Kittens #1
Last night, I adopted two kittens. A fellow orchestra member's cat gave birth to kittens and he was finding homes for them, which I am able to provide only in the most amorphous sense of the word. Since my roommates are allergic, I set the kitties up in the interim apartment I'm moving into in a week, and then hopefully sometime next month we'll all move to Brooklyn together.
Heeding the advice I'd been given to confine them to a single room at first, I had planned to put them in the unoccupied of the two bedrooms (the other one being occupied by my aunt), which is currently undergoing renovation. When I arrived, after snowy drive and even snowier unloading (which consisted of not only kitten supplies but also my personal overnight supplies, including a futon mattress), I first had to pick up the room and reattach the door. Once the room was finally suitable for kittens, I shut the door (which doesn't have a doorknob, so I wedged a towel under it to keep it shut) and opened the carrier. After a few minutes, one crawled out (I'm assuming the boy) and began investigating his new space. The girl stayed in the carrier for at least an hour.
The boy kitten was cautious with me at first, and still backs away every time I move a muscle, but was amenable to my petting him. It wasn't long before he'd curled up into a ball in the crook of my arm and took a nap.
When the girl finally emerged from the carrier, she had dried vomit on her butt. I know cats clean themselves, but it seemed like a big mess and she didn't seem to be doing anything about it. I decided I'd let her come to me and then I'd clean it off, but every time she came close, the boy chased her away. On perhaps her seventh revolution of the room, the boy was distracted with something else, and I got my hands on her. She was okay with my petting, but obviously displeased with my scrubbing. I got most of it off but finally let her go. I was disappointed our first encounter was traumatic for her.
I went to bed and once they deemed it was safe they both came and slept on the mattress with me. I shifted at one point and they moved elsewhere. When I woke up I didn't see them right away, and the door was cracked a little. I was worried they'd gotten out but they were just under the dresser. I was hoping to see that the litter had been used but it hadn't. There was a nickel-sized wet spot at the end of my blanket, and I'm sure there are other surprises to be discovered later.
Today we have our vet appointment. When I made the appointment yesterday, the woman asked me if they had names yet and I said no, but after spending the night with them I think I've decided on them. I'll try them out for a few days and then make it official (by which I suppose I mean Facebook official).
Sister stays safe and soundI imagine this is what Brother will look like most of the time
A close-up of the boy and my thumbA combination petting/pinning
Better pictures (and a video) to come.
Heeding the advice I'd been given to confine them to a single room at first, I had planned to put them in the unoccupied of the two bedrooms (the other one being occupied by my aunt), which is currently undergoing renovation. When I arrived, after snowy drive and even snowier unloading (which consisted of not only kitten supplies but also my personal overnight supplies, including a futon mattress), I first had to pick up the room and reattach the door. Once the room was finally suitable for kittens, I shut the door (which doesn't have a doorknob, so I wedged a towel under it to keep it shut) and opened the carrier. After a few minutes, one crawled out (I'm assuming the boy) and began investigating his new space. The girl stayed in the carrier for at least an hour.
The boy kitten was cautious with me at first, and still backs away every time I move a muscle, but was amenable to my petting him. It wasn't long before he'd curled up into a ball in the crook of my arm and took a nap.
When the girl finally emerged from the carrier, she had dried vomit on her butt. I know cats clean themselves, but it seemed like a big mess and she didn't seem to be doing anything about it. I decided I'd let her come to me and then I'd clean it off, but every time she came close, the boy chased her away. On perhaps her seventh revolution of the room, the boy was distracted with something else, and I got my hands on her. She was okay with my petting, but obviously displeased with my scrubbing. I got most of it off but finally let her go. I was disappointed our first encounter was traumatic for her.
I went to bed and once they deemed it was safe they both came and slept on the mattress with me. I shifted at one point and they moved elsewhere. When I woke up I didn't see them right away, and the door was cracked a little. I was worried they'd gotten out but they were just under the dresser. I was hoping to see that the litter had been used but it hadn't. There was a nickel-sized wet spot at the end of my blanket, and I'm sure there are other surprises to be discovered later.
Today we have our vet appointment. When I made the appointment yesterday, the woman asked me if they had names yet and I said no, but after spending the night with them I think I've decided on them. I'll try them out for a few days and then make it official (by which I suppose I mean Facebook official).
Sister stays safe and soundI imagine this is what Brother will look like most of the time
A close-up of the boy and my thumbA combination petting/pinning
Better pictures (and a video) to come.