quickly as he went up, and none of them have tried it again.





Where one door opens, another one closes. yesterday, the opening was with Porker. Somehow it clicked with him that humans are nice things that give nice tickles and tummy rubs, and that really, it'd be a good idea to purr for them. He's getting as good as the Baby now! Only problem is that Hamster has taken that as his cue to stop altogether. I haven't heard a rumble from him in days. Oh well, all in due time I suppose. Can I be blamed for being impatient? Hamster did snuggle an awful lot yesterday after he'd been groomed. It was perhaps one of the tenderest moments I've had with these kittens so far. I'd just finished doing his tummy and he was quite sleepy. I put him up by my shoulder, and he spread his paws, put the two front ones around my neck, snuggled his head in against my skin and hung on. He stayed like that for minute after minute, as calm and quiet as you like, just enjoying the closeness. Today, mind you, he fought the brush tooth and nail. He's unpredictable!





Tia's milk seems to have totally dried up thanks to the Urtica. Kits are still keen to feed, and because I don't want it to start straight back in again, I've been putting a soft cat jacket on her during the day so that they can't feed. They have a comfort suckle two or three times a day, but that's about it. This way, she can still socialise with them, sleep with them and cuddle them. They don't seem overly fussed that they can't suckle.





They're all eating from a bowl now, although I haven't seen them eat much since they've been out either. I think I'll put off weighing them until tomorrow so that I don't worry myself. They're all happy, healthy and absolutely full of beans, so I know there's nothing wrong with them, and I don't need the extra anxiety!





Right,that's about it for now. I'll tell you more tomorrow!

Day 46 and Tia Update

Well, it seems as though things are conspiring against me to make sure that I don't update this every day, or every other day even. I'm just so, so busy lately that I never seem to have the time to sit down and write. Last night, the first peace I got was at about half 12 at night, and by that point, my eyes needed match sticks to prop them open.






Ok, so what to tell. Litter training continues to be a problem. They will wee in there consistently, thank goodness, but pooing is another matter entirely. One of them is going in there just fine, perhaps two, actually, but someone would still prefer to poo on the pen floor. Thankfully, nobody has done this while out. I did find a poo right beside the litter tray, but it was on an inco pad, so it didn't matter all that much. I went out yesterday and bought some Kitten Attract litter from Pets at Home on the recommendation of other breeders. They say that this sorts all of their problems out if they have stubborn kits, so let's hope the same is true for mine. I haven't done poo check yet this morning, so I live in hope... For another 20 minutes.





They still tend to sit down when they use the tray. This results in, to put it in a straightforward way, clingons on the starboard bow. Nobody likes having them removed or indeed removing them. I've been tempted on more than one occasion to shave their bums, I can tell you! Hopefully they'll get the hang of it soon, but when, I don't know.





Tia has been kept mostly separate from them until yesterday. Kittens were desperate to feed and she was in a right tizz as she wanted to nurse them. I spoke to the vet, a different one this time, who said that it would be fine for them to nurse a few times a day. I couldn't believe my luck when Hamster latched onto the nipple that was the most affected. Tia was too busy with watching the other two as they muscled in for a drink too, so didn't notice until he was well and truly going, or else she'd have kicked him off. It must have only been sore for her for the first few minutes though, because after that, she allowed him to nurse for a full 5-10 minutes. She got very uncomfortable towards the end, but I got down with her and coaxed her to stay still. I could see he was draining it, and indeed he did. I kept her food intake low yesterday, and she didn't balloon again. Kits have been allowed to feed once since then for their comfort's sake, and will probably do so again this morning when they come out.





Yesterday was the first day that all three ate together when I put the food in. Previously, they had to be shown where the dish was, or would simply find it by ailessly wandering that way one by one, but yesterday they very definitely came for food. It was nice to see! Separating them has definitely sped up the weaning process.





I managed to buy a card reader for the computer yesterday. This means that now, when pictures are taken, I can actually get them onto the computer and upload them which means you get to see them! I hate depending on others for picture taking like this. It never seems to happen often enough, and it drives me mad. I don't often dwell on my blindness as a disablement, but at times like that, I can't help but get cross about it. If I had my way, I'd have pictures of them every day for you to see. I'm going to hassle to get some taken today, so we'll see what happens. I can't hold someone to randsome, I guess, no matter how much I really want to to get the photos!





