Spaying and Neutering (John Henri and Carol)

John Henry is doing well - he wasn't as strongly affected as Carol (as you had said). he was looking tender yesterday but is quite active today and started running around after Carol - though he still runs a little gingerly.Yesterday carol gave him a bit of a harsh welcome back, with some hissing and swatting at him with her paws. So he kept hidden for a while, but took it all in good stead. Mary and I lay on the floor for a long time explaining to carol and John Henry what had happened and telling them that it was obviously confusing, but that everything was OK. Carol was confused by John Henry's smell, so that was what was making her aggressive - i think she was nervous of him; she stated to settle down a bit late last night. I set up a whole bunch of little nests of blankets all round the apt, so John Henry had losts of places to hide in if he wanted to be alone, and I put a chair next to the bed to make it easier for him to get up and join us if he wanted, which he did in the morning. Today (I stayed at home to monitor them) Carol's been much better. Sniffing him, lying next to him on their window shelf, washing him, and playing a bit. I think they are all settled down. John Henry is in good cheer tonight and is very affectionate. They have such wonderful characters

Vet visit

Hi Karin,Just wanted to let you know I took the boys to the vet today for their last booster shots. They continue to do great -- McNulty weighs 7.1 pounds and Bunk is 6.1. The doctor thinks they're both going to be very big boys eventually. They are ready to be neutered, so that's scheduled for next week, and then we will be done for vet visits for a while! Photos attached of their cuddle-napping after the doctor visit this afternoon.Best,Rachel

Kitties are doing great!

-- getting so big -- here are some updated pix of Bunk and McNulty!

I adore my kitties!

Hey there Ron! Remember me? The musician downtown -- you and Tammy helped me locate my hiding new kittens that evening -- Please show Tammy how ADORABLEand COMFY they are now -- I love them SO much!!! Emillio is such a lover boy -- we call him Romeo sometimes. And Ashley has quite taken on her various new nicknames -- officially Little Miss Mittens (still a/k/a Ashley) or Miss Mittens or The Little Missy -- because you see, she is just such a little missie.... Please give Tammy my love. I REALLY enjoyed meeting you guys. I promise to start performing around town again real soon. I took a couple of months off due to adopting cats, changing day jobs, etc. Working on stuff. Setting up a new myspace site for my electronica music project, etc. Finally replaced all my power transformers to (uh, every single one!!!) of my effects boxes to my electric guitar pedals, etc. I figure it set me back a few hundred bucks. I wasn't mad. The least I could do for them. Here's what I did for future protection -- Marshall Cord Protectors -- ordered online from Petco -- they're clear and I think they'll look pretty cool on stage. Oh, can you please see if someone can tell me exactly when is the birthday of my furry sweetie pies? It seems to me that you folks actually know the day!! I don't think I've ever been able to find out the exact birthday of any of my cats before in my whole life. I think their first birthday must be coming up pretty soon. I must give them a party. I'm thinking of an elegant affair -- you know, like dainty toasts of tuna oil in very tiny bowls (well, perhaps champagne for the humans) with speeches -- Miss Mittens always has something to say! Best Regards and please tell Tammy I love her!Shosh (Susannah)

Nicholas the clown

....forgot to mention that the dark spot on his nose isn't a cut or anything - it's chocolate from when she stuck his face into a Levain Bakery chocolate chip walnut cookie the night before.....what a piggy!!!

From Roxy's parents...

Just wanted to say thank you to Tammy and Kitten Little Rescue. Here's a little bit of our story. Hopefully it’s encouraging for other potential adopters.

We adopted Roxy just after the new year. We renamed her Olive, but we still sometimes call her Roxy cause it rhymes with the name of our other cat (Roxy + Foxy) and because she was named after one of those great kids that raised money for the organization.

Anyway, Olive is a joy. She just purrs and purrs and purrs. Ken works nights and Ava works days but when Ava leaves the bed in the morning, Olive comes to take her place and purrs some more. When she wants to be petted she kind of plops over in the funniest way, like she’s just been hit with a stun gun and can’t stay upright.

Most importantly Olive and Foxy are best friends. Foxy was another rescue. We got her in early 2007 from another group. She had been out on the street in Crown Heights and though she is a sweetheart in so many ways, she’s also kind of a tough kitty. Being a single cat in the home for two years, Foxy became the “queen” of the household and got all our attention.

We decided we wanted a companion for her, for when we’re away and just because, in the long run, we think it’s better. But we were worried how Foxy would react, and we spent MONTHS, literally, looking for the right fit. We never found it until we walked into Pet Stop and found Roxy/Olive.

