We had been home from the honeymoon for exactly as much time as it took to sleep in our very own beds and stumble around our very own house in search of breakfast when I decided to go outside to water my withering petunias. I can be trusted to arrange care for my cat, but not to remember that I have plant life which also requires tending to. Oh, well. Nobody died. They just got crusty.
Quickly flash back to when we were scraping paint off the guest room walls a month ago and spotted one of the neighborhood’s feral felines with a kitten. It was just a puffball of a thing; could have fit in a tea cup. Naturally, I tried to snorgle it and was rebuffed in a low, snarly growl from its mother. The mother who, when I tried to feed its tiny offspring a bit of tuna before we left on the honeymoon, swatted its kitten away and ate every bit of food herself. Some maternal instinct! Anyway, I never got within ten feet of either mother or kitten – both were far, far too scared to partake of the fruits of my maternal instincts. C’mere you.
Now, fast forward to some plant watering when I see the kitten, still no bigger than a muffin, sacked out on the neighbor’s driveway, no mama in sight. I took a shot and called to her. And she came, trotting through the grass. More hungry than afraid, she stuck her little nose into my open hand. It took me a minute to realize she was mewing – her tiny mouth was open but no sound was coming out.
I scooped her up and pushed the front door open. Husband! We need food and water, STAT!
The kitten was all bones and fleas. I thought she might break in my hand. I thought my heart might break, too. The neighbor has been feeding strays for ages and yet, can let something like this go on? This kitten was starving right in front of her. Well, not in front of me. No way.
“Honey, would you be upset if I took her to the vet?”
Money being what it is, I knew committing to a vet bill wasn’t something I should just up and do without some discussion.
“Of course not.”
So the vet was called and an immediate appointment made and as we were headed out the door, the Dork Lord asked, “Wait, does this mean we just got another cat?”
“It means we will take care of her until she is better and we decide to find her a home or keep her.”
I wasn’t dead set on anything except not letting that tiny beast die on my watch. The vet pronounced her five to six weeks old, less than one pound in weight, and severely malnourished. She couldn’t even hiss when she got the most invasive of exams – too weak to make noise. He treated her for fleas and intestinal parasites, checked her heart and said that although frail, she would probably be okay. Come back in three weeks for a second treatment, he said, and if you decide to keep her, we can talk about vaccinations.
I didn’t think my husband was up for a second cat, I told him. But we’ll make sure she has a good home.
But then the Boy named her. And then he nicknamed her. And sang her rhymes about cat food and mean old Sir Hal. And watched basketball with her asleep between his feet. And that’s how Midge (short for Midget) came to live at our house. She may be another mouth to feed but it’s like the Dork Lord says, she pays us back in cute.
Awwh, that’s wonderful! It sounds like the Dork Lord is letting someone in to a bit of the space that Sariic used to take up in him.
How is Sir Hal taking to the newcomer?
Sir Hal is being a mean, old man about the whole thing. But we’re keeping them separated for the most part and letting him get used to the idea. It’s hard to charm him about her arrival when now that she feels better, all she wants to do is chase him and pounce his tail.
Oh that sweet sweet little torty face…Now I have to stop working and find one of my cats to snorgle till it begs for mercy. Welcome home & congrats on Midge!
She is precious!! What a sweet face!! The beauty of feral kittens when you get one that age is that they are soooooo happy to have someone take care of them that they just snuggle in and take over your heart forever!! I <3 this story!!
BTW, welcome back! Missed you!!
Welcome back Fish! I didn’t comment on your wedding post, but congrats! Congrats on everything. I am so happy for you, Dork Lord, Sir Hal and Midge.
Oh Heather, you SO have the Mommy gene!
God bless you for taking in this fur-baby in need. I’m posting because I’m quite envious at this new addition as I recently had to put down my own feline fur-baby and am still adjusting to the empty house.
By the way, CONGRATS on the wedding and welcome back! Enjoy your lovely home.
Are you in NY metro area, by any chance? I got a call this morning from a crying friend who has to get rid of her wonderful 7 yo female named Annie. My email is cvblog@ymail.com if you’re interested.
Wow, that just made me cry my eyes out! Maybe it’s because my hormones are out of wack from birth control, but jeeeez! So glad you took care of the little kitteh.