Oh, Porker purred for the first time yesterday! It wasn't for long at all, but he did it! I'd picked him up after a mad half hour, Ok, probably more like two hours, running round the living room and attacking anything that moved, or didn't, and he just flopped on me and purred. They're all much more cuddly after they've run around a bit. The Baby is the only one who will actively seek a cuddle. If I get down on the floor with her after she's run around, she'll climb on me and settle down for a purr. I'm glad she's staying. I think I'd have a hard time letting go if she wasn't.





That's it for now I think. I'll post again as soon as I have pictures!

Up to Day 38

The best intentions are just that; intentions. I intended to hoover the house yesterday, friend did it instead. I had planned to make a few nice desserts, the ingredients are still in the cupboard. I had been intending to update my blog, I didn't. I think I'm going to have to do these updates in the mornings if i'm to do them regularly at all. Previously, I've done them at night so that I can give you a flavour of what's happened that day, but for the past few nights, I just haven't had the time. Not once since my last update have I been to bed before midnight for various reasons, and when you have a biological clock that wakes you up at 8 AM whether you've just gone to bed or not, then when it gets past 12, you want to get to sleep pretty sharpish. Last night I had the intentions again, was even supposed to make phone calls, but instead I got taken to the cinema, and the movie didn't let out till almost 11. I then had to walk home, feed cats, order cat food, feed cats again as mum had cleared the plate, dash off a few emails, feed cats for a third time as mum had obviously decided to make a bid at the world record for most cat food eaten in two hours to stop babies having any, put a wash on... The list goes on. I went to bed at 1 this morning and was so tired that I doubt I could have even told you my own name, let alone put together a coherent blog post.





So, what to tell you? Well, the amount of poo on the pen floor is decreasing by the day. I took the little ramp away from the litter tray that they'd been using to climb in and out, and for some reason, rather than hindering, this has really helped the litter training process. They still get mucky bums, Porker in particular, but they're gradually learning that when you poo, it's not necessarily a good idea to sit down and try to do it, because 1, it gets all over you and either you leave it not feeling very nice or you have to have a go at cleaning it off, and 2, if you don't clean it off, the big evil monster woman will come along and rub you with a baby wipe, and if that doesn't work, will actually bath you!





Solids continue to be an up and down process. They will all go to the dish now on their own except when mum is around. I had thought that Tia's milk was drying up nicely, but last night, she was so full that I could have sworn she had mastitis. I actually thought she did, so put a kitten on the affected teat to drain the milk. The best way to get rid of mastitis is to express the milk, and the best form of that is a hungry kitten. When she came out about ten minutes later, the swelling was gone. Cats will only produce milk in relation to the demand, so I'm presuming that the little piggies are feeding from her all night long which is why she's still producing so much. I don't really know whether I should start trying to dry her up or just leave them to it. At the moment, I'm keeping them from suckling all day long, and they are eaing the solids quite happily, so maybe I'll just leave things as they are.





The Baby has been the last to break 500 grams, but she did it yesterday. She's so, so small compared to the other two though, and feels terribly light. There's times when I wonder if I wasn't mixing her up with Hamster in those early stages you know. I put collars on hem all about a week ago, just a very thin, soft piece of elastic with a few beads on so that I could tell who was who. It's helped enormously!





They'll be coming out of that pen soon, whether I like it or not. A few days ago, they learned to climb right to the top of the mesh, and Porker actually managed to scramble over the top; something I'd not have thought was possible if I hadn't been there to see it myself. That pen is over 2.5 ft high and he's only a tiny little thing! I rearranged things so that the mesh now starts from the bottom and there's a solid pannel on top and that seems to have controlled the hoard for now. It won't be long though. Hamster can now jump, yep, you read right, jump to the very top of the mesh. A few more days and they'll be over, so my big push this week is litter training and eating from a bowl rather than a saucer. It's also kitten proofing my house!





We've taken them out a couple of times, and I tell you something, they run riot. In about 0.1 seconds, my living room degenerates into kittens running madly in three different directions, mum trying to round them all up and then lying on her side, offering them her teats and screaming at them to come and have a drink (of course, this is much less effective than it is in the pen, as hungry little piggies would rather go and reek havoc elsewhere), three people desperately trying to keep up with kittens and colliding with each other in the process, and desperate shouts of "No, not under the sofa!/ no, not under the TV cabinet!/No, no, no, help!" They love those forays into the great unknown though, and it's a teller how well socialised they've been, as they fear nothing. Hmmm, perhaps I've done too good a job?





