I have less than a week left to enjoy the company of the burn kitties. I look back to when they arrived. how sick and in sad shape they were in. Initially, when we got them, we were unaware of the horrors they lived through in the first days of their birth. The evidence would unfold as we started just giving them basic care. I don’t think I will ever forget the feelings of helplessness I felt when their first bowel movement consisted of so much crud in their stomach, none of it actual food. They have all come so far. I am so proud of them. The screams of Ash as I gently stimulated her still ring in my ears. Never have I encountered so much pain and torment from a kitten with her eyes still not opened.

Fearless Freddy, the orange boy is literally not scared of anything. He meets each new challenge head on- whether it was the first time he was introduced to Kota, or he heard the running of the vacuum. Nothing phases him. I do not know his back story. All I know is that he ducked into a merchant’s shop during a bad thunderstorm. He was freezing, wet, hungry and she labeled him (inappropriately) as feral. He was not feral, he was lost and scared and she didn’t know  how to handle such a frightened kitten and got bit in the process.

Freddy loves ice cubes. He will push them across the floor until they melt and then lick up the water. When he hears the ice maker chunking, he will come skidding into the room and stand underneath the maker, hoping that I might miss the glass and one will fall on the floor. It invariably does! Strange how that happens?

His favorite day is laundry day. He loves to jump into a pile of warm laundry and burrow down into the warmth to sleep. He is so funny and such a charmer. Once he loses the warmth on top of the basket, he will hop down and using claws and teeth, he will pull each item of clothing out of the laundry basket through the holes in the sides! Once he gets to where there is warmth again, he will hop in and sleep until his bed goes cold then repeat the process. The silly goof. He is no longer peeing on the warm clothes so it looks like his personal demons are finally at rest,

Magoo continues to be afraid of anything new that comes his way. If he hears a new noise, or is someone visits here, be it a friend or a repairman. Magoo simply will vanish. He  is very adept in hiding.. I believe it depends on how scared or threatened he feels at the time.

Magoo has been treated several times since his arrival with hematomas to his bottom ear lobes. At first I was puzzled to what was causing this to occurl until one afternoon, I went in to see the babies only to find out that Ash had latched herself onto her brother’s ear lobe and was sucking it like it was mom’s milk. After that episode, Bitter Apple came into play.I have to put it on Magoo’s ear at least three to four times daily. The stuff is nasty. I use a cotton ball, and just picking up the cotton ball in my bare fingers, I can actually taste the bitterness in my mouth. After that experience, I always wear rubber gloves and make sure to give Magoo a tasty treat immediately afterward.. It does keep his fur a bit oily no matter how much or little I apply, but it did also stop the traumatic vet visits to drain the hematomas.

For Ash she is still skittish over moving hands coming at her. Sometimes, she will run away in terror, until I started feeding her directly out of my hands. Now she just backs up, waiting to see what the hands might want to do to her. It is quite sad to witness, but of all the three kitties, she was the sickest. With an extremely infected rectum due to the foreign material she had to pass through her system. She is also the largest so was able to digest larger pieces of gravel. Poor kitty.

She is quite loving though. Not keen on being picked up for very long, but if I am sitting on the floor, she is the first to approach and wants head scratches and chin rubs. I know they are going to a good place. I am grateful for all the love, support, prayers and donations that came our way to help these four babies out. I couldn’t have done it alone.

Here are before and after shots so you can see in one glance, how far they have come since they arrived here.

On another note, I was recently interviewed about caring for stray and feral kittens for an upcoming article in Catster. Through the interview, I tried to release a lot of my tips and tricks in working with scared and frightened kittens that were not used to humans. I am looking forward to seeing it in print and hope, that the tips left will help people in dealing with these wonderful babies. The author of the article is Dusty Rainbolt. Dusty wrote Kittens for Dummies, Cat Wrangling 101 and her latest book is Finding Your Lost Cat. All three books are worthy to add to your cat library.

Eleven days ago, I received a phone call from the husband of a friend of mine. He was quite distraught over an incident that occurred with his cat and his wife. He was not making much sense ( very rattled by what he witnessed) but according to the fragments that were relayed to me. (I have yet to speak to his wife). There was a fight between his cat and one other new one in the house. When his wife went into the room, she bent down to pick something up off the floor. I don’t know what that something was but suddenly the cat launched at her! She screamed as the cat raked her leg. She ended up having to go to the ER and they were stitching up her wounds (14 stitches)

He asked if I could take the cat- we normally do not take owner-surrender cats here. I told him I was sorry, but I couldn’t. Then he started texting me repeatedly in the matter of about a half an hour. I was on the phone calling everyone that I knew that did rescue trying to find a place for this cat as he was texting me. I knew he was desperate and I was afraid for the cat.

His last text alarmed me. It simply said “Sorry to have bothered you. He’s gone!”

I was so unsettled, but God was still working in the day and I received a text from someone who could take him, but not until the 16th when four of her rescues would transition out into the barns. I called her, we talked, I told her I could keep him until then.

Calling his wife, I was told it was okay. They had found a place for the cat. His uncle lives near them, has barns and acreage and they were taking him there. I hung up feeling relieved, until I received another text from the wife saying to call her husband now!

I called him and he was sobbing hysterically. He couldn’t do it. His plan had been to just leave the cat in the  middle of nowhere with food and water,  but after he drove away and saw the cat trying to follow him. He broke down and couldn’t do it. I told him that I had found a place for the cat. A safe place and bring the cat to me. “Scratch” (his new name) is now upstairs.

