Author Topic: The Zev thread (was "Anybody want a kitten?")  (Read 107810 times)

Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #50 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:17:08 pm »
Thanks.  Reckon the plastic crate will do the job for now, and has the advantage of not needing sterilising before it's safe for use with another cat.

Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #51 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:18:10 pm »
She's had several wees since last night, but not as yet passed any solids. ...

Talisker used to be an absolute sod for avoiding using the litter tray when I wasn't letting him out for some reason.  He could go a couple of days without using it "properly", and then when he eventually did, you needed an industrial air freshener to get rid of the odour!

There can be a lot of variation in cat size and the features which you would age it by.  It looks like one of the better ones is the development of teeth, but that could be hard to check, depending on how confident you are at grabbing an unhelpful kitten and getting it's mouth open.  I suspect it probably also needs you to be reasonably familiar with what kitten and cat teeth look like as well, so it's going to be best done by a vet.

The moment you say something like weepy eyes, people start saying cat flu, it seems to be an almost Pavlovian reaction.  When I rescued a kitten from the Purley Way a few years back, it had weepy eyes, and I had the same reaction from the local cat rescue bods.  Once a vet looked at her, she was fine.  It's probably just something that Mum would clean automatically for the kitten, so if it's been on it's own for a while, it's probably got a bit grubby.

The fact that it's eating so well suggests that (i) it's pretty healthy.  Ill cats stop eating and drinking & (ii) it's possibly reasonably old, since it's obviously quite happy with solid foods, and not demanding only milk from Mum.
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Rhys W

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #52 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:24:05 pm »
We haven't had any more photos since yesterday, don't keep us waiting long!

Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #53 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:31:00 pm »
We haven't had any more photos since yesterday, don't keep us waiting long!

http://twitpic.com/5zshj5

Crappy phone pic from this morning, as I wasn't within arm's reach of the proper camera.  I'll take more later.  Now, the vet.

barakta

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #54 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:43:02 pm »
We'll get some better pics this evening when Kim & Kitten are back from the vets when there's two of us and the 2nd person can do camera using. :)

Fingers crossed for the vet!

Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #55 on: 02 August, 2011, 02:50:09 pm »
Out of curiosity, have you checked whether any of your local cat charities (or even your vet) have a Stray Cat fund - some of them do, and can cover the cost of any necessary medical treatment if you'd find it problematic.
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Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #56 on: 02 August, 2011, 03:59:01 pm »
Okay, been to the vet.  This one has the makings of a skilled stoker, I think:

[1]

Somewhat predictably, the first of Silly Oak's finest unavoidable potholes[2] answered the passing solids question.  Otherwise she seemed remarkably calm on the back of the bike.  Which was more than could be said for the slobbery dog convention that was going on in the waiting room.  We hid round a corner and she calmed down when I stroked her.

Vet didn't have anything unexpected to say.  Confirmed that she is indeed a she.  Gave me some antibiotic ointment for her eyes and some drops (thankfully not pills!) to put almost homeopathic quantities of in her food.  He reckons she's more like 6-7 weeks old, but since she's eating solid food without problems and is obviously okay with being handled that shouldn't be a problem, so she'll be okay on standard kitten food.

I've given her some more cat milk, and she's settled back into the litter tray.





[1] For the avoidance of doubt, the lid of that box has several 22mm holes drilled in it: air, for the circulation of.  You can't see them from that angle.
[2] I couldn't help but call 'hole' to her.  I'm a soppy git really.

Charlotte

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #57 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:04:01 pm »
*MOARSQUEE*
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Eccentrica Gallumbits

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #58 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:13:37 pm »
They don't do vetinary care other than neutering, so I've made an appointment with a local vet, and molished a bicycle-friendly cat carrier out of one of barakta's plastic crates of bisexual propaganda.
Oh, you filthy pervs, trying to corrupt an innocent kitteh. *phones Daily Wail*

She's so teeny. I almost would offer to take her myself except my flat's too small, I'm allergic and I don't want a cat.  ;D
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #59 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:14:19 pm »
This may seem daft, but since she's determined to sleep in the tray you're using for cat litter, put the cat litter in another tray, and put it where she's been going to the loo (ie on the bath mat), and put something marginally more comfortable in the tray that the cat litter was in.

That may work, but since we're talking about a cat here, it may not. :-\ ??? ;D

She is looking very cute in those pictures, and obviously a bit more comfortable with you.

I also used to warn Talisker about holes and speed bumps when he was travelling by bicycle!
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #60 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:17:26 pm »
YAFC (Yet Another Forum Cat) doesn't really trip off of the tounge. ;D
I think that would be a great name for her. Pronounced "Yaffker", it trips off the tongue nicely.