All three now scream to be picked up when I come in first thing in the morning, and all three climb the mesh like little monkeys until you give in. I've had to take them all out at once now, because if I leave any behind, they shriek at the injustice so much that mum comes flying to see who's torturing the kids. It's odd though. The Baby is the only one who purrs consistently, and even then, only for a few seconds before she's off doing something else. She's a very busy little person, and is the most active out of the lot of them. I did hear Hamster purr under his breath this morning, so I have hope, but Porker, whilst being the cuddliest, and maybe the most placid, shows no signs of it yet.





This week is also the week of learning not to bite, and although it's going well, the babies aren't enjoying it one little bit. I permitted gentle nibbling when they were exploring the world with their mouths, when hands were big scary things that needed to be rationalised, when they were just learning to play. Now that their teeth are in though, they don't just nibble. They grab hold with paws and bite... hard. None has drawn blood, but that's still behaviour that I'm not willing to tolerate, and the habit needs to be broken young. Each time someone bites, they get a tap on the nose, or, if you're Porker/Hamster, several taps until you let go of the finger that certainly isn't food! The baby, as usual, has caught on pretty quickly, and although she'll test her luck with a bite now and then, she will mostly check herself just as her teeth are about to sink in, and will give you a head bump instead. And I've just been interrupted by her. I picked mum up for a cuddle, and as soon as she heard me talking, she screamed so much that mum went running as usual. As soon as I picked her up, she started purring like a motorboat! These babies are such time wasters, really they are. I've been up for an hour already and I've got nothing done!





They've got lots of toys in their pen now that they're mostly done pooing on the floor. Ping pong balls have always been there because they can be disinfected and washed, but now they have a furry mouse that chirps like a bird when touched (the irony, right?), a rope mouse that they can get really rough on, a ball with feathers sticking out of it, a crinkle ball and a ribbon hanging down from the top that can be batted. I also introduced them to dangler toys yesterday as they were watching Tia play with them and seemed fascinated. I had a Da Bird for Tia, well, a cheaper version which had fallen apart, but I kept a feather back and taped it onto the string. This was the perfect size for fraidy cat kittens, and after a bit of teasing and, yes, I admit it, judicious poking and tummy tickling with said feather, the chase was on. Nobody, but nobody, not even a feather, gets to touch their tummies unmolested, and after this ultimate insult, they vowed to kill the offender and kill it good. At one point, there was one on the feather itself, one on the shaft, and another on the string... I think they won!





I ran out of Bozita, so they've been changed to Animonda until I can get some more. It's not flavour of the month. They eat it, but aren't too enthusiastic about it. I cheated last night too. Normally, Tia cleans their plate as soon as I go to bed which means that they're starving first thing in the morning, and is probably why they're suckling so much. Last night though,I put a full tin of pilchards in a separate bowl in there for her. She gets these occasionally, and absolutely loves them. Needless to say, she didn't bother with boring old kitten food. I even caught one of the babies having a go at the fish, so it was a hit!





I'm still toying with pedigree names. They will need to be registered soon, so I need to settle on something pretty sharpish. I'm thinking Moonspun Isntshe Lovely for my girl, but not sure about it as it's a bit cliche. What do you all think? And any suggestions for the boys would be super too!





That's about it, I think. Sorry it's been so long in coming, and also sorry there still aren't any pictures, but I'm still waiting for them to be given to me. I hate these delays!

Five Weeks Old!

Well, they're five weeks old today, and I don't know where the time has gone to. Most of the last five weeks have passed in a blurr thanks to hardly any sleep, and demanding babies. However, things are looking up!






you remember my last post all about poo? Well, fingers crossed, but I haven't had any poo incidents either yesterday or today! Little girl was definitely the culprit, but she seems to have sorted things out. of course, as soon as I say that, she's going to have the runs all over the place. I've changed their diet too though which may be helping. They came off nature's Menu and went onto Bozita instead. If you don't already feed this, you should try it. The Pate variety is excellent for weaning kittens! Porker is putting on so, so much weight, and looks very fat and healthy, as do the others. I had someone over to look at them yesterday, and she commented that they were massive for five weeks old! I think it's the good food they've had. A lot of breeders will try and cut costs by feeding softened dry food etc, and I can understand it, as all wet food is very expensive, but I think it definitely shows in the size of the kittens. Bozita is a BARF diet, and since they've been on it, their poos have become less smelly, and the Baby has toiletted appropriately!





