Favourite Foster Foto Friday

The Smitten-Kitten Edition
The Smitten-Kittens were three sisters who came to us unsocialised, terrified, and riddled with fleas and huge amounts of ear mites.
Little Penny, in the middle of a yoga session.
Polly, getting right into old Beverly Hills 90210 episodes.Penny, showing off her big smile.This photo is a favourite because it marked the moment that Polly really started to eat again, after being so sick.Sally, who became one of the sweetest little snugglepusses we have ever met.Sally and Penny having a play.Polly, showing off her beautiful eyes. Today, an injured possum was brought into Mum's work. It was amazing to see one up so close. It had been hit by a car, but is now in a specialist wildlife centre where he will hopefully make a full recovery.
Have a happy weekend:)

Happy Endings

We know yesterday's post was pretty sad. It made mum tear up writing it. Seamus was the first death that we had as fosters (and being a late comer when it came to having animals in her life, mum's first death at all), and it broke her heart.

So today, we want to show you a happy ending, and something that makes mum's heart sing when she thinks about.

Sally Smitten-Kitten came to us as part of a litter of three, who had been surrendered with their Mum at the shelter. All three were full of fleas and had the most disgusting ear mites. They behaved as if they had not been handled by people before, and were very frightened. Sally's sisters, Penny and Polly, both had broken tails.

This photo is of Sally and Polly nearly a week after they arrived at our house. Sally had previously been in hiding, and did not want to be seen or interact with anyone. She even seemed scared of her sisters. It took a lot of time and gentle work, but we finally got Sally to start coming out of her shell. More than anything, mum wanted her to know that people could be a source of love and comfort, and that there was no need to be afraid. She wanted Sally to be able to feel safe relaxing. Sally seemed to decide that not only were people good, they were an awesome source of cuddles. And she was not afraid to ask for those cuddles! Mum fell head over heels for her!

Sally also learned that other kitties were ok. Here she is with her foster brother, Sean Oscar. It took her a bit of time to come around to the Oscars, who had a fairly good start to life and were healthy and full of energy. The four boys and their sister were a little less genteel than what Sally was used to. In the end, we think she just decided that they had to be tolerated, even if they were silly! The Oscars taught the Smitten-Kittens about toys, which they had previously shown little interest in. When Sally went back to the shelter, she was loving, confident and sweet. She found her Forever Home, and we are sure that she and her family will have a very happy life together. She was very brave in opening herself up to people and other kitties, and we are very proud of her. We have a photo of Sally on our fridge now. She makes us smile:)

Adopted

After a week of departures and crossings, it was great to receive some positive news.

Little Polly Smitten-Kitten found her Forever Home. I thought there must have been some kind of problem, as I had not seen her on the adoption listings. I was mistaken! She went up on the listing late on a Friday night, and by Saturday morning, there had been several calls about her. The shelter does not put kittens on hold on the phone, as they want people to meet and spend time with the kitties (and dogs) to try and make sure they are a good match. As one of the callers was on their way to the shelter, another couple picked Polly out. The caller arrived as the couple was filling out her paperwork. The caller then proceeded to try and fight the couple for Polly! Needless to say, the caller did not leave with a new family member that day!

Meryl was adopted on Sunday. She went home with a lady the adoption coordinator said was one of the loveliest people she had ever met. We think they will be a good match:) The adoptions of Polly and Meryl mean that all the Smitten-Kittens and Oscars have found homes. Hooray:)

We took Calvin in for a vet check today, as he didn't seem right. His gums were a little pail and he is not carrying as much weight as he should be, but otherwise the vet believed he was ok. He didn't have any worms, eggs, blood or other nasties in the poop sample he graciously offered in the car on the way to his check up. The vet believes his tummy enzymes are a bit out of whack, and that is making him feel a bit sick. We've started him on probiotics to try and help him out, as well as re-worming and treating him for coccidia, just in case. He seems brighter already this afternoon.

Life Goes On

Firstly, we'd like to thank everyone for all their kind words. The support of the CB is amazing.

I sat with Stella and her babes for several hours last night. She settled down, and gave them a few good feeds over the time. She also toileted the babies. This has helped to put me more at ease than I was previously.


I am almost certain that Stella is still a kitten-cat herself. You can see my hand in the photo above, and I don't have big hands. I'd say she is half of Fui's weight (and he's not even that fat anymore!). She also has very new looking teeth.

The babies seem content. When they are not feeding, they are sleepy and quiet. From what I understand, this is a good thing, and means they are getting enough food.

We thought you might enjoy these videos of the beautiful girl, and her little ones.





We also have some exciting news. Young Brad Oscar lived up to his namesake, Brad Pitt, and was the star of an article in our city's newspaper about the shelter. He was adopted yesterday, but we are hoping his newfound fame will have rubbed off on Mickey, Heath, Sally and Penny, and that they will quickly find their Forever homes. Isn't he a poser! He is such a gorgeous boy.

Polly and Sean are both over a kilo now, and are going back tomorrow for their surgeries and to go up for adoption.

I think that's about it!:)

Guess What!

Wand toys are FUN!

