Kittens are off to the next step!!

I got word yesterday that a veterinary hospital in a very nice area less than an hour away from here will be taking the girls! Initially they said they didn't want any kittens older than 8 weeks (the girls are almost 15 weeks!) but the woman who was mediating told them how tiny they are, and they agreed! I still have a bit of anxiety that when they see them they won't want them... but how could you not, they are so cute!

So, I am taking them to the Cube tomorrow where the woman who is transporting them to the hospital will meet them. I am going to miss them so much!!

Life Lessons

Today I let the kittens out for a while with ET and Lacey, and the adult cats decided that it would be a good day to teach the girls some life lessons. Lacey especially took charge, pinning the kittens, chasing them around, and biting at their necks. It might sound mean but she was teaching them respect and manners, which is something that singly-raised kittens can really miss out on. I didn't keep them out for too long as Lilly is still sneezing, but I think it was time well spent.

I took a study break and spent a few hours volunteering. I was recently assigned a "Kitty Pen Pal." When I go to the shelter I spend extra time with him and am responsible for posting advertisements and spreading the word about him to try to get him adopted! He is a 5-10 year old owner surrendered neutered male cat named Diego!! He is super cute, loves to be snuggled and scratched, and will make someone a truly wonderful companion!

Oh, and just to make sure I'm clear... my Pen Pal Diego STAYS at the shelter! I wish he could come home with me, but I can't take in any more :(





The shelter is flooded with momma cats with babies, bottle feeder kittens, and very young kittens. There is one momma I can't get out of my head... a very beautiful calico, similar to Lacey, with a single kitten. The kitten is calico just like her but with lots of spots. Even thought I should avoid it, I always pop into the cat intake room when I volunteer... she's been there for a few days now, and I really hope she finds rescue soon, she is such a good momma.

A pet filled weekend

It's weekends like these that keep me going :)

Today I spent the whole day at the Cube. The day went pretty smoothly... no real crazy people, only one euthanasia (symptomatic FIV+ cat :( ), and no cat dumps. I brought Lilly and Ruby in so they could get their first FVRCP. We are going to continue their antibiotics for a few more days to try to see if we can get Lilly cleared up. Lilly weighed 3.0 lbs and Ruby was 3.3 lbs, so as soon as they are both healthy they can be spayed!

Here are the girls curled up in their crate at the Cube. They were adorable, and attracted a lot of attention :)



That morning one of the head volunteers found a singleton kitten while trying to trap the mom; it appeared that she had abandoned him. The volunteer scooped him up and we bottle fed him throughout the day. Another volunteer brought in a nursing momma to get tested, and she also took the kitten to see if the momma would "adopt" and raise him.



And here is Pogo. He is an absolute favorite of everyone who meets him. He was rescued before the first major snowstorm and has been in foster care since. He is estimated to be 6-8 years old. As you can see, sometime in his life some horrible person got the idea to dock his ears, like a pit bulls (but didn't neuter him). Amazingly, Pogo still loves people and is looking for his forever home.



Tomorrow I'm taking a shelter dog to an adoption event at a local Petco. I'm so exhausted, but it's wonderful. These animals need so much help and I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to help them how I can.

Busy busy

Things have been very busy with school, but now after a tough round of exams, I have 2 weeks without a test!

This past Sunday I became a fully oriented volunteer at the PSPCA, and last night I completed an ACCT orientation, which means that I can help out at both locations. Volunteering there is great, because you just go pretty much whenever you want, so it works great with my schedule!

I plan to spend lots of time with the shelter kitties, but also the dogs as well. It's a long story (you can read about it here), but there are about a dozen dogs living in crates in the PSPCA garage. They've needed lots of help getting the dogs out of the crates so they can go to the bathroom several times a day, so I've been able to help with that!

I've met some wonderful people already and can't wait to meet more. Saturday I'm going to the cat clinic and Sunday I'm helping with a dog adoption event, so it's a pet-filled weekend. I'd hoped my boyfriend could be able to join me, but he can't. Hopefully next weekend :)

I took Lacey to the vet today for a follow-up. The vet felt that the antibiotics may have helped a bit, and she said that the next step was to draw blood to check her hormone levels to see if she had remnants of ovarian tissue. The test ran $113, so I decided not to do it at this time. The vet said that if she had "abnormal" levels, I should observe in-heat behavior. No sign of that, but I'll certainly know it if she does!

I also have some classmates coming to look at the kittens today!! They are doing so well. Ruby appears 100% healthy, and Lilly still has some sneezing. They're going with me to the Cube tomorrow to get their vaccines, and maybe (but probably not) be spayed.

I promise to update with pics later. For now, here is a very cute video of ET and Lacey battling while I was trying to fold laundry:

"I feed raw"

I feed ET and Lacey raw. I originally started it because it was *so* much cheaper than feeding quality canned. My cats love it, and are thriving on it. They eat 80% muscle meat, 10% bone, 5% liver and 5% kidney. There is a lot of science/research behind it, but the two biggest reasons behind raw is that the cats ingest adequate amounts of water (cats have poor thirst drives) and have less teeth problems (such as tartar) because of their bone chewing. In my opinion, the best reason to feed raw is that the cats poop once every 2-3 days, and it almost never smells. That's because they use nearly all of that goes into their bodies, as their food contains zero fillers or preservatives or undigestables (cats are obligate carnivores and don't need any grains or vegetables).