When he arrived and he is a BIG orange boy. It was quite the chore to lug him upstairs. I had prepared the room ahead of time, blocking the door to attic (that swings inward) I covered the futon with a king size dark blanket so he could hide underneath if he wanted to. He had food, water and litter pans available as well. I put the carrier on the floor and opened the door. He would not come out. I left him to decompress.

When Scratch first arrived, he chose to stay hidden under the futon. I would feed him three times a day, give him clean water and just leave him alone. On the third day, he had moved from where he had been under the futon and gone to the closet. I did manage that day to look at him and noticed that although he was a large cat, he was quite skinny. His eyes, when we first meant were mean. He was not scared, He was terrified. I backed off. I did not wish to get attacked.

I have asked nothing of him until a few days ago. The gal couldn’t come and pick him up on the 16th as planned, so she will be here tomorrow to make the transfer. I put a dog crate upstairs a few days ago and have been feeding him in there. He started coming out from under the futon and being with me (head-bumping my legs all the time) on the 5th day here.When he moved back out of the closet to duck under the futon again, I shut the closet door.

If I dared to pet him, just barely touch the top of his head lightly, he would scoot back under the futon. So I stopped trying. Now he will stay out all the time I am in the room, except if I drop something by accident or open up a trash bag to collect his waste. It took him three days before he started eating and using the litter pans. The meanness in his eyes is now gone, but I do carry a broom with me when I go into the room just in case. I do not know what his triggers are. I have a feeling that even though he is neutered, if he does charge the door (which he hasn’t). He could do great harm to Molly and the kittens. I don’t want to take that chance.

He is more relaxed and I am sad that he is leaving tomorrow as we are making small strides with him. But I know that I cannot keep him. It’s just not possible right now. Plus I think the farther he gets away from his old life the better. New name, new life. I’m getting text messages from his former owner who is worried about his cat’s separation anxiety and mental health. I keep assuring him, all is good. This cat does not have separation anxiety. He has a trust issue.

He is really quite sweet. I am able to pet him now without him fleeing in fear back under the futon. Yesterday, when I went to feed, he was sleeping on top of the futon on the warming blanket! I cursed myself for not having my phone on me to snap a photo.

But, here are some photos of him from first day until now-

..

I know the gal that is going to be working with him. It’s the same gal who took several of my feral cats when I left during the fires. He will be worked with gradually and when ready, if she can’t find a proper home for him, He will be to the point where he can get along with others and just join her barn crew. That’s a long time down the road.

I feel sorry for this boy. He has a lot to overcome, but orange kitties are pretty resilient. I have hopes he will have bright future.

On a further note- the burn kitties are going great! They  just got neutered and are back here waiting for pick-up day which is Feb. 4th. The new owner is making sure the catio is ready for them. She got injured and was in the hospital for four days which set her plans back.

Please everyone stay safe and healthy. Thank you to those of you who still support what is done here for these cats. The food/funds sent were such a welcome relief.

I’m not sure who wrote this song, but many years ago, when I sang with a female barbershop group in Alaska and we were performing (and won) in Seattle, we sang this song. It has been circling in my head in the last few days:

Let there be Peace on Earth, and let it begin with me.
Let there be Peace on Earth, the Peace that was meant to be.
With God as our Father, Brothers all are we.
Let me walk with my Brother, in Perfect Harmony..

Let Peace begin with Me, Let this be the moment Now.
With every step I take, Let this be my solemn vow.
To take each moment and Live each moment in Peace Eternally.
Let there be Peace on Earth and Let it Begin with Me.”

May God watch over us All-

If anyone is still reading this blog that is covered in cobwebs, thank you for that. Even my keyboard is dusty and covered not in cobwebs, but cat hair. The burn kitties are getting so big! They are still showing unique signs of PTSD and I am beginning to think that I might be the trigger. Aftr all, I am the culprit that kept repeatedly taking them back and forth to the vet, trying to get the vet to figure out what was wrong with them. They are scheduled for their neuters/spay on the 21st of this month and then they will all three go together to their new home. Perhaps being out of my hands, will help their anxiety to lessen. That is my hope.

Here are some of the latest photos of these beauties. I am so proud of them. They have come so far and are going to be wonderful cats growing forward:

Now I am asking for cat food for the cats here. This winter is starting out on a brutal note. We’ve already had several pipes from the irrigation well shatter and burst because of the cold. Thankfully, the build they did on the house recently has left the house pipes a lot more insulated than they were before. I have had to beef up the amount of wet food that I am feeding and we are running low now. I have 18 cans left before I will have to resort to just dry food. We are down to two 30 pound bags of Cat Chow. If you can help- we are currently feeding Meow Mix (wet) and fancy feast- anything but beef. For some reason, the only thing the cats want to do with the beef flavored is bury it! If you can help either by sending funds to Paypal to catsatrisk@comcast.net or sending food directly- we would be grateful.I am currently feeding 24 cans a day to all the cats. Twelve in the morning, and twelve in the evening. I have completely cut off the afternoon feedings. I just can’t afford it.

If you did not receive an email from us yet about your donations this year, please let me know. Things have been a bit chaotic recently but I have sent out all the receipts and thank you letters. I am grateful for the support more than you know. This will be the first time in eight years that we were not able to settle all our vet debt by the end of the year. But right now, the priority is food for the kitties. It’s essentially how they stay warm in the frigid nights that have invaded us.