They learn so quick, these kittens. They seem to learn it all in the night as well. yesterday, the Baby learned how to jump, and although she still hasn't mastered it and appears totally surprised every time she does it, she's teaching the others too! They've all been out for short periods of supervised play on the carpet, and she's so quick already that she even outruns mum when Tia goes to bring her back. I think she's going to be an absolute handful.





All three of them have learned to climb the mesh at the front of the pen, and are really in danger of coming out over the top, Hamster in particular. he gets the highest, but all three scream to be taken out and, if not cuddled, then allowed to explore. The Baby loves a stroke, but still isn't purring consistently. Porker will cuddle with you and then wrestle you into submission when he's had enough. Hamster is the best snuggler, but only when he's in the mood. If he wants to play, nothing will persuade him to have love instead, although in fairness, that's true for all of them.





I've seen all three go to the dish by themselves now and eat, although I'll give them a little helping hand and a prod in the right direction when I'm around during the day. Porker, in typical Porker fashion, is gaining the most. He's increased his lead now to a solid 100 grams. This food really is amazing though.





I left them alone for the first time last night. I kept them in the pen in the living room, and I went to bed all alone. I want Tia to stay away from them a little bit now, because the longer she's not with them, the less the demand on her milk supply and consequently, the less she'll produce. It also makes the kittens hungry and forces them to search out the solids dish. Now those who have been following me all along will remember that Tia is my shadow. I can't move without her with me, and had to shift the kittens into the bedroom when I went just so that she'd continue to feed them through the night. So my plan of going to bed was fool proof, right? She'd come with me and kits would fend for themselves. Wrong. She came into my room only twice; once to use the litterbox, and a second time to throw up on my carpet. I found the latter by stepping in it. I have to say that I felt quite lonely last night with no furries for company, and it was very, very strange sleeping without Tia around. I hope her personality changes don't persist, as she's much less cuddly now than before she had the babies.





When I got up this morning, all were happy and bouncing around. They've been playing a lot today, but unfortunately, pictures weren't taken. I've been faithfully promised that they will be tomorrow though, so watch this space!





As usual, I'll finish off this post with their weights so that you can see the progress for yourself. This week, they all have an 8 in them somewhere!





The Baby: 448 grams. As you can see, she hasn't gained much, but this is normal when transitioning to solids. The slight weight loss and the hunger drives them to search out and eat the food. She's gained 16 grams in the last day though.
Hamster: 488 grams.
Porker: 588 grams. What a little fatty he is! he's all muscle though.





Oh, just as a last thing, I've been featured today in The Cat's Whiskers
a blog written by a breeder friend of mine. It's got a lot of useful information in, so you really should go and have a look! Please do comment as well, as I'm sure she'd love to hear from you!

Day 31: Lots of Firsts!

Well, over the last few days, there have been lots of firsts! I can't remember exactly how many days ago it was when I last updated and I'm too tired to go back and read, so sorry if I tell you something more than once!






As you know, Hamster was the first to poo, but when I checked the bedding last night, I found the first real, solid poo. Who did it I don't know, but whoever did produced a lot for such a wee kitten! They've all been going in the tray to do wees though. It's sweet in a weird sort of way when you see the size of their teeny tiny clumps compared to Tia's massive ones. They haven't mastered pooping in there yet, or if they have, I haven't found it. But the litter tray has become a fun place to play and romp and beat each other up!





Today there were quite a few new things. It started this morning with the Baby. I've taken the bedding out of the day pen and just left a bedded bit at the front for them to snuggle up in. This was because when they were fighting, they were throwing the bedding around the place, knocking it into the water bowl, burying the food dish, getting stuck underneath it. They also couldn't manage to play with the ping pong balls I put in there for them because they wouldn't roll on the bedding. They're much steadier on their feet on the solid floor, and the ball rolls better. When I put them all in there this morning, the Baby ran around like a mad thing. She dived into the litter tray, then threw herself out of it again... Right on top of the ball! What a shock she got when it rolled away and dumped her onto her little fat belly on the floor. This simply wasn't on, so she chased it, then beat it into submission with a paw. Except that it didn't submit. it moved again, so she had to run after it and whap it a second time. This is the first time I've witnessed toy play with this litter.





