Returning to the blog

My life has been full of big changes that kept me from as much writing as I would like to do. I am working to reclaim my favorite hobbies, and it turns out writing about cats and cat rescue is in my top-10 passions. I am now in a new job where I am happy and respected. My life is simple, but I find abundance and joy within it as I am encircled with remarkable people.

You see, when I talk to people about cats and cat rescue- I can see the moment where their eyes glaze over and then I feel kinda funny. When I write a blog post, I never have to see the glazing eyes as people navigate away and most people who visit the blog know what they are in for and are there on purpose.

So hi, I'm Kristen from Tampa. I am a cat rescuer that takes in feral and stray cats, gets them healthy, teaches them to cat and to live with humans, takes them to the vet for medicine and for removal of trouble nuggets and kitten production sacks and then helps them find forever homes where they can be part of their very own pride. The work is sometimes frustrating and super gross, involves a lot of house cleaning, occasional blood sacrifices and sometimes costs rather a bit of money to upkeep the clowder in chow, toys and places for chow to be excreted. but it is often filled with soft purrs, happy meows and some great reward that is hard for me to define.

There is a peace in a cat that feels safe enough to sleep in a sprawl across your couch, rather than curled in the smallest possible ball under the couch. The first time a kitten motors up and begins to purr like an un-tuned motorcycle is absolutely priceless. Moments where you see a sick cat break through their fever and fear and their eyes become quick and lively again as they immediately begin to search for new mischief.

The current cast of characters at home:

Neville

The boss. 10 year old gigantic hauspanther who is black as night, sleek as satin but is a whore for belly pets and catnip. He rules with a velvet paw and sheer size, knocking over uppity foster cats and just laying on top of them until they submit. He may have learned that tactic from me. 

Neville keeps the peace and greets every guest to the house quite thoroughly. In this picture, Neville looks quite the normal sized black cat with a tiny white locket of fur on his neck. Understand that the basket in which he is reclining is a full sized laundry basket. He's really, really large and seems to be built on a different scale than most cats. He comes in over 20 pounds and probably contains the heart of a neutron star.

Scully

The under-boss. The dominant female of the clowder is a brown marble tabby with more than a little bit of attitude. She is a bit tubby, but does not care. She keeps the others in line, sometimes with a punch from her balled up kitty fist and then returns to looking decorative. She's also a terrible blanket sucker who likes to nurse on my bedding and be held like a baby at night. She does not admit this to the other cats and hisses at any that attempt to observe her nightly rituals. 

I am fairly certain that Scully truly believes I am her mom cat. She was born on my back porch and was placed in my hands by her mom when she was less than 2 hours old and still wet. I asked mom, Caramel, to take her back and finish cooking and feeding for me. Thankfully Carmy agreed. However, every time I visited the nursery, Carmy would dutifully pick up this kitten and bring her to me like a gift. This is somewhere between sweet and cat child trafficking, but Carmy was pretty darned happy to be taken in when she had gotten herself in trouble and wasn't getting enough to eat while super preggers in the feral colony. In thanks for room and board, she gave me one of her kittens. I really didn't know how to feel about this, but she was terribly cute and every time I petted or cuddled her, her tail would whip around as if she was so joyful she could not contain herself. 

Tell me, would you be able to say no to this little critter being gently placed in your hands by her own mother? Well, I couldn't.

Kitler

The omega cat. Kitler got his name by having the mustache of a particular dictator and being a famous coward as a kitten. Not much has changed except his size. He's nearly as big as Neville and is actually Neville's cat. It's kinda like the mafia boss and his nerdy friend that cooks the books but isn't so into mafia sports or baseball bats. 

Twice, Kitler has gone on accidental Meowschpringe by being rather heavy, sleeping against window screens and tumbling out of first floor windows onto the ground below. It usually takes me 5-14 days to get him to un-freak himself so that I can catch him again. At least his belly is cottony soft.

He's a beautiful boy, just terrified of nearly everything in the world. Sometimes, even me no matter that he sleeps in a bed with me every night. His little peanut brain just seems to reset to panic mode and he forgets that in over six years I have never tried to eat him. Good thing he's cute in a totalitarian sort of way.

Not kidding- this is how I caught him last Meowschpringe. A string, tied to a ruler, propping open the porch door. Place smelly wet food on porch, wait, watch cat walk heedlessly into trap, pull string, door slams, cat caught.
This is only supposed to work for roadrunners and coyotes. 

