Thursday, April 29, 2010

Hooooooooome!!!


♪ ♪ Oh ya! Oh ya! ♪ ♪
♪ ♪ They've got a home! They've got a home! ♪ ♪


THANK YOU ANN!!!! You are a saint, plain and simple.

It's official!

So, the boys are going to their new home THIS WEEKEND. We'll be driving 4 hours from here to deliver them. I'm so excited for them! They're going to have fur-siblings to play with and everything!

Oh my god I'm going to miss them... but I am just SO EXCITED that they're going to grow up to be happy, normal kitties! They totally deserve it.

I have a lot I want to say, but I have sooo much to do right now. I'm still working on my taxes (they're due TOMORROW... gah!)... and now I have to get ready to travel with two kittens, and make sure they're ready to go.

I will try to post on my lunch hour tomorrow. But, this news was just TOO AWESOME to hold back!

Yayyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!! :):):):):)

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Updates...

They're coming.

Sorry I couldn't post yesterday, and today will be the same. Bunch of stuff going on (non-kitten related), so I'll get my post in tomorrow for sure.

Not a lot to report anyway. The kittens are still good. Doing fine during the day and eating like champions. A little more info to come tomorrow - so I apologize, but it must wait until then :)

In the meantime, here's a video that I took the other day (in the sunshine). It's kind of boring cause they're just lying around(trying to sleep while I bug them!) - and that's why I didn't post it originally (they're still cute!!)... but that's all I have to offer for now while I'm away... so, enjoy! ;)

Monday, April 26, 2010

Welcome to Poo Central

If you haven't been yet, please go visit Kitten Mom - Kittenpalooza. They lost another two kittens to Parvovirus yesterday (in addition to little Sommerset last week)... :(  She could probably use some of your kind words.
It's so awful to see such sweet little kittens have to go through all these horrible illnesses. I can only hope that Jane and crew are doing okay... I know how hard and sad it can be.

~~~~~~

Our boys are on their own today for the first time.
We have to change our routine because Doug's job won't allow him to go home at lunch for the next few weeks or so. And because we wanted to wait another week to determine what to do about them, we had to improvise on what to do during the day (for 10+ hours).
So, they're currently locked in the large dog cage: warm bedding in the middle, two non-tippable dishes of the formula/pate goo on one side, and a big pan with paper-towel (my homemade puppypad) on the other side.

We did a test run yesterday, and my only complaint was the litterpan. I tried everything, and eventually gave up on the litter part of it altogether because it just doesn't work for kittens with CH. After 6 baths each throughout the course of the day, I said enough was enough. So I just covered it with papertowels (but even that isn't perfect, cause they still roll in it).
It's frustrating because even though there's no climbing anywhere involved, they still can't seem to manuever themselves to get into the box and out again without getting just PLASTERED in pee and poo. I know I'm going to have to do some serious bathing when I get home tonight. Sigh.... It's totally becoming poo central in there. Where it comes from, I DON'T KNOW? They're tiny, but hoo-boy, can they output. And it's not nice little logs either, it's runny-gooey-kitten-formula-paste poo... and you could seriously drywall your house with it.

They've luckily got the food thing down though. Both are officially eating out of the dish on their own - even though they roll in THAT too. And instead of the bowl of water I had in there originally (which lasted about 2 minutes before L flopped into it and got soaked), I just watered down their food a bit. I'm confident they'll eat enough, as long as they don't drag poo into it from the other side of the cage.

I'm actually really worried about how they're doing... and I hope that we'll be able to keep this routine up for this week. After this week, or even after today, if it doesn't work out, I have no clue what to do.
In the past weeks, I would have just said to take them with us(well, with Doug) to work - and thought that could be a possibility for this week - but now they're getting too big, and they eat and poop too much to keep and eye on, and I just can't see how it could be possible.

If they don't learn to manage going to the bathroom unattended, and in the appropriate spot (Wes still insists to just go wherever he is lying/sitting at that point - which is such a weird behaviour for a cat), we won't be able to keep them much longer. So, please, continue spreading the word!

Which reminds me, I have made contact with another potential adopter via Facebook. Again, I'm not pushing this individual, because the litterbox thing is going to be a HUGE issue for anyone. And I know that's going to be a problem for anyone with other pets and/or a house with carpeting (we're lucky right now, cause I just have to scrub poo from the hard flooring). So, no guarantees... but it's wonderful that we are getting some people who are possibly willing to take them.

I may be back tonight to add to this post (there's something else I want to add - but I don't have the information with me at work)... so I'll let you know how it turned out with the boys. Somehow I think I'm going to need to invest in a firehose after today... :P

~~~~~~

 This is what I wanted to post:


