Wiggins' kittensI had a cat when i first moved out on my own years and years and years ago. His name was Mazda. He has his own story, but the part he played in my current crop of cats is very simple. I decided after finding him a new home i would never ever have another cat. Cat's cost too much. They leave hair everywhere. It's a hassle when you want to go on vacation. I could continue with the reasons, but that's enough for now.
Fourteen years later I joined a group of people who were going to Mississippi to help with Hurricane Katrina relief. The leaders wanted to help the people in Mississippi, but they also wanted to rescue dogs and cats if they came across any.
great. wonderful. you do that. was my unspoken response. I was not going to help with either cats or dogs. definitely not dogs. I was not a dog person.
yeah, I'm sure you can guess what happened... they found two cute kittens, both about five months old. One was a beautiful black and beige tabby. The other was plain old black. I knew it was better to have two cats than just one, so i told them I'd take them both. The leader then told me that the tabby was pregnant. sigh. I told her i really liked the tabby better. She said the black was nicer. yeah. whatever.
When we returned home, i gave them baths. She was right, the black one was an absolute doll. Sweet as could be. The tabby was feisty. When i tried to give her a bath, she whipped her back legs towards her belly, over her head and did her best to scratch the living daylights out of my arm and hand, without success.
The tabby was named Wiggins and the black cat was Booboo or Boo.
I took them to the vet. The vet confirmed Wiggins' pregnancy. I was really hoping it would just be an intestinal issue. sigh.
Wiggins kept being testy toward me and Boo. I kept reminding myself she's pregnant. Who knew cats can be hormonal.
Boo got deathly ill about a month later. My vet checked her out and recommended taking her to the nearest vet college. They saved her, but barely, and i found myself much poorer.
The day after i brought Boo home, Wiggins went into labor and had four slime-balls, oops, make that four kittens. The picture at the top of this post attests to their utter cuteness. (photo complements of Yudha)
Wiggins was a good if cautious mother. Boo took up the slack and taught the kittens the finer points of playing, fighting and generally enjoying being a cat.
Two months later, i had found homes for all four of the kittens. That was December.
Fourteen years later I joined a group of people who were going to Mississippi to help with Hurricane Katrina relief. The leaders wanted to help the people in Mississippi, but they also wanted to rescue dogs and cats if they came across any.
great. wonderful. you do that. was my unspoken response. I was not going to help with either cats or dogs. definitely not dogs. I was not a dog person.
yeah, I'm sure you can guess what happened... they found two cute kittens, both about five months old. One was a beautiful black and beige tabby. The other was plain old black. I knew it was better to have two cats than just one, so i told them I'd take them both. The leader then told me that the tabby was pregnant. sigh. I told her i really liked the tabby better. She said the black was nicer. yeah. whatever.
When we returned home, i gave them baths. She was right, the black one was an absolute doll. Sweet as could be. The tabby was feisty. When i tried to give her a bath, she whipped her back legs towards her belly, over her head and did her best to scratch the living daylights out of my arm and hand, without success.
The tabby was named Wiggins and the black cat was Booboo or Boo.
I took them to the vet. The vet confirmed Wiggins' pregnancy. I was really hoping it would just be an intestinal issue. sigh.
Wiggins kept being testy toward me and Boo. I kept reminding myself she's pregnant. Who knew cats can be hormonal.
Boo got deathly ill about a month later. My vet checked her out and recommended taking her to the nearest vet college. They saved her, but barely, and i found myself much poorer.
The day after i brought Boo home, Wiggins went into labor and had four slime-balls, oops, make that four kittens. The picture at the top of this post attests to their utter cuteness. (photo complements of Yudha)
Wiggins was a good if cautious mother. Boo took up the slack and taught the kittens the finer points of playing, fighting and generally enjoying being a cat.
Two months later, i had found homes for all four of the kittens. That was December.
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