Congrats on the new addition. Sucker.
I wish I wasn’t allergic to kitties. They are so cute!
I just ended up with another dog. He was a stray in my boyfriend’s neighborhood that some of the neighbors were feeding. (I am currently staying with the boy as my puppy and I are tornado displaced.) He showed up the first day I was there and it was storming and I brought him in the house. There are so many displaced animals right now I couldn’t take him to the shelter and he is such a sweetie and Leila (my other puppy) took to him immediately so I just had to keep him. He has already cost me a lot of money but he makes me laugh in a really crappy time in life so that alone makes him a keeper. And he is a good distraction for Leila who just doesn’t understand why we can’t go home. So I consider him a blessing. That needs housebroke.
“my husband….” that sounds nice.
the new addition sure is cute. i’m excited to hear about they wedding and honeymoon. Hooray!
Awwww! I want to get another kitty, too, but hubs isn’t to keen on it. We already have our own version of grumpy Sir Hal, and he thinks that’s enough. Maybe I just need to bring one home.
Glad to see you back from your honeymoon!
Midge is adorable! I’m so excited for you to have another purr-ball in the house.
Wedding pictures!!! I want wedding pictures!!!!!
It will be about a month for them to be done, but I can see if a few friends will lend me some
Awwwwww I wuv kittens! So me and my bf broke up right around the time you were leaving for your honeymoon. But it’s okay.. he’s got some maturing to do and I’m tired of playing the mom anyway. The only thing I want to play mom too is hopefully a kitty of my own.. if I can find a place that allows it!
Awwwwww I wuv kittens! So me and my bf broke up right around the time you were leaving for your honeymoon. But it’s okay.. he’s got some maturing to do and I’m tired of playing the mom anyway. The only thing I want to play mom too is hopefully a kitty of my own.. if I can find a place that allows it!
I want a little rescue kitty, but I also like to travel a lot and am just being selfish. Surely if I saw one out on the street there’s no way I couldn’t take him or her home.
aw
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!
Seems like fate! What a little precious cutie!
Welcome back, Fish! Our cat was a rescue, too. We dubbed him Awesome and now spend most of the time adding clarification to our stories/sentences when he’s in earshot: “Adjective, not the noun.”
Glad Midge found a fishtastic home!
Keri
shakentogether.blogspot.com
Also, the Dork Lord’s reaction to him is so sweet. I love it! You have to be imagining how gentle he will be with babies when you see him loving on the cute, little kitten.
First of all, congratulations on your wedding! I saw your pic on here and your profile pic on FB. You looked beautiful! The dress is so pretty too.
I rarely comment but when I read this; I had to. I love you guys for taking in little Midge. She is adorable and with a face like that (besides the fact that the DL already named/nicknamed her), it seems like a good chance you will keep her.
I adopted a second cat a couple of years ago and at first my older cat hissed at her and wanted nothing to do with her but in no time at all, the older cat was letting kitten sleep next to him. My second one is a torty too.
Again, what a great thing you are doing and she is just too cute!
Shauna,
You are right. Wonderful story about Midge.
Auntie
Within a week after we’d gotten home from our honeymoon, my husband called me to ask if he could bring home a stray dog they’d found on the beach (he’s a police officer). I said yes and we had 12 wonderful years with Dakota.
Welcome, Midge!
Awww…she’s beautiful
Perfect name!!
Love this story! Welcome back! Congrats on the wedding, the pics you posted so far were so lovely. Can’t wait to see more. Hope you enjoyed the honeymoon. Also, congrats on the house. What a cozy litte family you and The Boy are building. We are all so glad to have you back, Fish!
You guys are angels.
Welcome back! Congrats on the wonderful-ness (wedding and Midge)! One adventure after another, huh?
Missed you…and looking forward to pictures. Hoping that it’ll push my boyfriend to join me in Italy later this year. I mean, so what if he’s been there 2 (or is it 3) times? He’s never been there with ME.
Oh my, that face, that face!! Can’t wait to hear more Midge stories!
I have to admit, that story made me weepy, too. She is super adorable and I hope that she grows on Hal. You guys are awesome.