Jan's Funny Farm posted a lovely email that I received from a really nice woman, Evelyn, from a week ago. She told me her story about her cats Deter and Dusty and how they all dealt with CH in their home. 
I wanted to share it all with you and make a public post to both Evelyn and Jan's Funny Farm for their story, and their post that included our boys' story too. :)

~~~~~~
(PS: Also, for any of those wondering, yes, I did have to come home to a cage full of poo, and bathing all around.... may pose for a long week....)

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Sunny Sunday

This weekend has been pretty tame with events, so we're just taking some time to relax around the house in our pyjamas.

The kittens have been doing good. We've got Wesley eating from a spoon/bowl now, a kitten pate/formula mush (reminds me of what thick porridge looks like). He still needs to be held still, even though his body stiffens when he's eating 'cause he's concentrating so hard (which is really cute to see), just cause he obviously can't stand on his own. He's a trooper though. 

Yesterday I took all the blankets/towels out of the room, got down on my hands and knees, and gave the floor a good scrubbing. Let me tell you, caked on kitten poop does NOT smell good when combined with hot water.  *barf* :P
I put the kittens downstairs on the carpeted floor (wish I had taken pictures cause they were SO cute down there) while I was cleaning. They were rolling all around and playing with toys I put with them. Falling on their faces was a little easier on them on the carpet.

Rosie stayed in the room and watched me clean. At one point I left the door to the room open to air out/dry the floor and went downstairs to do laundry. As I came upstairs I heard Doug talking to Yoko - apparently she had gone in the room and stood right in front of Rosie. They just stood there, looking at each other. No growling, no hissing, just "who the heck are you?". Once Doug saw Yoko in there, he said her name and she ran out of the room. And that was it. She never seemed upset about it once. Pretty funny.

Actually, this morning, after I bathed Wesley (which I want to come back to), I took him to lie down with me on the couch 'cause it was still early and I was still tired. The two of us dozed for about an hour together (he LOVES to cuddle and purr, have I mentioned that? He's just sooo sweet). Anyway, Yoko was in her cat tree at the foot of the couch where we were and she was watching us for a long time. Eventually she jumped down and tried to lie on my legs, even though she knew Wes was lying on my chest. She doesn't seem upset with him at all, more just distantly curious. I'm guessing that she doesn't really see him as a threat right now.
She probably would have stayed on my legs, but I had a blanket on me that she doesn't like, so she just jumped back up into her tree.
I think she's definitely getting more mellow in her old age ;)

The bathing thing I wanted to mention...
Since Wesley still has many accidents (I can't always get him to go to the bathroom in the box, so he ends up covered in stuff really often - usually in the morning), he is getting bathed at least once a day. I've even trimmed his fur (L's too) all around the bum/tail area, just for easy cleaning.
His first few baths he would scream bloody murder during the whole time. This kitty HATES water. But, I'm finding the more I do it, the less he screams now.
The best thing I've discovered with the bath situation -- I used to just towel dry him and he'd never be fully dry... so I'd worry that he'd get a chill afterwards. So, I thought to try using the hairdryer on the low setting on him. I figured that he'd hate that even more, with the scary motor sound and all...

Well! Was I wrong. This kitten LOVES... like l.o.v.e.s. the hairdryer. It's probably his most favouritist thing in the whole wide world. He rolls on his back and throws his head back, closes his eyes... all while I massage his body and blow the warm air on him. He is just too cute. And he looks all fluffy, warm, and happy when I'm done. So, it's made bath-time a much nicer experience. :)
Anyone else have kitties that like this?

It was nice and sunny in the office/foster room today, so I thought I'd snap a few pics of everyone relaxing and playing in there. You may recognize the blanket they're on, too. For those readers that have been here for a while, that's "my" (aka Yoko's) blanket that I got for my birthday last year. I think I've used that thing a handful of times since I got it... the rest of the time it's been for purely cat-use. The kittens have officially taken it over now (but, I'm ok with that ;)).

And I had to get a little video too.. hopefully you can hear it. You may have to turn up the sound a bit. Wesley is the king of purrs. Ever since he was a baby, he always purrs when he's happy. Such a cutie :)

Have a relaxing Sunday.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Boys at 7 Weeks Old:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Saturday, April 24, 2010

On a lighter side

I need to step away from a post about the kittens for today to announce something special...

Today is  
 ♥ ☺ ♥ ☺ ♥ Yoko's Sweet 16th Birthday! ♥ ☺ ♥ ☺ ♥

On April 24th, 1994, Yoko was born to a litter of 6 kittens. 3 Boys and 3 Girls. The boys were Siamese and the girls were Tortoise-Shell Tonkinese. This is because Yoko's mother was a Tortoise-Shell Burmese and her father was a pure-bred Chocolate-Point Siamese. The entire litter and the parents were all just beautiful.

I remember the day we went to pick one of the kittens out. We made the decision to get another cat because my cat Slinky had passed away recently of old age... and it was so sad that we thought a new kitten would help us get through it (and I had been bugging my parents for another cat for a long time). We wanted a Siamese because my Mom loved the breed, so when we heard that a litter had been born down the street from us, we decided to go look. Unfortunately, when we got there, the boys had already been picked by other people... so we couldn't get one of them. But, the Tonk girls were also so cute. All of them were white, so you couldn't really tell what they were going to look like until they got older. We decided we'd get one of the girls after all.

I had fallen in love with the runt (big surprise eh?), who was quietly curled up on the top of the cat tree, minding her own business while the rest tore around the room with each other. As I turned to tell my Mom that that was the kitten I wanted, she was holding up the most rascally, limb-flailing, whining kitten at me and said - This is the one! Much to my disappointment, I let her talk me into it. A kitten was a kitten.

And what a kitten she was. A crazy and feisty cat from birth, she still is as quirky today as she was the day we brought her home. Never have I seen or known a cat with so much personality and life as this girl. She has been by my side for 16 years, and has been through it all with me... my little furry rock, who listens to me when I'm down, snuggles me every night while I sleep, plays and enjoys my and everyone's company. She's just so well rounded and amazing.

She didn't always get along with people, but I've found as she's aged, she has become so much more relaxed and loves to hang out with everyone when we have people over.
She's a VERY smart cookie, and I know she understands every single thing that goes on. I know that she follows our emotions, and her behaviour always mirrors what is going on around her.

Even through all the foster kittens we've had, she quietly observes from a distance and seems to not mind them in her home (as they do have their own foster room). She doesn't like other cats at all, but I think it's just because she's not used to them. We've never got another cat because we respect that she is so wonderful, and we wouldn't ever want to ruin that. She has been so good to me, that I never would want to upset her in any way. Her life is definitely a happy one right now (and oh boy she is SPOILED!) :D

I'm so very glad that my Mom picked her out that day, because I couldn't have ever asked for a better cat. She is still full of life, always a kitten at heart, and she is a companion to any person that she meets.
She is my girl and I love her very very much.

Happy Birthday, my sweet little Yoko. :)


Friday, April 23, 2010

Friday, A Novel

Yesterday was a bit of a whirlwind, like many days have been in the past little while.