Once this was done, I was interesting again, and she came running to the front and squeaking. When she climbed the bars and screamed at me, I knew she wanted a cuddle. But as I picked her up, she purred a little! Again, it didn't last long, but this is the first time any of them have purred when anywhere but their safe, cosy bed. She kept it up for a good few seconds too, and groomed me like mad when she was done. She's also pretty much stopped biting when she's playing with me now. She'll bat my finger with her paws, but when she grabs hold with both and drags it in towards her belly, it's almost like she checks herself before biting, then just licks instead.





They're all learning to put up with kisses. The boys fight it. Well, they're boys, so that's understandable, right? the Baby just puts her face up, then snuggles it against mine for a second. Don't worry. I don't kiss my cats on the lips! Too grosse, even for me! But when that little face lifts, it's awfully cute. I'm so glad that I know she's staying, because I think it would be very hard to let go of this one if she wasn't.





Their weights have been all over the place recently. I know it's time that they should begin to wean, but they just aren't interested in food since Porker's choking episode. Today though, myself and JP, a friend of mine, took them out of the pen one by one so that they wouldn't have the distraction of others to contend with. Surprisingly, the Baby wasn't the one with the first in this department. Porker was the quickest to catch on when I put a saucer of fresh, stinky food in front of him. After about five minutes of coaxing, his face was in the dish and he was sucking up that food like a little piggy! Only problem is that he almost needs to be held down when at the dish. He still thinks he's suckling, and for him, he's used to fighting others off. his strength was in pushing up tall so that the others couldn't climb on top of him, but when he does this at the dish, he loses where his food is and has to be guided back. Once he got started though, he seemed to love it! He hasn't been back to the dish on his own though.





Hamster was the next quickest. JP started him off, and he did have a small go at the dish, but he preferred just to eat straight from his fingers. The Baby was the hardest. She point blank refused anything, even a lick of food. In fact, she ran away from it like it was something horrible! She's the one I'm most worried about, as her weight is all over the place, so I opened her mouth against her will, and slipped my finger in at the side where, even to push it out, she had to lick it. I knew that that first lick was all it would take, and I was right. As soon as she got a taste, she was off, but she too wouldn't eat from the dish. She wanted nothing to do with it, and in fact, it seemed to scare her. Whenever I sneaked her closer to it while she was licking and wouldn't noticed, she'd lift her head, look down, then scuttled backwards as though it was chasing her. She was only happy when her back was pressed up against my leg.





It's important that they wean soon for their own health. Tia just doesn't have the milk supply any more, and even with a dose of urtica last night, it hasn't stayed flowing. She fed them last night, but today they're back to how they were before; feeding for only short periods, disinterested even when she's in there with them. I'm going to give it another day or two, and then I'll separate Tia from them for a good few hours and feed them the food. This speeds weaning considerably, and provided the separation is only short-term, will not cause any lasting damage. If they were still gaining weight then I'd not worry, but as they aren't, they need to move onto solids whether they want to or not!





So as you can see, day 31 has been quite an eventful one! I wonder what's around the corner for tomorrow?





In closing, I'd like to answer questions left on a comment. Kittens will poo from the moment they're born, but they will only do this when mum stimulates them by licking the lower belly and bum areas. By about four weeks, they've developed the muscle control to do this on their own. This is the time that breeders will normally notice their first poo piles in the bedding, and it's then when the fun of litter training starts. Thankfully, mine have been very easy so far!





They're confined to the pen until they are totally continent in the tray, and steady on their feet. The pen provides a safe area for them to romp, play and learn about staying on all four feet, and it also provides a small, contained place so that they can learn to remember where the tray is, and use it! Cats are clean animals, so do not like to poo in the bedding. Kittens, even when they do it in the bedding, will do it at the edges of the cage and try and hide it. They will eventually learn that the tray is the correct place though. Cats originally came from thedessert, so when they find a place where they can dig, instinct takes over and says, "Hey, this is sort of like sand, and you can bury poo in sand". They will come out of the pen only when they are all the way convinced that it's a good idea to pee and poo in the tray.