We also have a surprise. It is going to be revealed tommorow! We have a few clues:

-The surprise will not be going into the usual kitten room.
- It is made up of two distinct parts.
-The two parts are different sizes.
-Over the coming weeks, one of the parts will change a LOT.

Any guesses? Muahahaha!

An Exodus and Introduction

So long,

Heath

Farewell,

Mickey

Auf wiedersehen

Brad

To our potential to have babies!

Sally

We're off to have our bits fixed, and will then be going into the cages to be put up for adoption. Meryl, Sean and Polly have stayed in our foster home, as they have some more weight to put on.

Penny

Our foster mum brought a surprise home for them. A pretty little tuxie girl! She was all on her lonesome, and our foster mum could see she could use some lovin'.

She doesn't have a name yet, and we are looking for suggestions:)

We hope you're having a lovely weekend:)

No!

It wasn't us, Officer Foster Mum!

We promise!

Don't we get a phone call or something?

Officers Report-
Mickey, Brad, Sean, Meryl, Heath, Sally, Penny and Polly were released from the carrier in the bathroom when their food, water and litterboxes had been changed. They have a history of requiring crating when cleaning is being done due to numerous incursions onto the landing, and I suspect will require further crating in future. They are developing a talent for visual propaganda, pretending they don't have enough room when photos are being taken. These are some dastardly kittens!

We would also like to wish our new friend Rusty a very Happy 18th Birthday!

Cute kittens on Friday

----- Update----
We are currently getting ready for the increasing possibility that Tropical Cyclone Hamish will affect Townsville. We have our cyclone plan ready, and are as prepared as we can be. There is a likelihood that if it does hit, we will lose power, so just wanted to say that we are ready for it, just incase:)
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Well, we're cute every day. Heath, Meryl, Brad, Polly.
Don't you think?

Penny

But after a long week, we can be even cuter.

Sean and Brad playing tunnels (or bridges?)

Enjoy your weekend:)

Mickey
From the Smitten-Kittens and Oscars.

P.S. It was Polly peering out the window. We think she has spent too much time reading about Agent 007.5's adventures!

In My Garden

I spent the other evening hanging in my garden. It was nice to relax, and feel the grass between my paw pads.

And we can't forget playing, which is the super most fun thing ever! Mum likes this picture, even though you can't really see it clearly.

But the whole time I thought there was something a little amiss. I'm not sure what it was.

I don't suppose you have any ideas of what it could be?

P.S. We have great news! Freja and Athena were both adopted on the weekend! Hooray!

Making Friends

The Smitten-Kitten girls are really starting to get along with the Oscars- even Sally! She still doesn't like it when the Oscars try to wrassle with her, but otherwise is doing well. She will happily share food and water bowls with them, and was even caught giving Meryl's ears a tentative clean!

Polly joining in on a bit of fun with Brad, Meryl and Heath

Sean and Penny sharing a meal.

Mickey, Penny and Meryl hanging out together.

The personalities of the Oscars are becoming clear. Heath adores attention, and wants to spend every moment snuggling. Brad is very playful. He will often rear up on his back legs waving his front paws around if he sees any potential toy- and this includes hands, moving blankets and ties on clothing. Mickey is more reserved, and likes to sit back and watch. Sean is the smallest of the five, and is the only shorthair in the litter. Mum wonders if he has a seperate father to the other four, and if he was possibly conceived them. He reminds mum of Seamus- he runs around like the little engine that could, wanting to be involved in anything and everything. Meryl is a sweetheart. She is very gentle, and sweet with the Smitten-Kittens. It's going to be great to get to know them better.

On another note, mum thinks Polly is well out of the woods, after her illness. Her energy levels continue to increase, she has the appetite of a horse, and her body conditioning is becoming really good. Thankyou very much for the purrs for Polly. We really think they helped a lot.

Mum also wants to thank you for your purrs for her. She was feeling a little overwhelmed the other day. Thankyou for helping her to keep things in perspective, and remember all the good things that there are in this world:)

Discoveries

When our foster mum came in to clean up, we found a fun new toy. She watched us like a hawk with it, though!

It makes for a good hiding spot and cushion.

And hiding spots are important...

Especially when you've got new kittens to hiss at!

Hello and Goodbye

Hi! It's Polly Smitten-Kitten here.

I wanted to share these nice photos of Freja and Athena hanging out together.

They are two kitties who really enjoy being sisters:)

Our foster mum didn't come home with an empty carrier, though. She came home with FIVE more kittens! There are four boys and one girl, and the shelter workers named them after Oscar nominees- Sean, Heath, Mickey, Brad and Meryl.

Speaking of Oscars, guess what! Fin has announced the winners of the Acatemy Awards, and I won in the Best Review of '80s Television category! I am so excited!

I would like to thank Fin and her Mom for hosting such a fun competition, the Dell laptop that I watched the show on, the students of West Beverly High School, and my foster mum for transcribing my thoughts on Beverly Hills 90210.

Have a happy week:)

Sunday Snoozin'

It's Sunday.

Time for sleeping


For sprawling


For dreaming

For snuggling

For cuddlingFor relaxing...

For...
Guys?
Hey. guys!

That's better.

Athena and Freja are going back for their ladygardenectomies, and leave tomorrow. It's going to be a big week for them, and we wish them lots of luck!

Have a great week, everyone:)