A lot happened over the course of the day, which has left me at a crossroad today. Basically, the constant weighing of options was being bounced back and forth between each person I talked to... and unfortunately nothing has been resolved yet. But, I did go to bed after my little blurb on here last night, so I'm feeling a little clearer this morning.

After being with the kittens in the morning, and seeing them continue to struggle, I felt that I couldn't handle seeing them like that anymore.
And I think it finally caught up to me, and I had a bit of a breakdown. Luckily, I have a door to my office that I could close and hide my tears from everyone for a while. Instead of being alone, I needed outside advice, so reached out to my fabulous Mother over the phone (who is 6-hours away), and she talked me through it... *Thanks Mom* ♥

There is a lot to the story. I'm going to try to be as detailed as possible about it, but I know that no matter how I explain it - it's not going to be exactly the same as it happened. But, I'll try to describe it the best I can. I'm not sure how it'll come out.

It kind of went like this...

My Mom and I talked about what was best for the kittens, and how their current quality of life is definitely a rocky one, even though we're working with them as often as we can (which is all the hours during the day that we are home). Because both kittens are struggling with their day-to-day needs so much, and there's a good percentage that they'll never be able to function properly, I think I knew in the back of my mind what probably needed to be done. It was the fact that every day I would come home to see them soaking in their own urine and feces because they don't understand the litterbox, Wesley crying because he's hungry because he can't eat on his own (and pretty much crying all the time, even after he ate and bathroomed), and them flopping and struggling to walk to get places, that was heartbreaking to see. As much as I didn't want to admit it to myself, I was starting to consider a horrible decision. I had to remove my own emotions from the situation, be strong, and know what may just be the inevitable. We figured there would be no way we would ever find anyone that would be able to care for these boys around the clock forever.

And then, just as that discussion was happening, that small percentage... a little ray of hope... shone down from somewhere.

I hung up from talking to my Mom, and I noticed that my cell phone had got a message on it while I was on talking.
It was from one of the girls I had been speaking to via email.
She is not too far south of us (a drivable distance).... and she told me that she is interested in adopting the kittens (I won't disclose her name or anything, just in case she would prefer I didn't, and I want to value her privacy). We had a brief phone exchange because I had a meeting to attend at work, but she mentioned that because she works from home, she may be willing to take the boys. But, we needed to talk more, because there was still a lot to consider.

As much as I wanted to be happy that she called, I still had to think about what would be best for the boys. So, once my meeting was over, I called Jill at Pet Save to see what she thought about it - and if it were possible, what procedures would have to be taken to adopt them out, if we decided to go that route.
As I suspected, she confirmed my initial decision to still be the wiser one, since she has seen so many cases of CH in her work... but she would honour whatever decision I would think to be best for them.

*By the way, I do want to note again that I feel Jill knows what she is talking about. After 10 or so years of working with sick cats, and all the experience she has with CH and distemper, I know that she has just as much (if not more than) what a professional Vet would have, because she sees this kind of thing every day. She said that on a scale of 1-10 on the severity of cats with CH there are, ours are a definite 10.
Where a lot of the people I talk to have had or seen a cat with CH, it doesn't compare to what she has (because I have to tell these people that not every CH cat case is the same... even if their cat is alive and healthy and perfect - I can only congratulate those people for sticking through it with that one - but not all CH cats turn out to live happy lives).

Ok, back to what I was saying...
So, in the evening, once I got home, I was able to reach our potential adopter. And I had to break the news that I was still considering both options - and I explained why. She was understanding, but I know deep down she doesn't want us to do put them down. Hell, -I- don't want to put them down either, but I just can't help but think that if we don't, what if she takes them, and then in the end -she's- stuck with this decision...
She is reaching out to us, like many of you have, and is considering to even taking this issue into her own hands (I thank her so so so much for this - people in this world continue to amaze me)... but, I know she has a lot to handle on her own there now, such as another severe CH cat that requires around the clock care.
I just... I don't know. I want the boys to have a happy life, and there is no doubt in my mind after talking to her that she would be a wonderful candidate to help them since she knows how to handle CH cats ... but I also worry about her and what she has on the go with the one... to add TWO more severe cases to the mix... I know she is going to have to really think about if she can handle it. Plus, again, I don't know what their destiny is going to be - and what if they don't make it (Jill believes there may even be something else going on with little Wesley, either neurologically, or just underdeveloped as a whole.. that may be consuming him regardless).

So, we both decided to sleep on it.

When I got off the phone, I went into the kitten room for a couple hours........ and I swear these kittens listen to my conversations. Where Wesley usually tries to stand, wobbles and falls... he looked like he was maybe making some progress. He still can't control himself, but.... I don't know, I couldn't help but start to think that maybe he could figure it out eventually. He still can't eat on his own, and definitely doesn't understand the litterbox (I'll come back to this in a minute), and still has blood in his stool (where he lets out a little 'yelp' at the end of the push)... But I just keep wanting to hold on to the hope.

Then..... this morning was a whole new story...

I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I went bug-eyed at them... my jaw dropped... and I just... was amazed. They made me begin to wonder if my thoughts to euthanize really are wrong ....

When I went into the room... Wesley was up and on all fours... wobbly, but... eagerly trying to make his way to me. Falling and rocking, but getting up again and again. He wasn't quite sure how to go straight, but I think the hunger in his tummy gave him the push to go to me. He's made a few steps before (the most being 4 before falling) - you can see how he was moving in the video I posted before.. but this was different. He wasn't actually trying to use his legs much before, but today he was amazing me.

L, on the other hand, still doesn't get up or walk. But, he does spread his legs and lie on his belly now - where he never used to. He seems to know how to make his way around on his side though... and loves his toys (Wesley still has no interest in toys). But, he flops around like a seal to get places. I actually think he's kinda getting good at it... even though I know this guy will almost positively never walk.

The next thing was the feeding...
From 'our potential adopter's advice from the phonecall, she suggested that instead of the bottle, which Wesley was getting frustrated with(and not getting any solid food in him)... that we should go back to the syringe we were using with him weeks ago, but this time put the kitten pate into it (instead of just formula). We had moved to the bottle orignially because he learned to suck the syringe, so it gave him more control with the bottle. But now he's getting bigger, and now the bottle isn't fast enough, and he doesn't want to suck anymore. He wants to chomp/chew. So I mixed KMR 2nd powder, Nutrience kitten formula powder, a little bit of warm water, and a big glob of chicken pate into an almost paste/goo (more solid than what we had to put in the bottle, and a lot more pate than he's ever had)... and began pushing it into his mouth with the syringe, over and over... And he ate it at an alarming rate, and was chewing it, and wanted more and more and more... I couldn't believe it. I was happy to see him eat something with some good substance.