I'm not going to keep all of the kittens, no. The little girl is definitely staying, and if one of the boys turns out to be an extreme cuddler, then he'll probably stay too, but otherwise, the two boys will be sold. here, it's a given that the kits will be registered before sale. Paperwork is held back until proof of neutering is sent to the breeder, but under the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy rules, cats need to be declared or registered before selling. If a cat isn't registered, then the new owner can put them on the register themselves, and could place them on the active, which means they could be used for breeding. That's something I don't want to happen without my knowledge, as breeding cats need to be of outstanding quality to be considered for this.

Day 27, Less Than Happy

Even if I'd had the time yesterday, which I really didn't, I don't think I could have brought myself to write anything. I was too wrung out, too upset, feeling too guilty and exhausted and not up to the task any more that it wouldn't have been a good post.






I've learned a few hard lessons over the last few days which I'm going to share with you. Warning, this post is not a happy one, but it does have a semi happy ending, so do bear with me!





It started on Friday when my mum and the family friend, hereafter called FF, came to see the kittens and stay overnight. During this period of their lives, it is important that kits are socialised extensively with humans to ensure that they are comfortable and unafraid when around them. As long as people take propper precautions, i.e, hand washing, and arriving in clothes which haven't been exposed to any other animals, then I'm fine with them being handled. When my mum and FF arrived, I instructed them on the safe way to hold kittens, then passed them each a very sleepy, placid baby. My mum did fine with Porker until he started to wriggle, but she told me as soon as she didn't feel confident any more and I was able to take him back. However, FF wasn't so good. Hamster wriggled out of his hands and fell from his chest to the sofa. As if that wasn't bad enough, and really, it wasn't as the sofa's soft, he slipped off the edge of that and fell to the floor. I thank god that I have very thick carpets all through this house. He had a soft landing, and didn't even squeak when he did land. Of course, I checked him over straight away. He was just fine. Moving around, licking my finger, cuddling up to my hand. I was livig though. It's not hard to hold a kitten. You just keep them in your hands all the time and you can't drop them. I carry all three at once when I move them from bedroom to living room and back, and never have I dropped one. I didn't say much. The poor guy was so shocked himself that he was speechless, but I didn't offer him another chance to hold a kitten. So, the first lesson I've learned is that people will sit on the floor when handling kittens at this age. They will also hold them intheir hands and not do things like put them against their chests.





The next day I was pretty tired. As usual, the cats had got me up quite a few times throughout the night, so sleep is still a luxury that I don't have much of. I was leaving for town with my mum and FF, but thought I'd feed Tia first. While waiting for the other two to be ready to go, I noticed that Porker was very interested in Tia's food. I'd been told by another breeder that kittens should be Ok with soft, small chunks of meat, as even at this age, they have teeth, so when he went to Tia's chunk bowl, I wasn't too worried. I watched as he ate a chunk, feeling proud that he had managed it when the others only wanted patae, then I did an awful lot more than watch as he began to choke and gag, and finally stopped breathing.





I can honestly say that I've treated human patients in cardiac arrest with less panic than I felt. I've resussed more calmly, but as I snatched up that little body, my brain just started screaming! I think I yelled at my mum and FF to phone the vet, but I really can't remember. I held Porker upside down and tapped him until, thank goodness, the food came back out. But now there was a new worry. What if he'd aspirated some of it and it was still in his lungs?





Immediately, I dosed him with glucose to stop him going into shock, then rang the vet in a right old panic. She commended me for what I'd done. I'd even listened to his chest and was able to tell her that breathing sounds were increased. She said I could bring him if I liked, but that she'd be able to do no more for him than I already had. I was to watch him until Monday, and if he went downhill, I was to get him in straight away.





For the rest of yesterday and all last night, I watched. His meow sounded wrong, bubbly almost. His chest sounded louder than it should have done. But he wasn't lethargic, and he certainly wasn't going without food. As usual, he was the most greedy at the milk bar.





This morning, his meow still sounded almost as though he had a sore throat, but this evening, he beat up his sister so thoroughly that she had to actually be rescued, so he can't be feeling that bad. His weight gain is still super too. So, second lesson: No matter what others say, always go with your gut instinct. Kittens should never be given chunks until they are much older and know how to chew.





