Welcome to Kitten Season 2016

we've been talking about getting two kittens. we have an elderly 18 yo Siamese with CKD. Her sister passed away last Aug. I think she's come out of her depression but we're on the fence about getting the kittens. We had tried with an older cat and it was not happening. Our main concern with bringing in any new cat(s) is that they would bring disease in that my cat wouldn't be able to fend off. Once these kittens are checked out, how clean is the clean bill of health?

Joy, the rescues I work with test for the two most serious viruses, FIV and FeLV. I once had someone who required a test for exposure to the Corona virus, which is a fairly common virus but which occasionally morphs into something fatal.

Beyond that, rescues typically give their foster felines distemper shots (at least one or two of the series of three) and a couple of dewormings. If it's an older kitten or a cat, a rabies shot. As much as you don't want your pet to get sick, well managed rescues (and shelters) take great pains to keep their charges healthy because nobody wants to be cleaning up after, medicating and incurring vet bills for a bunch of animals.

That said, we are occasionally surprised. The kitten who was once tested for Corona?...died of the virus that morphed. (One of the older cats in the household into which he was adopted was, unbeknownst to the owner, a carrier.) A kitten who tested negative for FIV tested positive several months later. Same with a kitten deemed FeLV negative. We do the right tests and expect them to be correct. In the vast majority of cases, everything works out but we never forget the outliers.

If you'd like to be put in touch with the rescues, I'm happy to supply the contact info.

You are making me want to foster again.  I am loving the pictures.  I did it briefly for a group that was just starting out and wasn't super organized and didn't offer a lot of support.  Was given a litter that were really too young to be taken from mom.  One I was sure we would lose, but dh finally got her to bottle feed.  My favorite and the most lively ended up dying.  It was so heartbreaking for me and my kids.  I'm not sure I could go through that again.

The best part of the story though is that the other 3 I fostered were adopted by a high school friend from up near Albany.  I still regularly see pictures and videos on Facebook.  

Carolanne, I don't recommend bottle babies for the faint of heart but kittens seven weeks and older are delightful.

I spoke to my contact at PfA yesterday who said she's got five no kill shelters in New England who are "begging" (her word) her for kittens. We have so many cats and kittens here in NJ, and even in SOMa, who are rounded up and whose fate is unknown. Barring the opening of a no kill shelter nearby (and we know how THAT plays to some people in our community), what can save them is more fosters. If you have it in your heart to foster again, please do it. The time commitment need not be like mine... from 2 to 5 weeks is probably the range, depending on the age of the kitten and the timing of the transport. PfA won't transport unspayed/ unneutered animals so they have to be a certain size to do that.

Let me know if you're interested and I'll hook you up!

The four new kittens are going to their new Maplewood foster home tonight. It was quite an ordeal to get them from the original home as the people who had them had never really socialized them. When I went to pick them up, two of them were "somewhere in the house.." I did some saber rattling and told the family I was leaving them all the kittens and to bring all four to my house when they had them. And if it didn't happen tonight, the deal was off.  They turned the house upside-down and I had them within two hours.  Of course the kittens were really freaked out when they got to me, first, due to lack of socialization and second, from being in a new situation. The next day was spay day (all girls!) so they weren't too happy afterwards but since then, they've been great. My various family members have said how friendly and "super sweet" they are and my exchange student said how fun it was to walk into her room and find four kittens purring loudly.  

I'm so happy I took them. I've seen some crazy numbers about how many kittens a male/female pair can produce. The most conservative number is slightly over 2900 in a seven year period; that takes kitten mortality into account, and that just half of them are female.  This batch, being ALL female, increases those numbers even more. 

Six kittens. Is this your dream or your nightmare?

Little red is on his way out. He was out of his bed this morning, away from all the others, cold and not moving. I picked him up and he was still alive so I wrapped him in a tea towel and put him against me. I have a blanket over us Now. He's making distress noises. There's a lot of distress to go around this morning.

Edited: I had to go out for an hour so I left little red with my wonderful husband, who kept him safe and warm.  I came home to a note. "Kitten died in my arms" and where to find him. At least he was comfortable at the end.

So sorry. You and your husband are wonderful people. I really don't know how you do it.  I'm in tears because one of the abandoned cats we've been feeding is clearly sick but squirmed away when we tried to put him in the cat carrier. Now he is hiding and I feel so helpless.

Oh Little Red.....I don't know how you and your husband managed, I would have been a blubbering mess! Thank you for making sure he was comfy in his last moments....

Poor little fella, but it's comforting to know he was comforted by you two in his final hours.

I don't know how you do this - you are a hero in my eyes.

Found Zöe's collar in the drawer in the kitchen. nearly lost it. Funny how it just sneaks up on you. Can't see myself doing what you do day in and day out. You've earned a place wherever it is we all go when we go.

So sorry to hear of Little Red's passing.  I agree with the others here--don't know how you do it but am more than thrilled that you do.  Many more lives would be lost without you, I know.

joy said:

I don't know how you do this - you are a hero in my eyes.

This. Stay strong, and remember to do things for yourself, to keep you going and make you feel good. This has been a very rough season on you in your tireless efforts to help the kittens. I can't even talk about Little Red, since I believe we are losing our oldest cat, Tigger, in the immediate future.

All are alive and eating. All have upper respiratory infections which I'm treating with Clavamox, twice a day. Treatment could be two weeks. Three have serious eye infections and I was fearful the other red might lose an eye but I got new medication last night and they all look much better today. At least not fused shut with pus. I took a photo of the two worst today, which I'll post as a before/after once it's under control. Don't want to gross you out. Yet.

I grew up on a duck farm and was always involved in the care of many types of animals. Even as a little girl, I had animal-related chores and as a tween was administering several hundred vaccinations an hour during peak season. While this kitten care might seem overwhelming to the uninitiated, I guess it's in my genetics.

It's easy not to get a personal connection to a duck when you've dealt with hundreds of thousands of them. Not as easy with a struggling litter of three or four tiny, motherless kittens.

Ahhh, you were trained for this! I had no idea. But, please, if you love us, spare us the "before" photos.   

The latest foster kittens are adjusting nicely to their GREAT new foster home. I'd like to share some photos of these beautiful kittens. Three boys and a girl.  First, the girl; they named her Daphne.

So so sorry about little red. I almost hate opening this thread, but I love the stories, even the sad ones.

Thanks for sharing the beautiful photo of Daphne.  You do great work!

Here are the boys, from left to right: Riley, Toby, Rufus.  Cute, huh? These kittens needed more attention than they were getting in their original home and the foster parents are making sure that's happening, playing with them themselves and showing them to visitors.

Absolutely adorable.  

Awwwwwwww.....  

Ishi is looking and feeling pretty good these days. His eye infection has cleared up but he and his buddies are still on antibiotics for their upper respiratory infections. The whole crew is getting frisky... more playful and adventurous and their feeding style can best be described as piranha-like.

Speaking of piranha, the red one needs to have his eyes treated a couple of times a day and he hates it. I have to keep his eyes open when the drops go in and he turns his little head to bite me.  I thought it was a lucky (for him) accident the first time it happened but the next time he did it I realized how clever the little fellow is.

Gotta love Ishi.

Cute.

he is beautiful!

Awwwww!