(I also want to add that I've said before that he's eaten slurry out of a bowl, but he has pretty much refused to since I said that.. and he still won't eat anything alone... but I'm thinking that maybe with the guidance of the syringe, maybe he could? I don't know.)

The feeding with L is as basic as this: I have now officially witnessed him 100% (and actually this was last night, as well as this morning) eating kibble, on his own, from the dish. So, I think I'm considering him done in this category. Except I don't know what to do about water. I know he still nurses from Rosie, so he's getting his liquid there... so I think tonight I'll try to water down his kibble a bit. It'll probably be messy, but that's fine. I'm sure she'll be glad when she doesn't have to nurse anymore.

Okay, so feeding, walking... that leaves litterbox.

So, neither use the litterbox. They haven't since day one, and we've been trying every time we feed Wes (and more). Wesley still goes all over the place, and L still has Rosie cleaning up after his mess.
But this morning, after I fed Wesley, I put him in the box, as I always do... and before I got a cloth to begin stimulating (cause normally he puts up a fuss when I stick him in the box at all), he had his legs spread, his chin leaning on the edge of the box (my hand lightly resting on him, just to keep his little body still)... he stiffened up as I was leaning to grab my diaper wipe, and away.he.went... on his own. I couldn't believe it.

Now, do I think he'll do this again? I have no clue. Maybe it was a fluke, and he just really needed to go... but... where he would've just waited before and gone -on me- while feeding him... this time he did wait til I put him in the box. I -swear- he was listening to the phonecall I had last night - because I told that poor girl over and over that there was possibly no hope for the box, especially for Wesley. But... I swear, I'm not afraid to admit to something when I'm wrong (not saying that he WILL - which was the point I was making at the time... but I am definitely thinking there could be a MIGHT).

L began his regular peeing on the floor this morning when I was in there too... and I picked him up and let him finish in the box. I don't know about this guy... but he seems to always want to pee in the same spot. I've tried putting the litterpan there, but he never uses it - he prefers the floor. So, I'm finally gonna pick up a puppy pad or something tonight or tomorrow - as I keep meaning to do (no, I know, I should've done that already.. I keep saying I will :P)

Oooooh kayyyyy....
So... now.... with all that jibber jabber that I've just posted (that was long I know, I apologize), I know I simply can't explain how twisted up I feel about everything. I feel hopeful... but I still can't confirm that all the behaviour that I've seen last night/today is going to stay.... but I think I still want to wait. So, Doug and I think we're going to give it another week.

I have told the potential adopter to absolutely not feel obligated to take them... because as I said, she's already got a handful there... and I thank her again and again that she is doing what she is.
This post is only for information for a) me to have because it gets it out of my brain... and b) for anyone that is interested on what the situation is... It's not to make her feel that if she doesn't take them, then that's what will seal their fate/or to make her feel bad if she doesn't. Because no one can still know for sure what will become of them as they get older... And they still will most likely need around the clock care regardless... so I -understand- if she can't. Because, I know I can't either.

Alright.. I think I said enough for now. Again, sorry that this was such a huge post, but like I said, I'm sorta doing it for me too... Writing helps me wrap my head around things sometimes.

Thanks for all the posts that continue to come in with good wishes and thoughts. You are all terrific.
If you've emailed me and I haven't answered, I hope to get to them this weekend. Should be fairly quiet at home, so I hope to get back to everyone that I haven't yet.

I hope everyone has a lovely Friday, and a lovely weekend. I'll be in touch soon ♥

Thursday, April 22, 2010

No post today...

I just can't tonight. I need to get some rest because my head is spinning. I'll be back tomorrow.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Ok ok ok ok!!

I hate to reiterate. It doesn't matter if he has blood in the stool or not. As many (MANY) people have pointed out to me, CH doesn't cause it. Okay, that's fine. We were misinformed, and I apologize. This is not the reason behind euthanizing (for us OR the shelter). It was simply a comment from me on my site because I didn't know what it was being caused from. It really doesn't matter.

I know cats with CH are wonderful, but they need a LOT of care - especially when they don't walk at all. With these kittens, it IS impacting their current quality of life, and THIS is the reason the shelter said they would require euthanasia. Please remember that.
 
I said we would love to keep them, but we can't.
And the reason why the shelter said to put them down now is because she has dealt with HUNDREDS of cases of kittens with CH (with a huge outbreak of Panleukopenia in the Sudbury region the past two years). She has adopted out many of them, all with minor conditions. They don't promote euthanasia -- And they are actually a No Kill shelter. Which is amazing. You should see their facility where they keep all of them, it's unbelievable.
 
I understand I also may be coming across to 'blaming' the shelter for this decision. But, I'm most certainly not. This shelter does amazing work, and I am completely astonished with everything they do. She is making this call because she has seen it many times. And while we trust her, we still want to try to help them before that final word is made to do so. (We still haven't heard from her, and something tells me deep down that she IS giving us this leeway to do exactly what we're doing on here.)
 
They had an instance last year where they had a severe case of CH in a kitten (or maybe a few? I don't fully recall) when it was about 6-8 weeks old. The foster parents, just like us, knew that quality of life may have been bad right at that point, but they loved that kitten, and wanted to make sure --- so they held onto it. 
Four months later, the kitten was still "suffering" with not being able to do anything, and his lifestyle was not a happy one. Without around the clock care, there was nothing more they could do. (I may be slightly off on the exact details in the story, but that was the general point that she made to us). Everyone was heartbroken because of the attachment they had gained... and the kitten was almost in adulthood when the decision was finally made to euthanize.
And THIS is why she is suggesting it to us now. She doesn't want to have us keep going with something that may be inevitable, you know?
 
I know the die-hard CH cat lovers and euthanasia-haters would be against the decision, but our hands still may be tied. No one knows if they will do wonderful or not. Sure, they may grow up to be the sweet wonderful cats, like the ones on YouTube.... But maybe they won't. What if we prolong their life to that 6 months and they're still unhappy, and they still have no home... Then what?
 
Sigh..... I never wanted it to be this way for them. I see them every day, frustrated with their inability.
 
We need to find them a home, someone who is willing to -possibly- commit to caring for them for life. Right now they are growing rapidly, and each day, it seems worse. Because they WANT to walk and move, and be able to pee in a box properly, and eat from a dish normally. It's frustrating to them, and it's upsetting to us to watch them like this. It makes me so sad that they haven't been given a proper life.
 
We still don't know what to do. So, please, keep spreading the word. Everyone has been so great.
 
Doug and I have even talked, and would be willing to DELIVER them to you, if you can take them... Even if you don't live in Sudbury (within reason -- possibly anywhere in Ontario). Of course, we will need to discuss with the potential adopter on all that... but, that's how determined we are to get these guys a home.
 
Anyway... I'm really sorry again if I'm sounding a bit direct. I guess I'm finding myself on a short rope.
I'm SO thankful for all of you to talk to. You are the bestest. :) **hugs**

