At this moment, Little Gray Kitten (whom we’re tentatively calling Vera B. after her umbilical cord attachment to a certain Vera Bradley tote), is probably lying very, very still because her belly is too fat to move. This, Miss B, is what we refer to as a First World Problem. Welcome to the fray.
To those of you who made donations to help with vet costs, I cannot thank you enough. You’ve made such a nice dent in that emergency vet bill, it’s almost like it never happened. So, thank you – from the bottom of my heart and the strained circumference of Vera B’s belly.
Now that the antibiotic is working and she is eating her weight in smelly cat food every oh, six minutes, I’m working on getting her past the Terrified of Everything phase. Holy cow, she’s timid. To get her used to being handled, I wrap her in a towel and carry her around the house, doing ordinary things, having ordinary loud conversations, and all the while nuzzling her (my god, she’s soft) so she knows that members of the two-legged set are not so horrible. She’s already at the point she nuzzles me back – headbutts me, really – and purrs and cuddles and oh! did you hear that sound? RUN AND HIDE. Last night, I spent 30 minutes trying to coax her out of the interior of the office sleeper sofa. Somehow during our lessons on how to pounce things, she managed to find a wee hole that allowed her to wiggle into the frame of the couch arm. And she was not about to come out. She’d lick stinky food off my fingers and swat at me through the tear in the fabric, as though it were some terrific new game – the game that would never end – and it dawned on me that one, single, solitary pound of kitten can be a gigantic pain in the tush.
This kitten will not be the gettin’ fur on the furniture kind. She will be too busy hiding under it.
Over the weekend, our previous kitten rescue effort, the freakishly fearless Midge, discovered she had the ability to jump. Like, leap small buildings in a single bound jump. In my head, I hear an ACME cartoon boing! every time I see her launch herself on to some new lofty vertical surface. It’s pretty amusing to watch. Well, to most of us. The only one who is not amused in the least by her kangaroo rat skillz is Hal, because now he has exactly zero options about sharing his special gimpy tooth food, his well worn bed and his cool, damp sink. He’s least happy about the sink sharing and makes it no secret that he would prefer she discover someplace else to find totally irresistible.
And Midge, well, she makes it no secret that she doesn’t care what he’d prefer.
Sometimes, I look at that mug and I just want to EAT her. I’m guessing Hal feels similarly inclined.
You and your husband are very amazing people. Just wanted to let you know that.
oh, so precious. All the little kitty cat faces! I just want to snuggle that little gray ball of fur up under my chin. Bless you for taking such care of her
Love, love, love this!
OMG…I so want a kitty now.
Poor Hal…his nice quiet existence has been turned upside down. Midge is adorable, it almost looks like she’s saying “Catch me if you can!”. You and the Dork Lord are amazing people, you have a lifetime of good karma coming your way!!
All of your cats look like they have bag loads of personality (and note I am including Vera B as one of your cats – even if you are able to find a home for her and manage to not keep her yourself, she’ll always be one of your cats)
Darling babies!
PS: Sir Hal looks like my Boots! Gosh I loved that cat.
And little Miss Midge is growing so beautifully!
Ohhh they’re just so cute!
Vera B. is seriously squeezing my heart! My Leila dog was very timid she was terrified of the trash truck. Even when she was in the house. And motorcycles and the vacuum and anything that I dropped (I am a wee bit clumsy so that happened often) and the garbage disposal… you get the point. She isn’t so bad now. The tornado set her back a bit and engines will probably always bother her now but Vera B. will improve too!
LOVE the blue in your bathroom. LOVE.
Django the Destroyer can leap small buildings in a single bound as well. I keep telling him he is a PUPPY, not a kitty but he will have none of it. And who am I to hold him back? He jumped at least 4 feet yesterday. It was easy for me to determine this as I am 5 foot nothing.
Midge and Hal are adorable. I am so glad they landed you as their mama. And so glad you found Vera B. You have such a good heart.
It’s so very wonderful that you have rescued poor little Vera B! From one animal lover that goes to ridiculous lengths to another – thank you! (We once saved a week-old mouse by feeding him peanut butter and cream for weeks)
And I absolutely love the “cat in the sink” photos – hilarious!
SO cute. I *love* Vera B. I would beg you for her if we didn’t already have a kitty.
THanks for the stories & pix. I’ve had a rotten day & now I’m smiling & laughed out loud. Twice.
Why such a rotten day, Ms. Barbara?
I took my daughter to grad school (Univ of MD) yesterday; she went to college quite close to home so I never really had that separation issue. Combine that w/the fact that she’s my one & only & I drove over 700 miles in 2 days, and I was a wreck when I got home last night. Hal & Vera & Midge & your stories really cheered me up. Even though it was after midnight when I shut down the computer, I woke up 2 of my 4 cats for some forced playtime.
I do that to Hal when I feel sad. I go find him and wake him up. He might bite me a bit, but I know that’s just how he says, “I’m sorry you’re sad.”
This post is making my kitten biological clock tick that much louder. It’s gotten to the point that I’m counting the days until all the boxes are unpacked in the new house and my husband’s argument of how a cat could possibly destroy the carpet of the rental house goes out the window. Granted, it will be the carpets that we’ll be paying for until 2041, but still…
I so very much covet your Midge. My bossy feline, Amelia Earhart, does not share these feelings at all. Little does she know, a little sister is arriving in November. Should be a blast. Or not. *sigh* Meow.
Midge looks very much like my sister’s cat Bianca. Her other cat’s name is Vera… nice name for a kitty.
Well, if the little one is (S)Midge, then the gray one should be Smudge, no?
Midge’s coloring is beautiful! You’re doing great things for those kittens. The sink pics are too cute. Thanks for sharing.