Catster

return to top

Our Family

Adopt a Kitten

Of course, when I did this, I ignored the “a” part, and instead adopted two calico kittens. One was a dark tortie that we named Alex and the other was a white calico that we named Cali. They were littermates, and both female.

Alex got pregnant about the same time we lost Cali. Alex gave birth to only one kitten, another female that we named Joey.

Alex then had another “litter” one, another female that we named Francess. About a month after Francess was born, Alex stopped nursing her and found her near death out on the front lawn. Rushed her to the vets and he gave a formula to hand feed it. My husband and all of the kids loved taking turns feeding the tiny kitten. Because her mother wasn’t teaching her the other things she needed to know, we bathed her in the bathroom sink and dried her with the hair dryer. She loved it. Because Francess had been neglected for a bit, it kind of stunted her growth, and her head grew but her body didn’t. She was so tiny, even at 6 weeks, we carried her so she wouldn’t get stepped on. She loved to ride of people’s shoulder.

About a month later, my husband was sitting out on the deck watching the kids run around the yard. Alex was sitting by the swingset making these crying, yelling sounds. And it looked like she had captured a white mouse. But when I got close enough I discovered she had given birth to one white kitten and another one was coming out. I rushed her into the house as Tim picked up the two babies. Two more white Siamese kittens. Turns out they were blue sealpoints. At birth, they were the same size as Francess was at 2 months. I had no idea that cats could have litters so close together. This was why Alex stopped nursing Francess. My sister took two the white kittens and we found homes for the other two. Then Alex’s first kitten, Joey, now a year old, gave birth to four gray tabby kittens.

About the same time, my kids and I were in a near fatal car accident and spent two weeks at the hospital. Because no one was home enough, the cats were not getting the care they needed. Joey was hit by a car and died and because her babies were not being nursed, they died. A neighbor child came over to play with the kittens and only found Francess and took her home.

Of course, Francess knew where her food dish was and headed home, and was also hit by a car. I was devastated to lose Joey and Francess. But the time I got home from the hospital, all we had was Alex.

She seemed to enjoy being the only cat of the house and was for several years. Then she suddenly got pregnant again… I know, I know, she should have been spayed… She gave birth to three male cats who perfectly matched the cats in a painting my mom did of my grandmother. One was a white cat that we named Sebastian, a black cat that we named Maynard, and an orange tabby that we named Francis (he and our first Francess were named for my grandmother). They were fun and easy going cats and always new mama kitty was the Top Cat.

We ended up having to find homes for the three males and Alex again was an old cat. Then she got pregnant again and I decided enough was enough. I took her to the vets to have her spayed and told the vet if she indeed was pregnant, to go ahead and abort them. It was a good thing, she was carrying 5 kittens.

Alex remained an only cat, for many years, becoming totally spoiled, but I think she missed having babies to take care. She would sit on the back the chair and lick Chris’ curly hair. Guess she thought he was her baby.

Then one day, my neighbor called and said she had found a tiny kitten in her back yard and her dogs were beginning to look at it like it was lunch… could she bring it over to me?

WE tried to entice the kitten to come to use, but he would have no part of it. So we just left some milk and food outside for it. The next day, our neighbor found another kitten. Apparently someone had just dropped them off in the area and hoped they had enough sense to just die. She brought the second kitten over too. Well, Alex was having no part of this. How dare these two little pip squeaks come into her house.

Since she was having such a hissi fit, we decided to take the kittens to PAWS. We got the little male into the carry just fine, but the female said, ‘hell, no, I’m not gonna go’ and scratched me to get away. Off she went into the bushes.

By the time we finally got close enough to her, we had become attached to her. She was a grey tabby with a little tortie calico in her and we named her Princess. Alex begrudgingly accepted her. As long as Princess stayed outside and dare not come in the house.

It was long before we discovered that this tiny kitten was pregnant. Well, how many can she have at this size? I figured only one, maybe two. Alex was much bigger and she only one kitten in her first two litters.

Well, Princess was listening, as I learned later that night. I was sitting at my computer desk in the basement when I heard a screeching noise and thump on the window, and there was a panicky cat attached to the glass like one of those stuffed Garfield toys with the suction cups. I opened the door and Princess immediately ran and searched a place to nest. I found a box and put it by my desk. But every time I went to sit down, Princess followed me. Alex had given birth to her last litter under my desk, and it look that’s where Princess wanted to be too. But no, she just wanted me to stay with her by the box. So that’s where I stayed… for 8 hours while she gave birth to five kittens.. all female. First Juliet, a dark tortie, then an orange tabby that I named Socks, and another orange tabby that I named Tiger, followed by a dark calico I named Rain, and finally a mirror twin to Juliet that I named Midnight.

But the time they all had been born, the kids were just getting up for school and they were pretty excited. Courtney had been too young when the Alex’s kittens had been born, so this kind of a first for her. She adopted them all and insisted that we keep them all too.

We created quite a stir when we took the mama kitty and five babies to the vets for a check up and shots. When the kittens were four months old, I found a vet who gave us a group rate to get all six of them spayed at the same time.

These kittens turned to be a healing benefit for Courtney and her friends, when another friend was hit by a car and died. The girls were just 13 and coming home to cuddle baby kittens was a great way to channel their grief.

Sadly, shortly after the kittens were born, Alex died. Here death hit much harder than I thought it would. Courtney made me a collage of pictures of Alex and the poem of “The Rainbow Bridge”

We still have 4 of the six. We lost Rain and had put Juliet down. By Princess, Socks, Tiger and Midnight are still with us, comfortable and happy.