~~~~~~~~
PS: I do want to add another 'thanks' to everyone who has CH cats and is posting/sending their story. I love hearing about all the success stories, and all the love that you give them (and this really goes for any cat owner who takes any time to care for them).
You are gems.

~~~~~~~~
PPS: Made some flyers to distribute around the city today, too. This is basically what they're going to look like. (Note: Yeah, I have L's name as Ellie, just because it looks a little more inviting.. and besides, I call him that all the time ;))
Contact me via blog or email if you'd like phone number. I've removed it from the picture below, just in case.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Giving a Clear Message

Hey all...

I suppose I should have assumed that posting this kind of topic on the internet would ruffle a few feathers. So, I feel that I should take a brief moment to clarify a few things (and this is mainly going to a lot of the new readers out there that are coming over and only learning the basics without following the story ~ for everyone else, please just disregard).

I've received a number of people posting links to various helpful CH sites and forums. I thank everyone who has been helping and reaching out to us in every way, shape, and form. I urge anyone who is new to this site, to please read back to the beginning posts from where we first took in Rosie... because somewhere along the line, a message is being lost.

Euthanasia is something that shouldn't be taken lightly. And I assure you, we are not posting up here to say that this is the final conclusion to what we have decided and that's the route people with any CH cats should take. If anything, I think I've made clear that this isn't the case.

So anyway, here are the quick details for anybody who is confused. Because I've been to some forums, and received some comments and/or emails from people (not all negative, but definitely misinformed)... who don't seem to understand our situation.

1. We are foster parents.
2. We took in a mother cat from a local shelter (http://www.petsave.ca/), whom we believe was infected with Panleukopenia at some point in her pregnancy, without our, or the shelter's, knowledge.
3. She had 3 kittens, 2 survived. They are currently 6 weeks old. One has been hand-reared since birth because the mother rejected it.
4. About a week ago, they were diagnosed with severe Cerebellar Hypoplasia.
5. We never intended to keep these kittens, even before we found out about the CH (we have a perma-resident cat who doesn't get along with other cats, hence the fostering - where we can keep them in their own foster room until they are ready to be adopted). In addition, once we found out they had CH, our house is not fit for kittens with this type of disability. We also work full-time jobs with a heavy summer-recreation schedule, therefore we wouldn't have the time to care for their every need. We can not keep them - hence, we need help! That is why we have reached out to this wonderful community.
6. One kitten has on-again-off-again diarrhea. He has been tested twice for parasites, and both came back negative. We don't believe he has parasites. He has had blood in his stool for about 2 weeks, and the shelter manager commented that it could be related to bowel irritation from the CH - We assumed that that was a possibility, but apparently people started getting all excited because we were "putting them down for this reason". That is not the case, I want to make that very clear. We just didn't know how to help with it if it was a factor. It could plainly be from diet, we are aware.
7. The shelter manager made the call last Saturday to euthanize. Not us.
8. We are doing everything possible to hold on to these kittens for now, hopefully go in and get a second professional opinion, and hopefully find homes for them.
9. Everything still needs to be discussed with the shelter, and currently, we still have no idea what kind of decision making we are allowed to make, if any.
10. If we can find them a caring home, TRUST ME, I will do everything in my power to make it happen. And I will kiss the adopters repeatedly.

Given other circumstances, we would keep these kittens ourselves. We have grown so close to them, and I love them like they were my own. If anyone has been reading my blog, or knows me personally, you'll KNOW I have the deepest love for cats. I wouldn't ever make a decision to euthanize without weighing ALL options. We are doing the best we can to AVOID this issue right now.

I apologize if my message is a little blunt, but I don't want people to get the wrong idea.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, now that that's clear, onto other things. ;)

Some things definitely seem to be progressing with the boys. Such as last night. I witnessed L eating a piece of kitten kibble off the floor. I'm not sure if I've mentioned it on my blog, or maybe just commented individually to a couple people in email ~ but I've found him eating litter from the litter box a couple of times now (don't worry, non-clumping). No, he doesn't use the litterbox to pee in... just to chow down on. Typical kitten, imo :P

So, last night when I noticed him trying to chew on the single piece of kibble that Rosie had left behind on the floor, I thought, hey... I've read on CH sites that sometimes a good idea is to just put the chow right on the floor to see if they'll eat it there. So I took a handful and put it on the floor under his nose, and he started trying to eat them. Woo! Mind you, I don't think he actually DID eat any of them, because I don't think he's got the chewing thing down yet, but I figure I'll keep trying with him till he gets it. He did lick them a lot though.

I've tried the watered-down mushy-kibble in a bowl, but that doesn't work because of his condition either (as I've mentioned, he's on his side or back 90% of the time). And he'll lick some soft kitten pate from my fingers when offered (not always though - sometimes he turns up his nose). But, I think he's getting there.

I also witnessed something else strange with L and Rosie last night when I was feeding Wesley. I suppose because the little guy is growing so much, he's urinating a lot more. I can't believe the little arrangement he's got going on with Rosie. He lies on his side next to the desk where it's bare, and just lets it flow... She --follows-- him, wherever he goes, and drinks it all up... and I'm not talking a small puddle here. Poor girl. When I saw this happening, I helped her out by cleaning the rest up with baby wipes and kleenex. Explains why I've been coming home to strange 'dry' puddles on the floor every day. I doubt she'll keep that up much longer... and if we still have them at that point, who knows what we'll do. No way I'll get him to go IN the litter box. I may just have to try one of these 'puppy pads' I've seen people suggest. That may work for Wesley, too.

And oh god, the smell in there lately. Between that and Wesley's constant accidents all over the linen and floors, I can't keep up. I give all you CH(or other disabled) kitty owners out there that deal with this behaviour on a constant basis HUGE props. It's a lot of work. My evenings after work have become: Get in door, change into kitten-poo-friendly clothing, prepare and feed Wesley from bottle, mingle and conduct physiotherapy with both kittens (and play with Rosie), eat a quick dinner, say a quick hello to my own cat, wash floors and linen (this happens about every few days, but the linen is constantly being changed, and floors spot washed where necessary), get a post in & maybe some email.. then by that time it's pretty much feed Wesley again and go to bed. So that's what happened last night, all that other stuff had to happen, so I had to omit the emails/blogging.
I feel awful because I haven't been doing my rounds on everyone else's blogs lately. Catching up on reading when I can, but I don't come close to being able to answer. :(

More possible good news, is that I've had one or two people say that they're interested in adopting! Now, I'm not going to get excited yet, because we're not exactly 'next door' to any of these people... but, at least it's a start. Gotta get to my emails so that I can figure out a little bit more.

Another thing in regards to that. As I said in my first little blurb above (#9), I don't know what adoption actually can happen yet. I still haven't heard anything from Pet Save on 'her decision' yet... so, really everything is still really up in the air. I have no idea what the policy is when they've made a decision on their end to euthanize....but I can only hope that they'll follow the normal adoption protocols for their kittens, if someone is interested (I'm actually pretty sure they would... I just don't know what kind of billing is needed... and how it works with neutering and shots, etc). But, when she calls me, and we hopefully have a real solid sounding person interested, I'll be getting the full details on what to do. If I hear from her before I have someone, well, I suppose it'll still be up to the shelter's discretion - and we'll still bring the kittens into the vet next Thursday.

Anyway, guess that's all I can think of for now.
I've been debating whether to post pictures or videos or not... just because I don't want it to be awkward if something does happen with the shelter in the future... but I figure I should keep it up in case someone sees them and it makes them interested to adopt.
~~~~~~~~