Susan Pevensie

This particular queen of Narnia looking nothing like her three tuxie siblings and decided not to go back through the wardrobe. Instead, she parked her fluffy backside in my closet and decided that was home base. I was not excited about closet cat, but she was so frightened or people that she would wet herself if someone tried to pet her. As she otherwise was not a bother, I just left food, water and litter near the closet and resigned myself to my unhelpful ladies maid.

One day I came home to find her beside my knocked over clothes hamper, rolling through my outside work clothes and underwear. Awesome. I just put all of that away and forgot about it until, that night, she climbed into bed with me and snuggled up with a look of pure love and adoration. I guess she just needed to know me by smells? She now loves the cuddles but is still an inveterate and unapologetic pantie thief.

J. Alfred Prufrock

I didn't mean to have another cat- seriously I didn't. But this dumb and lovey snowshoe cat started in my bathroom and ended up in my heart. Within hours of arriving, he was nursing me as I was very ill. He spent days laying on my chest as a living hot water bottle and on the couch behind me, petting my head with his paw. J. Alfred is not the brightest star in the sky, but he sure is sweet, patient and undemanding. I can drape him over my shoulder as a stole and recite Elliott to him and he does not dare disturb out universe. 

He does have one funny habit of *adoring* long skirts. Any woman wearing long skirts will quickly find J Alfred's derriere parked beneath their skirt, perfectly happy sitting between her feet. When he does this, I just call him J. Edgar and move on. Who am I to judge?

So, those are the current resident inmates. I'll write about the foster inmates soon.

Mr Darcy and Mr Bingley

These handsome boys started out on the euthanasia list at Animal Services. I drove over and picked them up. I just can't stand perfectly healthy kittens meeting such a dire end.

It turned out that they are perfect little gentlemen. Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy has a whole lot of personality. He's well turned out in a tux and is a delightfully handsome lad that loved cuddling with the ladies. Mr Charles Bingley is more dressed for casual time. He's funny, quirky, silly and loves pretty much everyone.

Mr. Darcy was much larger than Mr. Bingley and has already been fixed and vetted. My Bingley was just too small and still needs to go back to be fixed and vetted. He made weight yesterday so now I'll be scheduling his appointment.

These boys need to stay together as they are a very bonded pair and should be ready for adoption in less than two weeks!

Mr Bingley: Purse Kitten

Mr Darcy and Kitler. No, they are not related, why do you ask?

Auggie Pullman and the Cleft Lip

I got a call from a friend who works at a local produce stand that someone had dumped a small, grey kitten there and that it seemed to have something wrong with its mouth. After a somewhat harrowing (and yowling) session of 'Catch the Wild Kitten' I had a filthy ball of fur in a carrier that snarled angrily and then settled into several hours of silence.

Jill and I pulled him out of the carrier a few hours later, and we discovered what seemed to be an entirely changed (but still filthy), tiny kitten. He was a thing of bones and sharp angles and filthy fur... but oh, could he purr. The tiny ball of hissing and snarling had become a kitten desperate for love, and food.

Cleft Lips and Birth Defects

I checked him out, and sure enough, he did have something wrong with his mouth. What I discovered was a mild birth defect called a cleft lip. The cleft was not severe and just shows as one side of the lip being a bit shorter than the other. The other side of his lip had been injured, was swollen, scabbed and still oozing a bit of blood. I checked inside his mouth, and was happy to find that the birth defect was only external and that he did not seem to have a cleft in his palate.

Cleft lips are not uncommon as far as birth defects go, but they can be of varying severity. A mild cleft like on Auggie is mostly just a cosmetic issue. In more severe cases, the entire lip and sometimes parts of the nose can be missing. The most dangerous is a cleft palate. This is an oral malformation where the inside of the mouth does not fully meet in the upper palate, leaving a hole inside the mouth. Kittens with this sort of birth defect may not thrive and may even die if it is severe enough. A cleft palate can keep a kitten from being able to suckle and eat.

Cleaning Up Auggie

I took him home for food and relaxing time, then de-worming meds, flea treatment and a painfully necessary bath. He was so filthy that I bathed him twice before the water ran clean. It's been a long time since I found a kitten so dirty and flea covered.

After bath time I worked on some wound care for his lip and a great deal of drying, floofing, styling

Auggie on the left.

and cuddling. This adorable grey kitten lacked facial symmetry, felt like holding a tiny car crash of sharp angles and had a meow like a 40 year chain-smoker and dedicated whiskey consumer. In short, I was in love.