If she was a he (which she isn't), then that may have sort of worked as Professor Yaffle, of Bagpuss fame!
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #61 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:21:52 pm »
I hope you're going to wash out that liter tray before you next cook in it...  ;)


I shall show Mr R this thread tonight.  I'm trying to twist his arm into getting a cat.  He wants some horrible neurotic/psychotic pure bred (like a Burmese).  I want a rescue cat.
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Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #62 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:25:19 pm »
This may seem daft, but since she's determined to sleep in the tray you're using for cat litter, put the cat litter in another tray, and put it where she's been going to the loo (ie on the bath mat), and put something marginally more comfortable in the tray that the cat litter was in.

That may work, but since we're talking about a cat here, it may not. :-\ ??? ;D

She's got the litter thing sussed.  Digs it a bit, wees, then sits down for a snooze.   :facepalm:

Hasn't used the bathmat (for anything) since last night.  Will dig up another old towel and see if she prefers that in a bit.  I think she dislikes the way the bathmat snags on her claws.

Also, it's very hot, and we're going to want use of the bath at some point, at least temporarily.  Going to see what her level of enthusiasm for a nice cardboard box elsewhere in the bathroom is after she's had some kip.  She doesn't like open spaces: the first couple of times I put her on my lap this morning, she looked around and climbed straight back into the bath.


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I'm assuming that the vet has said that she is a she?

Yeah, edited my previous post to include that.


Quote
She is looking very cute in those pictures, and obviously a bit more comfortable with you.

Amazingly so, though I suppose it makes more sense if she's that young.

Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #63 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:41:20 pm »
She's got the litter thing sussed.  Digs it a bit, wees, then sits down for a snooze.   :facepalm:
Cats, and kittens, generally pick up the idea of litter pretty fast.  They don't normally sleep in it however. ???  Go figure!

She doesn't like open spaces: the first couple of times I put her on my lap this morning, she looked around and climbed straight back into the bath.
I think that's fairly normal instinct for any small, young animal.  Basically she's trying to hide away from predators.  I guess the only way she'll be less inclined to feel that she needs to do it, is once she gets more used to the environment, and realises that she's not being threatened.  Giving her something to hide in / under / behind is probably the best you can do.

Quote
I'm assuming that the vet has said that she is a she?
Yeah, edited my previous post to include that.
... and I edited my post when I realised that you'd said it, but you read too fast. ;D


I'm surprised she's that young, but obviously a robust little individual, since she's also clearly doing pretty well.

I shall show Mr R this thread tonight.  I'm trying to twist his arm into getting a cat.  He wants some horrible neurotic/psychotic pure bred (like a Burmese).  I want a rescue cat.
My sister has a couple of pedigree cats, which I'll accept are very cute and attractive cats.  The trouble is, they look so attractive, and probably expensive, that she's afraid that they'll be stolen, so she never lets them out, unattended.  They're basically indoors only cats.

With so many cats and kittens freely available, I can't see why it's necessary, or even desirable, to spend a fair whack of cash on a pure breed.  I also think a random moggy is more like to be healthy, with good hybrid vigour, rather than the not trivial risk of inbred reinforced genes in a cat which has possibly got only a minimal number of ancestors.
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #64 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:44:05 pm »
Hasn't used the bathmat (for anything) since last night.  Will dig up another old towel and see if she prefers that in a bit.  I think she dislikes the way the bathmat snags on her claws.

Try your favourite fleece garment  ;)

Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #65 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:49:18 pm »
Hasn't used the bathmat (for anything) since last night.  Will dig up another old towel and see if she prefers that in a bit.  I think she dislikes the way the bathmat snags on her claws.
Try your favourite fleece garment  ;)

Oddly enough Talisker's carrier is lined with an old fleece!  I think it is very warm and comfortable for them (as long as they avoid the zip!)
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Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #66 on: 02 August, 2011, 04:50:04 pm »
She doesn't like open spaces: the first couple of times I put her on my lap this morning, she looked around and climbed straight back into the bath.
I think that's fairly normal instinct for any small, young animal.  Basically she's trying to hide away from predators.  I guess the only way she'll be less inclined to feel that she needs to do it, is once she gets more used to the environment, and realises that she's not being threatened.  Giving her something to hide in / under / behind is probably the best you can do.

Yeah.  We made good progress this morning.  After a while she was happy on my lap, stretching out and snoozing (she was free to climb back in the bath if she wanted, especially when I fell asleep).  I'll try to encourage her to join me at floor level and explore the rest of the bathroom.


Quote
I'm surprised she's that young, but obviously a robust little individual, since she's also clearly doing pretty well.

Yeah.

Adam

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #67 on: 02 August, 2011, 08:21:44 pm »

She's got the litter thing sussed.  Digs it a bit, wees, then sits down for a snooze.   :facepalm:


Mickey, one of our rescue cats is now 6 or 7 and probably every 9 months or so he has a phase of sleeping in the litter tray which becomes his space for a couple of weeks until he realises why I keep emptying him out of there.   