We introduced them slowly, keeping Olive in the bathroom for the first few days. From, there, well, it’s history. Yeah there were some scuffles when they first met, but Foxy had already adjusted to the scent of the newcomer. More than anything she was curious and she wanted to be a good big sister. Now she’s so proud and loving when it comes to Olive. They chase each other all over the house. One time, Olive got a cut on her ear from roughhousing and Foxy cleaned it for her (and now they groom each other all the time). They still raise hell, but it’s as partners in crime, not opponents. They wrestle pretty hard, too, but just for fun. And Olive loves to imitate her big sister. If Foxy lies against the wall, she lies against the wall too. If Foxy climbs on my back while I’m sleeping, so does Olive.

When we recently went away for 10 days, we were so happy knowing they had each other.

I could tell a lot more stories about Olive’s sweetness, the way she turns over on her back and stretches out for a tummy rub, her electric-generator-like purr. But I guess the pictures speak for themselves.

One more thing. Everything didn’t go smoothly with Olive at first. She had a bad persistent cough when we first got her and she gave it to Foxy. Then she had a lot of problems using the litter box and she was having digestive problems. I’m not saying this to discourage people, just to have realistic expectations. “Parenting” is never easy I guess. But we loved her so much that it was never a question of getting through those bumps in the road. More importantly, Tammy was a complete ANGEL. Long after the adoption was done and she could have said “its not my problem” (though she never would) she was delivering us special food up in the Bronx on her own time, helping us find and administer the right medicine and taking repeated frantic phone calls from me. She never complained once or suggested that it was some kind of an imposition. I consider Tammy a friend. Certainly, she’s a very special person and I know I can always count on her for help and advice with the cats.

Houdini renamed Jake - new companion to Sofie

Houdini (now Jake) is wonderful. He is such a great addition to the family. Look at the pictures of jake snuggling Sofie after she had gotten surgery. He was so sweet to her. They really are best friends now.

Growing... (Bunk & McNulty)

Here are two pictures I took of the guys today. They continue to get SOOO big. I haven't been doing anything for Bunk's eyes lately, and they seem to be getting better. Still watery, but significantly less so. These two kitties are real loves.

The Brooklyn bottle babies: Riles and Cecilia

"They're both growing up nicely and have adjusted well to their new home. They have seemingly boundless energy and have become quite adept at jumping onto legs, laps, tables, etc..."

Isabella (aka Columbiana) and Gordi

Angie, The girlies are doing well. They just got spayed on tuesday, so they're still recovering. Other than that they're healthy and happy. Isabella (aka columbiana)is big and tough, and gordi is super affectionate and spastically hyperactive. I'll send you a picture, although they're much cuter in real life. Thanks, christine

Sleep deprived

Carol and John Henry require a lot of love, and playing! Also, both Mary and I are somewhat sleep deprived because John Henry requires a lot of love at 4 am each morning when he pads back and forth between as we try to sleep. We actually look forward to that every night though! Mary and I are absolutely besotted with them both. They're just the greatest little cats - and getting quite a bit bigger. Carol has the shoulders of a linebacker now; John Henry is smaller but can really push her around in their morning play-fights (that start at about 6 am). The apartment is a mess of cardboard boxes stacked into towers, with holes cut into them, and every kind of toy, scraps of slightly chewed wheatgrass, and their favorite blankets.

....and BIGGER (Bunk & McNulty)

These guys are getting big!‏ (Bunk & McNulty)

They're also supervising my work now, apparently.

Rachel.

New family cats!

Here they are!!! Emillio and Ashley!!! They arrived on Sunday night. Ashley just permitted me to pat her for the first time this morning! She's still a hidey-cat, but she's starting to get her courage up. As you can see, she meows for attention -- but then she runs away when I reach out to her -- but not all the time anymore. Emillio loves being pat, but only since a couple of days ago. He follows me around constantly -- and she does too, but from a distance, at least sometimes. They are still adjusting to their new home. They are only 10 months old. Teenagers. Lovely soft sweet kitties. Half siamese apparently and half tabby -- gorgeous striped racoon tails. Both have 4 white paws. Now that she has appeared enough to see (ahem) I can tell that she has 4 white legs. He has two white rear legs. She has a pink nose and he has a brown spot on his nose. They both have soft white bellies and golden brown furry spots in between the tabby stripes and the white areas. Lovely lovely. I hope you all get to meet them soon. They lived in Cat Rescue homes before -- apartments with about 15 cats together, so they are just learning what it means to be truly In Charge. They still don't really know... We should have lots of fun... Come visit! This was my first chance to get pictures!