If you are looking to adopt this kittens, please contact me at kyestera{at}hotmail.com as soon as possible!

Monday, April 19, 2010

No word

This is going to be a very quick post, as we just walked in the door and have errands to do - but I just needed to pop in here quick to at least let everyone know where things are at.
First, don't be worried right now, we had no word from the shelter manager today. So things are still as is from the weekend.
We booked an appointment with that nice vet for next Thursday evening (I know, far away, but it was all they could squeeze in). So, our little guys will be peachy keen here with us in the meantime.
The boys are happy and playing in their room right now.
We're getting lots of wonderful email and blog-comments from everyone, that I'm a little backlogged in responding to (I am going to get back to ALL of you - but I apologize, it will be tomorrow. I'll have a lot more time then).
Doug and I have been tossing around some ideas - many are from the terrific ideas from everyone out there that's reaching out to us. We still can't be fully positive, because everything is still up in the air... But -- I'll fill you in more on what some of those ideas are in my post tomorrow.
So please hang tight, I am reading every word from every person and I just don't have time tonight to respond - but I promise to be dedicated tomorrow night (I'll have a nice relaxing computer night tomorrow ;))
Love you all! :)

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Another day

You are all wonderful people. As usual, your words of wisdom and kindness are helping us through this. The flow of suggestions, opinions, and stories from everyone are lifting our spirits.

Yesterday seemed like we were at the end of our rope. We battled with ourselves about the decision on what we should do. Back and forth on what would be best for them, and nothing seemed to be right. I think it's just beyond us to make this kind of decision.

So for now, when Jill calls tomorrow, we're going to try to buy a little more time, and see if we can get a second opinion.

Our vet, though close to our home, will probably not be our first choice. A long time ago, when I lived in the city, we had this wonderful veterinarian who was kind and gentle and understanding. He's about a 40 minute drive from where we are now, but I think I'm going to call him tomorrow to see if he can take us sometime during the week to look at the boys. I just can't fathom making such a serious decision before getting another opinion.

I know when I'm sitting in the room with the boys, they seem like they still have so much growing to do. Every day I see new hope that they (especially Wesley) will be able to muster enough strength to walk - if even just a little bit... but, I know my opinion could be biased, and as a couple people have mentioned - I could just be throwing my own emotions into it, because I want to see them succeed so much. And maybe it really isn't the best thing for them.

What do I want? Deep down? I want to keep them here. I want to hold on to that hope that they may come around. But maybe I'm just kidding myself.

So I suppose I'll just leave it at that for now. I've been given a couple of CH areas to reach out to online, that I plan to browse through today.

Thanks again for all of your help. I'll be in touch soon. ♥

Saturday, April 17, 2010

A Roller-coaster....

Just when I think all is well, so quickly do we get another sharp, and very painful turn in the road.

The woman from Petsave (Jill) made her visit today. And the news was far from good.

Once again I am turning to all of you out there because I feel that I can count on you... You have all been so kind, and right now, writing is the only thing that is going to help. We feel so lost on what may lie ahead.

After examining both Wesley and L, Jill told us that their case was extremely severe. Wesley's diarrhea and bleeding are caused by the CH. We had no idea that he was in pain from it (but he does cry quite awfully when he goes). L may very well be the same way, but we wouldn't know, since Rosie is taking care of that still.
She told us that neither of them will ever walk, and will never be able to go about day-to-day things like eating and bathrooming on their own. That Wesley will be sick from the bowel movements forever. L will probably never be able to get himself to food or litter. Wesley would probably never do it without assistance.

She is insisting on the euthanization...

What are we supposed to say? What are we supposed to do?

Before she got here, we thought we were both prepared to tell her that no matter what, we would look after them... we have worked so hard to make sure they have had a good quality of life so far. We didn't know that they were in such a severe state, and thought for sure they would eventually be fine.
Basically, if we wanted to continue holding onto them, we would be looking at constant care for them for the rest of their lives. Helping them eat, bathroom, and so on. And not to forget the fact that they would still have to live with Yoko. This was certainly not something we were prepared to do... yet we want to help them so very much. And now it seems our options are running out.

Now with Wesley... because of his bowel-sickness... we wouldn't be able to tell what would happen. The bleeding (that is getting worse every day) means that he really isn't doing so well internally.. that it's most likely due to the irritation inside him.

Jill was not cold or unfriendly about it... if anything, she could tell how much we were in pain about the news. I know it's not easy to break that kind of news to foster parents. I know her intentions to do this are in the best interest of the kittens. I just can't help but think that there should be, there CAN be, an alternative.

Doug and I have been in conversation about the issue since she left... with many tears shed. I want the best for them... but I don't know what that is. I see all these videos of cats with CH, and how 'perfect' everything seems for them. They have owners that can provide the constant care for them. Many though, are not as severe as our boys.

We have talked about holding onto them here for a while.. continue to hand-rear Wesley.. hope that maybe he will pull through.
L... well... who knows... Once Rosie decides that she won't look after him anymore, then what do we do? ...We both work long days, and Doug is taking time off from work every single day right now just to be able to get Wesley a feeding during the day. Unfortunately, that can't continue.... as we also have evening priorities that are quickly approaching as the summer gets here.

I don't want to euthanize them....... How could I possibly even THINK about that? My Wesley... he is my boy, and I want to see him grow and be happy and have a good life. But where can I turn to help him? And L...
They don't deserve this.

I suggested that we should see if we can find others who may be able to take over... but I wouldn't even know where to go.
We wish we could keep them.... I want to protect their little lives....

It's just not fair.

I know this site has become such a sad place lately, and I apologize to all of you readers. You have been so fantastic... and I hope that you aren't frustrated with me... but as I said, I feel that writing really helps... and I'm doing it because it helps with wrapping my head around my thoughts. I appreciate anyone out there that listens.

....
So, where does that leave us? I don't know.
We still sit here sullen and cloudy-eyed.
The decision of two little lives are in our hands, and we have no idea what to do.