Perhaps it's something which black fluffy cats do?
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #68 on: 02 August, 2011, 08:41:33 pm »

She's got the litter thing sussed.  Digs it a bit, wees, then sits down for a snooze.   :facepalm:


Mickey, one of our rescue cats is now 6 or 7 and probably every 9 months or so he has a phase of sleeping in the litter tray which becomes his space for a couple of weeks until he realises why I keep emptying him out of there.   

Perhaps it's something which black fluffy cats do?

When we got our kitten earlier this year, he spent most of the first 48 hours either in the litter tray or underneath the sofa, they probably feel more secure in there.
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #69 on: 02 August, 2011, 09:58:23 pm »
It was only on the second look that I noticed the Baton in the carrier pic...   ;D

Glad to hear she's doing well. 

The 'non-interventionist landlord' comment reminded me of some friends from Uni. This cat walked into their shared house one day, got fussed a bit (they were 3 girls, all soppy about cats) and stayed - they reckoned she'd been stray for some time. When they moved at the end of term into a different shared house, they took her, despite a no pets rule. The landlord did come round quite often, at which time Billa (that was the name they gave her, I think it was Hindi for cat, or something) would be housed in a laundry basket, with someone sitting on the lid singing to hide the indignant mewing.

One of them still has her, gosh, 9 or 10 years, and several moves later, she lives with Debz and her boyfriend. She's a bit deaf now, but still romps after a cloth mouse on a string when she has a fancy to, and always acts like she hasn't been fed for weeks when anyone arrives, in hope of an extra dinner.
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #70 on: 02 August, 2011, 10:06:05 pm »
The "my pong space" draw is strong (especially among insecure beasts), and they're not exactly peeing buckets, so it's probably wicked away never to be felt as dampness.

Also: KITTY! :smug:
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #71 on: 02 August, 2011, 10:18:45 pm »
Want moar pix of teh cute !
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Kim

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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #72 on: 02 August, 2011, 11:34:16 pm »
Having ingested about a sixth of her bodyweight in milk and noms, including the first dose of her antibiotics, she's visibly rounder and (after a much needed snooze, which we persuaded to have in the carrier box while we made use of the bath for its intended purpose) massively perkier.  She's just been exploring the rest of the bathroom, found another bath mat to pee on :facepalm: and had an experimental swat or two at the feathery kitteh toy I just had to buy for her.

It seems that she's hurt her left front paw.  I'd noticed she was avoiding putting weight on it when leaning forward into the food bowl this morning, but attributed it to pieces of cat litter stuck between the pads (it's just the wrong size, unfortunately, and she's only just got to the point of letting me pick it out).  Having persuaded her to let me have a proper look, it seems that the skin on the main pad of the paw it torn and hanging loose as a flap.  The raw bit is obviously sore to walk on, especially if it gets dry litter stuck to it.

So we've taken the litter away and accepted the path of least resistance and put the recently peed-on bath mat in the litter tray for now.  I'm not sure what else we can do - she doesn't seem to be gnawing on it excessively (playful finger-nibbling suggests that she doesn't really have the teeth for effective gnawing yet), and I'm not sure that my bar-tape-fu is up to putting a remotely cat-proof dressing on it.   :-\

Other than that, she's a totally different cat to last night.  Visibly much happier, no longer scared of every random noise, and seems to have developed an instant purr reaction whenever I go near her.  She's happy to let barakta handle her too, though less actively enthusiastic.  She's also demonstrated that (with chair assistance) she's able to climb in and out of the bath on her own.  We've moved everything out of the bath to the floor, and set the carrier box on its side with a fresh towel as lining.  She instantly got the idea when she investigated - curled up inside and started purring.  That's possibly the only time I've ever had a cat not turn its nose up at a cat bed on principle.

Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #73 on: 02 August, 2011, 11:53:28 pm »
I think most of the cat protection bods and similar are struggling at the moment, it's that time of year. 
You wouldn't believe it round here. We were told we can't have a rescue cat because we're too close to a main road (about 200 yards, across numerous walled gardens). Our garden was also undesirably small. We were told not to bother asking again unless we moved to a more suitable address.



She is unbearably cute. If my sister didn't already have a houseful of cats, she'd probably be en route  to kidnap her right now.
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Re: Anybody want a kitten?
« Reply #74 on: 03 August, 2011, 12:07:01 am »
Yeah, I was refused a rescue kitten or two (or even full grown cats) because I worked full time!

Cat flap plus quiet neighbourhood plus garden plus good income, but no because I wouldn't be home enough?  For a CAT?  It's not like I was away for days on end, I was in a basic 9-5!