The big neuter... (special needs little big Nicholas)

Dear D'Arcy,

Little Nicholas pulled through his big neuter swimmingly! The vet loved him - she did a bunch of little neuro tests on him during his pre-surgery check-up - she thinks he may have a very mild case of cerebellar hypoplasia (I think he may just be "floppy"), but thinks he is otherwise perfect! And here is how he responded to the post-op restrictions:

What the vet says: no food or drink for a couple of hours after we get home, no baths for 10 days, no running, jumping, or rough-housing for 10 days

What Nicholas does as soon as we get home: runs to Kisa and bumps up all over her, goes out of his mind crazy looking for food (including dragging his placemat across the kitchen and burying his head in a tupperware container), scarfs down the food that I feed him ("illegally") to avoid him getting hurt, and then procedes to run across the kitchen at full speed, fly up onto the counter, attempt to leap up on top of the refridgerator, misses and falls into the sink with all of the soapy dishes, leaps out of the sink and flies through the air, crashing into one of the chairs...boy oh boy!!!! But he's still alive and going strong and it's post-op day 7 - so far so good!

I have started locking him up in the bedroom while I prepare his meals so that he isn't leaping and jumping everywhere - he sits by the door and paws underneath it and cries and cries. Then when I open it he prances out and when he turns the corner near the refridgerator to head towards his food bowl he kicks up it into high gear with his little feet slipping all over the place as he charges towards his food. I've also started locking Kisa up in the second bedroom when I feed her to give her a good half hour to enjoy her food before letting Nicholas have free range.

Huge milestone tonight though - Nicholas is finally full! My sister and I were both not going to be home until late tonight, but I managed to sneak home after work to feed the kitties. When my sister got home she fed them too, and Nicholas only picked at the food! Ah, finally!!! She thought something was wrong with him and got worried, but he is finally satisfied.

Come visit soon! - Wait until you see him - he is getting so big and starting to act like a big kitty! What a mush!!!
Nancy

Bunk & McNulty

Darwin (I call him Bunk) couldn't be happier -- he's a scrappy little guy for a runt! Energy like I've never seen. Josh (I call him McNulty) is starting to come around. He's very playful and comfortable in the apartment now, hiding less, coming closer and closer to me at intervals -- still testing his boundaries but definitely making a little bit of progress each day.So far so good!

The little Maine Coon...

Hey, my name is Tiffany and I bought the little maine coon kitten that maureen was taking care of who she had named cinderella. Yes, that one! Well, I came to your site to leave a success story and to post stuff about the kitty who is getting bigger, her name is now Keira (pronounced kee-rah... some people get confused, but anyway), she loves to run around. She is a different kitty than when we first got her. From scared and always hiding, she runs around, plays like crazy, AND she shows Sunkiss (our other cat, you remember) who's the boss. They love eachother, they are always bathing eachother/licking each other. Keira is very attached to me, which I love. She follows me around the house, but when I leave thank goodness she doesn't cry or follow me out. She stays away from the door, and sees me off in the living room. She has so many toys! I remember what you said about some toys not being fit for cats because they may be a hazard, so I'm VERY careful in picking toys, eventhough it's very hard to choose one! But her favorite is this ball of fur, that she loves to play with and she carries it around the house in her mouth which is the cutest thing. It's not small enough to swallow. She's never tried eating it anyway. And she is the smartest kitty I've ever had! Oh, and she's not scared of water! Which is odd. Most, if not all, cats are scared of water. But...anyway, I just want to say also, thank you so much for holding her for me when I contacted you. I love her SO much! I've never had a kitty like her, and I'm just so grateful because you could have chosen to not hold her for me. I really appreciate what you did! Thanks again! Hope to hear from you soon! Tiffany

Carol and John Henry...

We have called the female Carol (top) - because she is an Office Manager type who keeps everything organized and keeps a close watch on her brother. Carol seems to suit her well as a name...Her brother (bottom) , who is more laid-backed, a bit sleepy, and takes like as it comes, is John Henry.... he's a steel driving man (cat) in the words of the country and western song.They are both growing like crazy and are doing very well. They are both very affectionate to us now - they always were, but it has increased quite a bit since we've had them. It's great! I have to send you something which doesn't show them asleep, but they look so sweet then.