Speaking of fighting, it's like they've all learned to do this overnight. When I put them to bed on Friday, they were sweet, gentle little things, but when they woke up yesterday, they seemed to have learned in a few short hours how to bite, and how to do it good. Yesterday evening they discovered how fun it was to bite and wrestle with each other, and from then on, it was carnage. I've taken the bed area out of the pens today too, because they've also learned to explore, well, the Baby and Porker have. I came back today to find Hamster on his own in the bed, crying and crying for mum who was happily lying in the back of the pen feeding the other two. To level the playing field a bit, I took the pen out, and they now happily follow each other around. They've started climbing the mesh at the front of the cage now, and whenever I go over, one or more can be found with front paws on the bars, mouths open as they scream for me to pick them up. The Baby even purred today when I was stroking her, and she knew it was me too, because she looked! The purring lasted only for about half a minute, and it was broken in between, but this is major progress.





Such a lot has happened in this last weekend, and tomorrow, they reach another milestone. They'll be four weeks old. I didn't think all three would make it to that point. After yesterday, I thought it again, so it'll be quite the little celebration tomorrow! I'll have pictures for you. I may even have video!

Day 25... I Think

Well, today the kittens were kept very busy with their first long stay visitor. They've been handled by people for brief periods, but I had a friend over today who spent a whole afternoon adoring them, and what little flirts they were! Porker climbed out of the box at one point. Ok, he needed a little help and a boost, but that's what happens when you try and grip with your back feet and they slide out from under you because you just happen to be standing in the cat food bowl. Poor little boy didn't know what to do when he managed to get up and over. He hung over the side for a moment, claws scrabbling wildly until I came to his rescue and helped tip him out. But then there was this great expanse of carpet to contend with. He took one look, plopped himself down, and didn't move. We sat on the floor with him and arranged our legs so that he had a boundary to work with. Once we'd done this, he was off, but it was me he was interested in. He came right up and nuzzled in against my leg. i tell you what, if I didn't already love them with all of my heart, it would have totally been theirs at that point. To have him come to me when there were so many new and interesting things to do, well, it just blew me away.






When it was the Baby's turn, she came right out and had a sit on my knee for about five minutes. This is the longest she's ever stayed with me without crying, and as you can see by the photos, she was enjoying herself! Hamster had a snuggle too, and seemed very keen to look all around him, but less keen to explore on his own just yet.





When my friend left, it was time for me to be the big, mean scary person again, because it was claw clipping time. I've been putting it off for ages because the idea of clipping claws that tiny terrifies me, but it really needed done. So, one by one, I subjected them to the torture of being held still and cooed to while tips were snipped painlessly away. Well, by their screams of protest you'd have sworn it was torture anyway! Porker did twitch at one point and I took a claw off rather short. it bled a little, but I stopped it quickly enough. I felt guilty as anything though, but it didn't seem to bother him. I hope those claws grow slowly, because I don't want to do them again until they're much bigger! By the time I was finished, I'd broken out in a cold sweat and everything!





The Baby wasn't so interested in solid food this morning, but Hamster ate a load of it! I'm wondering if I got the pair of them mixed up yesterday. It's easy to do because they're so similar in size and shape. you know, it wouldn't surprise me to find that Hamster is also a girl when they go for their check up at nine weeks old. He's more similar to the Baby than to Porker. What do you think from the photos? They were taken today when my friend was over. I think you can see that their points are starting to come in nicely now, but I'm still not sure what colours I've got. I wish they'd hurry up, because I need to register them soon!





Ok, so picture order is Porker, then Porker with mum, Hamster and lastly, the Baby. I'm thinking about a propper name for her, and I don't know why, but I've settled on Dora. It wasn't what I'd planned. I had a list of beautiful pedigree names all picked out, but Dora just feels so right for her. We have a programme for kids called Dora the Explorer, and it fits this little girl so well. She's been the first to do everything! Also, if we're getting sentimental about it, Dora is contained in adorable, and she definitely is that! Opinions?





They all put on a fair bit of weight again last night. Those nutri-drops are a godsend!





My mum and a family friend are coming down this evening, so kittens will be subject to more cuddling and adoration. Somehow I don't think they'll mind one little bit! I'll write tomorrow to tell you all how it went. Right now, I could do with some sleep. Tia had me up every hour like clockwork from 3:30 this morning, and I'm really feeling it! These cats are more work than human babies!