We have until Monday, when Jill has told us she will be here to pick them up. I can't express how broken-hearted we are. And we want to make the right choice for them. But we don't know what that is yet.
Anyone... absolutely anyone... who can care for these little two, please don't hesitate to contact me this weekend. I'm best reached at kyestera{at}hotmail.com.

Thanks everyone....

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Smiles :)

You all never cease to amaze me. :) :) All the wonderful words that have flown in are soooo... ♥♥♥♥♥♥
Plain and simple!!
Thank you Lisa! SpacePaws has been such a wonderful supporter of us all along... and seriously, they do such terrific work! (amongst MANY of you!) You are all so terrific :) :)  (Hobbes House had a lot of advice for me too! Go visit them if you haven't yet!)

Today, I've been feeling good. I re-read my post from yesterday, and I apologize, as I realize I appeared to come across as quite 'down'. But, really, I was somewhat happy to know that these two wonderful perky boys weren't alone... not by far!

CH really isn't as bad as it seems, as long as you are an owner who is willing to care enough about them being a little less coordinated. One must be dedicated that they may not ever fully walk, but, from my readings, there are so many wonderful people out there ~soooo many~ that just have hearts of champions.

I talked to the wonderful lady at Petsave earlier today, and as I somewhat expected, something came up this evening which drew her from her visit. BUT! She promised to be by tomorrow evening to check in on things.
Unfortunately, one of her comments were along the lines of: "they may not be worth saving"... due to all the denial of animals she has seen.....
But, regardless, we may take whatever measure to ensure these wonderful boys get the loving lives they deserve (aka, if that's the plan with the shelter, we will take matters of adoption into our own hands ~ so no worries!).

I feel so much better knowing that our kitties aren't alone. They may have disabilities, but they are still as awesome as ever. We're only going to do whatever we can to make sure they get the best support.
We've both been still working with Wesley with the Physiotherapy, and we're seeing results. Albeit, he's never going to walk perfectly, but darnit! He is certainly getting a grip on his gait! Balance is the issue, and well...
HE ATE FROM THE BOWL tonight!!! With my assistance, holding his body, but... He did it!! He did it!! I was overjoyed. (Oh, and 'gottagopractice', thanks! We did take your advice and move him to a mix of KMR 2nd, KMR liquid, and chicken pate. It did say that we could use water in place of KMR, but we will go with this for now anyway!)

We've decided to bring the cage upstairs. The two boys are in there together now.
Our decision is based on them not learning litter and food on their own. So in the cage they have both without Rosie, but with the watchful eye of her. (Rosie would always use their box and throw litter everywhere, and eat all the food we wanted them to eat... this is great alternative). We will open it up again so that L can nurse when needed, too. Because, as suggested from Forever Foster, it may be good to let him keep going until she is -totally- done with him).
We will let them out, especially L, often.. to roam, "walk" and continue their normal lives... but for now, we want them to learn the basics of eating and bathrooming (we have had a lot of instances where Wes is going pee and poo all over, cause he has no skills to get to the litter ~ FYI, Anyone with CH Litter/Feeding tips, We encourage to send this way, Please!! :):):):))

Just a couple shots of the cage in the room... Hopefully, with luck, they will begin to adapt.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Answers.

Where to begin?

I think instead of doddling around, I'll be out with it from the start.
The boys have been diagnosed with Cerebellar Hypoplasia.

Today has been long.... very long... And when I think we've been challenged before, this was something thrown into the mix that I never would have expected.

It certainly explains a lot though.

How do we feel about it?
Initially, I thought, oh my god. They have something critical, most cats with CH are euthanized... our kittens are sick, and doomed...