Same thing happened here about a month ago. I pulled into the parking lot of the produce stand/dollar store and heard kitteh wailing. Oh sheez, I am such a sucker. I went in search and found a teeny kitten in a milk crate with a saucer of water and some lunch meat. The produce stand guy said it was there this morning when they opened. O sheez. This was a very tiny tabby with an operatic voice. The worst part is the no kill shelter is about a mile away, on the same road, how can people do such a thing?
She came home with me. The last thing I need right now is the expense of another pet. I tested her motor skills and she was about 5 weeks. When ManToy came home I expected major fireworks, but all he said was ‘get her spayed, we don’t need a litter of kittens.’ The vet agreed on the age, wormed and gave her a vaccine to the tune of almost $200.
Fia the Fearless! Toppler of tall fake trees and drive by bopper of big dogs! The dogs love her, and my heeler is convinced you can herd cats if you start them early enough. My old man cat is allowed to pop the snot out of her (supervised) to teach her some cat manners. Now she respects the Hiss. I managed to fix the tree and teach her to not climb it. My kitchen table is her fort from which she launches attacks. Kitten proofing the house is nearly impossible. Except for the housetraining part, puppies are sooooooo much easier.
Fia says Ohai, Midge, you lucked out kitteh!
Awww she’s so cute. I have a sweet little tortie as well. Welcome home. Can’t wait to see pictures and hear all the details of the wedding and honeymoon. Congrats!
Oh she’s so cute! And congrats on the new husband!
Katinka II
Precious! Was Midge tested for FeLV/FIV at the vet’s? I had a friend take in a feral kitten and delayed the tests for a couple of weeks – it was positive for FIV, and her other two cats were already exposed. They were *lucky* and did not contract it, but could have, and the vet said she shouldn’t have let them have contact with the kitten until the test was done. I just wanted to spread the word so other people don’t go through that. Bless you Heather for taking in this little one.
Yay! Happy New Kitten!
My guy and I just got our own kitten, Calli, on Easter Sunday (my idea, naturally!)….and she quickly weaseled her way in to his heart. He went from saying “let’s not let her in the bedroom in case I end up being alergic to her” to “let her sleep with us, she’s no problem” (of course, that’s because he sleeps through her playtime in the middle of the night!). Congratulations, again, on your happy, happy wedding, Heather. (How fun to say “husband”!?!) And welcome to your new furry bundle of love!
I was just going to comment regarding FeLV/FIV, but I see that Laura has beaten me to it. Heather, like Laura, I strongly urge you to have Midge tested before she has more contact with Sir Hal. My boyfriend and I found a sweet stray about a month ago whom we thought would make a great pet, only to have the local shelter diagnose him with both FeLV and FIV. Thankfully, we hadn’t exposed him to any of our indoor cats before he was tested. Our local shelter is wonderful, and they have kindly agreed not to euthanize him in spite of his dual diagnosis. Instead, they will keep him until they find a special home or rescue group willing to take this sweet but sick little guy. I hope Midge tests negative for both FeLV and FIV — and I’m sure she will — but I certainly wouldn’t let her have any more contact with Sir Hal until you know for sure…I’m a total cat lover and have several fur babies whom I’ve rescued, and, in my opinion, you can never be too safe about this. I don’t mean to put a damper on your joy…Midge is precious, and I sincerely hope all four of you can start this new chapter of your lives together as a happy family.
Awwwwwwww.
Now I want another kitten. But with 2 cats already THAT’S not going to happen.
Oh, she’s just beautiful! Lucky girl … and lucky kitteh, too.
)
I loved your quote from Shall We Dance (the Japanese version is one of my favorite films).
I wanted to say congratulations. Of course on the wedding and on the house but also on the Dork Lord. He sounds like a true softy when it comes to the furry kind and that’s a good thing. He may be a dog guy but he has definitely sucumbed to the kitteness and who can blame him. Any guy that promptly responds “of course not” about incurring a vet bill to help a starving kitten is aces in my book!
Lastly, congratulations on Midge. What I can see of those markings you have a gorgeous tortie on your hands.
you’ve come a long way. i’ve been reading your blog for a looong time and i cannot put in words how happy i am for you for where and who you are today. you certainly deserve the best of luck in the world. god bless you and your little family.