So for fun and procrastination I came home today and took some videos of raw feeding. Tonight they had some chicken breast and liver



I have to feed ET and Lacey separately or else they get very possessive and growl. Here is a video of ET enjoying his meal (which he actually ate quite calmly). Don't mind the awkward camera-turning mid video haha.

Growing girls!

The little ones are doing really, really well. They are so playful with each other and are always so excited to see me. Their eyes have also cleared up really well, although Ruby still has one that is persistently goopy. They are still getting antibiotics twice a day, but despite this they are sneezing... sometimes Lilly will sneeze for a good 30 seconds :(

Nonetheless, they are putting weight on. I have been very busy but this morning I had them out of the crate for a while and just went in there to snap some pics. Sorry for the bad lighting, but you can see how cute they are!

Ruby, you can see her right eye is still irritated



A bit blurry, but you can see Ruby's beautiful belly spots



Lilly, always with her face in a bowl!



See, I have a beautiful belly too!

Some out-of-crate playtime

Here are the girls playing outside of their crate for a little while this morning. They're too cute, and spent lots of time stalking and pouncing each other, and even once Ruby jumped right into the trash can! They are so comical, and even though they were wheezing through most of the playtime (especially Lilly) it is so clear how happy they are.



Silly Lilly in the sun yesterday

Lacey: almost 90 days later

In case you forgot what she looked like... Lacey 2 days before I rescued her:



Lacey today





I'm one happy momma :)

:)

The little girls are doing well, and made it through their first night at my place! I went in this morning to give them their meds and some more food, and when I opened the door they were very startled to see me! They settled down quickly though. Their eyes were a bit more opened, and nearly all their dry food was gone! Everyone said that I'd see a dramatic difference in a few days, and I really think (and hope!) that will be true.

Today is a busy day. Hopefully I can post more pics later :)

Meet Ruby and Lilly!!

As I imagine it is in many places, the kitten explosion is finally here. I have been wanting to take in another ACCT cat, but I will only be in the city until late May, and with no guarantees that I'd find the kittens a home, I thought it would be best to not rescue from them (for now)!

I instead contacted the president of Green Street Rescue who I work with regularly at the CUBE to see if she needed a short-term foster placement. She emailed me back the next day saying that she knew of two kittens in need of foster care until they are able to be spayed. The two kittens were rescued from a hoarder a few weeks ago along with over a dozen other cats. They are supposedly 12 weeks old, but are quite small (~2lbs). They've also got a bit of a cold and a lot of eye goop. Despite their rough start, they are SUPER affectionate.

Today I picked up my 2 foster kittens!

They are 2 females who I've named Ruby and Lilly. They are 12 weeks, but small for their age, and Lilly is smaller than Ruby, but incredible affectionate.

Lilly is a brown/black tabby with a single orange toe, and Ruby is a grey mackerel tabby with some orange highlights.

They both are riddled with URI, and I'm cleaning their eyes often and adding a bit of ointment. They're also on some Clavamox to help them kick the infection.

They will be spayed when they are 3 lbs and healthy. The president of the rescue I'm fostering her through thinks she already has a home in mind, but I'm going to ask around just to make sure they find a home (hopefully together)!!

Below are some pics :)





Lilly is on the left, and Ruby on the right. Their eyes are squinted because of the infection, not because of the flash :(

Lacey is doing well. I took her to ETs vet yesterday afternoon. The vet was not too concerned and wanted to take a bit of a conservative approach, and prescribed a different type of antibiotic to see if that helps her infection without giving her gastrointestinal upset. I scheduled a follow-up visit for her in 2 weeks.

ET is perfect as always. The kittens are in a crate, but ET knows they're there. He's chirping a bit, but not too preoccupied. I think it will be very helpful having them in the crate as it prevents the under-the-door-footsies which really get ET going. Lacey couldn't care less!!

Vet Take 1

Just got back from the SPCA clinic with Lacey.

The vet I liked was there. Lacey was afebrile (100F) at the time, thankfully. They did a fluid aspiration and examined it under a microscope. They saw "nothing exciting," but some bacteria and milk-like fluid. They also retested her for FIV/FeLV (in case she hadn't seroconverted at the time of testing) and she remained neg/neg!

Their feeling as that her glands are cystic, and filled with fluid and infection. They also basically said that they have exhausted their resources for her as a foster cat. I figured as such, but was hopeful they would do a bit more for her (like a CBC).

So, I am taking her in a few hours to ETs vet for a workup. I'm hoping she will do a CBC and aspiration today, and hopefully plan to do a full drainage of the glands in the near future. I've just seen this vet once with ET for a well visit, so her skills will certainly be tested now.

I think it's so funny how some cats are complete ostracized by their housemates when they return home. When I let Lacey out of the carrier, ET ran up to her, threw his paws around her neck, and insisted on some very aggressive ear grooming <3

Heat wave!!

ET, Lacey and I returned from spring break in Massachusetts to a very hot Philadelphia. While I hate the heat, the cats have been thoroughly enjoying the open windows and all the excitement it provides.



The only good part about having a dumpster outside the window is that it provides excellent squirrel-entertainment.

Lacey has been feeling really off lately. It has taken her much longer to eat her food at each meal, and last night she had a fever of nearly 104F. Her mammary gland seems more swollen than normal and I can palpate fluid-filled swellings. I'm going to take her into the clinic tomorrow (and hopefully catch our favorite vet) to try to get some answers. I'm not sure how extensively they will investigate what is going on, but I hope that we can get a better picture of exactly what her problem is so that we can target the right treatment.