Of course, I knew nothing of CH at that point.

~~~~~~~~~~
So, this is what happened.

After many calls back and forth with the vet clinic today discussing the boys and their potential appointment for today... 15 minutes before it was to take place, I finally get in contact with Petsave after days (they are SO busy right now with the spring and all the things going on). This was the first time that it was laid out to them what was going on with the stool samples and worry of parasites (everything I've detailed to all of you here).
At first she was calm and said that that kind of thing was not to worry, but they wanted to examine the stool samples more carefully... and when I started to mention that they weren't walking yet... she suddenly became very silent. And immediately began asking questions like:

~ Are they wobbling? (Yes.)
~ Do their heads shake when trying to look at something? (Yes.)
~ Do they have trouble keeping focus on one thing? (Yes.)
~ Do they roll, sway, crawl - anything but walk? Their legs almost with no muscle? (Yes.)
~ When they try to walk, is it almost like their legs are 'getting ahead of them'? (Yes.)
~ Are they all over the place (Yes.), not able to use the litterbox (Yes.), not able to feed themselves? (Yes.)

Pretty good chance that CH is a factor. She immediately said to forget the appointment with the vet, and she (a professional herself) is going to make a special trip out of her busy day tomorrow to come to our house personally to examine them. And they will go to the Petsave vet after she checks them out.

After an extremely sad and scared phonecall with Doug, I began heavily researching the disorder online.

I have no doubt, not one bit, that our boys have this neurological problem. And there's nothing we can do about it.

I have so much I want to talk about... So much to report... So much I wish I had known that I want other people to know about it. But, I think I'm just going to lay it out as much as I can by posting.

What I can do right now is say, go read online about it. I found so many links today, especially YouTube videos like:
~ This,
~ This,
~ This,
~ This,
~ This,
~ This
....And so so so many more.

In addition to CH, please read about how kittens can get it. The link to Cerebellar Hypoplasia is usually through the mother's contamination with Panleukopenia (also known as feline distemper), which we suspect Rosie must have had at some point (which confuses us, as she has never shown signs of this disease). I have many questions to ask our expert tomorrow. One situation could have been if they gave Rosie the shot for Panleukopenia while she was in the shelter... There would be enough in the vaccine to harm her babies. But, I'm only guessing, since she has never been sick. She could have also just had it in the wild, and been lucky enough to recover from it before she came here, as well.

I encourage any fosterers/cat owners to research both of these (and more, if you can), if you have never heard of it before.

For anyone out there at all: PLEASE vaccinate your pets!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~

I know I promised to discuss the comments from yesterday... and really, I suppose all I just want to say again is... Thank you. I know I say it often, but really, your comments/suggestions mean the world to me. I have taken pieces from what you have all told me, and have used it... especially the food suggestions!
Wesley is eating a KMR 2nd Step + Chicken Pate slurry through a large-holed-nipple bottle (mainly slurps it up, in combination of sucking), and it's improved SO much. He's eating way better now. Mind you, the change in diet has given him the runs, but, I think that's to be expected.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I posted a couple YouTube videos of cats/kittens with CH in the list above... and well, I'll let you all determine from our babes here. Here are a couple videos, as promised, of the boys tonight ~ At 5 and half weeks old.
In addition, a few sweetheart pics of my boy Wesley to follow.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another quickie

Hi all,

Just wanted to comment on here quickly, just to let you all know that I'm here reading everything you've all posted for me! It's been busy lately, so I don't have time at night to follow up on my last post, and get back to all of you (minus the few that I have been able to email last night :))

I ---very--- much appreciate all the advice I've been given here. And the complete support that you are giving me - ohmygosh, again, I can't say enough how good it makes me feel to have people to talk to that can relate. Thank you all.

I want to touch on everyone's comments individually, and I promise to try to get a full post out tonight (pending that nothing else comes up) that does just that. I want to take a video or two for everyone, as well... so you can all SEE what's going on. Picture-taking has been low priority, just because when I'm in there with them - I'm trying to get Wesley to eat, and trying to do some physiotherapy with their walking. But I will make a strong effort tonight to do all that.

Just a quick update for those I haven't told already: We noticed blood in Wesley's stool last week, that had been coming and going up til yesterday. So, we brought a stool sample in again to check for worms/parasites -- and hurrah, it came back negative. Though we still got no answers on why he's bleeding - not so hurrah :(
So I made an immediate appointment for today at 2pm. Hopefully we'll find out more by then, and maybe get some answers to why they aren't walking.
Connie at Tails From The Foster Kittens mentioned that it could be Swimmer Kitten Syndrome. I thought that could definitely be a possibility, but upon reviewing what that actually entails, I don't seem to think it fully relates. Swimmers kittens usually have flat chests, which neither L or Wesley has. And our kittens don't quite "swim", but more, try to stand, wobble if they get that far, and fall to their side. To get places, L usually rolls or flops back and forth. I've seen both kittens pounce using their back legs, but then fall. The physio seems to help Wesley, as he can now stand while leaning against me, or if I'm guiding with a hand. But as soon as I let go, BANG, to the ground they go. I feel like I'm showing him how to ride a bike without training wheels. :P 
L spends most of his time on his side or back, and HATES it when I try to stand him up. He curls up in a ball and tries to bite me. So, I'm not sure what to do.
 
Anyway, said this would be quick, and now I have paragraphs on the go. So much to report though... I haven't even got to the whole 'eating' follow up :P
I'll be back tonight to continue, and to answer your comments from my previous post. I'll also let you all know how the appointment went.
 
Thank you all for your support. :) If even just to come and read and support from a distance. Hopefully some are learning with me with all of this, and that it could help other fosterers too. :)
 
Back soon!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Development Question

Hey all,

No pictures right now, sorry! I'm at work on a lunch break. But I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to make a quick post to ask some questions to anyone out there that may have any info. Time again where I'm at a transition with these little guys, and would LOVE any help :)

So, so far Wesley and L are doing great. As you can see from my previous post, Wesley is really developing into a little sweetheart. I'm seriously so in love with him.

Wesley has always been about a week behind L in development, probably due from the first rejections from Rosie and also being the runt of the litter. But, I worry about how fast they're both growing.

L has always looked huge next to Wesley, and each time I go in and hang out with them... I swear L has grown even more.
But, Wesley seems to be a little quicker in the intelligence department. L seems...... well.... kind of dumb.
Part of the reason why I say that, is because he'll be 5 weeks old on Monday and he still doesn't walk. AT ALL. He sort of shuffles his body low to the ground and rolls places (with his giant rolly-polly belly that he has... --which I will get pictures of soon!), but no walking. Wesley doesn't walk either, but he is definitely sitting up now, and has very apparent strength in his front legs. Where L still lies slumped around. He spends 75% of his time lying on his side or back.
At first, I was thinking that it was because we give Wesley WAY more attention than we do to L, and we work with Wesley in an almost "physiotherapy" session, where we make sure he walks to us to get his bottle (so that he gains strength)... but L doesn't have to go far from Rosie to just get a slurp from her. Should we just continue to leave it and allow the development to continue? Or should they really be walking fully by now?

The next thing is the eating. So, they both have some decent teeth coming in. I know that 4 weeks is when they say the weaning should begin. Since Rosie is there, what do you think? Should I let her handle L? Or should I take over? Any tips on the best ways you've all found weaning should go? I've gradually been letting Wesley taste Rosie's wet kitten food off my finger before he demands his bottle... Next I think we're going to mix powdered formula + water + chicken human baby food(or wet kitten food) and see if we can get him to start getting interested in a plate of it... BUT, my concern again above is... if they're not walking.... should I wait until they can fully stand and walk on their own before trying this?
What kind of time in between feedings should I be following after this 4th week? We've finally merged Wesley to go between 5-8 hours (hurray for sleep through the night!!!) - which seems to be working fine for him. He gets 4 feedings on the weekday, generally: 6am - 12:30pm - 5:30pm - 10:30pm, give or take an hour here and there. He's still only eating 1-2 tablespoons of formula though... (more often 1 than two)... which is worrysome. But, he is still pretty small. L is bit over a pound now, Wesley still dangles behind at about 14 ounces. Hoping the weaning process will help him get some weight on... but he looks healthy to me. Anyone know if this is good enough?

Same thing with the litterbox... We're still stimulating Wesley (though I think Rosie does it sometimes for him too), but we're doing it while his paws are in the box so he can relate the scent to going. Haven't found any traces from either kitten in the box... again, should I try leaving this to Rosie with L? And again with the, should I wait til they can walk there themselves? I've found L behind the litterbox, sleeping, a bunch of times... but, that's about it.

Ok... hum... I think that's it. Thanks in advance for any suggestions! Pictures soon :)

Monday, April 5, 2010

One Month Old!!

Four weeks ago today, my little guy was born :) And now look at him. He's growing so fast. ♥

HALLLP! THE FOOT, IZ STINKY!!

Hi! So... um... where's that bottle that you promised me?

Dats right, just look at my cuteness... And my giant man paws.

 I'ma just chill out in this super soft squishy bed, mmk?

WHOA! DUCK! There's a scary lady cat over there!

I am so long, and lean, and sweet as a button!

NOM!

 That's it from me for now.
Wesley OUT! MEOW! :D