The last few weeks have seen the healing of his 'good lip' and the decrease in swelling makes the cleft lip even less obvious. He's incredibly sweet. Auggies loves to be held, cuddled, petted, snuggled and otherwise next to a human. As I type this, he is sleeping on top of my right foot. He's putting weight on well but is still on the skinny side. He has about 6 ounces left to go before he can go to the vet and be fixed and get shots.

On the Naming of Cats

Auggie is named for August 'Auggie' Pullman, the main character from Wonder, a children's novel by Raquel Jaramillo, under the pen name of R. J. Palacio. Auggie is an 11 year old boy with severe facial deformities who was home schooled through his early life. The book covers Auggie's transition into attending school and the changes that happen in his life and the lives of those who love him.

Here's how our Auggie started out:

We've come a long way...  

On to the biggest news of the day: We have a family who would like to adopt Auggie!

June 2016: State of the Kittens

• Peter Cratchit: fixed and vetted. Still being socialized. Allows petting while eating, will stay in same room as people.
• Belinda Cratchit: fixed and vetted. Still being socialized. Allows petting while eating, will stay in same room as people.
• Bob Cratchit: heart murmur found at vetting. needs to return for re-test, fixing and vetting, Still being socialized. Allows petting while eating, will stay in same room as people. (Going to ACT for vetting)
• Tiny Tim Cratchit: Too small for fixing. Has 4 ounces left to gain. Still being socialized. Runs away from all touch, even when food is offered (Going to ACT for vetting)
• Mr Darcy: fixed and vetted. Well socialized. Waiting for Mr. Bingley.
• Mr Bingley: Well socialized. Makes weight for fixing as of today! (Going to Animal Services for vetting) I'll need my car back before I can make that happen
• Auggie Pullman: Too small for fixing, Has 3 ounces left to gain. Well socialized. Loves attention. (Maybe going to ACT with Bob and Tiny Tim for vetting)
• Nameless orange floof girl: Weighs in at 1lb. Will eat a slurry of wet food and formula. De-worming and de-fleaing meds given. Probable 4 weeks? Needs a name at some point. Allows pets and cuddles but she's had a long day. I'll be looking for personality and extent of socialization in next few day

April and May Adoptions

Grace O'Malley
Grace went to help a feral kitten learn how to be a house kitten and then headed on to her forever home with her new human, Bev.

Atticus and Scout Finch
Atticus and Scout headed to Leesburg to fill a cat shaped hole in the hearts of Denise and Angel. The pair had lost their cat of many years a few months ago and found themselves ready to open their hearts again, this time to a pair of kittens.

Irene Addler
Irene will be getting picked up by her new human, Chris, this upcoming Friday night. She's made a lot of progress in her months with me. She eats treats from my hand, sits next to me on the couch and even lets me sneak in the occasional petting. She also now loves to play and can amuse herself with a catnip mouse for hours.

Allen Quatermain 
This shy fellow finally found just the right home with Lisa and Daryle and their kitty Thor. Thor is also very shy and needed a kitty that wouldn't bully him. Things are working out nicely as you can see in the picture above. Thor and Allen have found that having a friend can be pretty great.

Spa Day

Ah, "Spa Day".  This is where we tell the kitties they are going as we cram them into carriers and rumple their dignity. Often times, my best friend Jennie helps me with transport since drop off and pickup times occur while I need to be at work. Usually it's just 2 or 3 kittens per trip... but not today.

Today saw the transporting and orchestration of Spa Day for 9 cats and catlings. Jennie spent the night last night and helped me catch and cram wiggly kittens into carriers. See, carriers are fascinating until the moment you want the kitten to go inside. Then they become objects that induce terror.

The image above is seven pet carriers in Jennie's car as she heads to Humane Society of Tampa Bay with seven kitties. This should be an advertisement for the Nissan Versa. Versa: All the Space for All the Cats.

Since we had split locations today, I then took off with Mr Bingley and Mr. Darcy to Hillsborough County Animal Services. (They came from there so they get fixed there.) Of course these locations are on opposite sides of town, so today needed teamwork.

So here's the rundown for what shall forever after be known as "Super Spa Day"

Bingley plays office kitten after being denied service.
It's a hard knock life.

• Belinda Cratchit: Spayed, shots, microchip
• Bob Cratchit: Teasted with possible heart murmur. Needs re-check at another facility.
• Peter Cratchit: Neutered, shots, microchip
• Tiny Tim  Cratchit: Too small at weigh in. Spending the day with Jennie

• Atticus Finch: Neutered, shots, microchip- being adopted on Friday
• Scout Finch: Spayed, shots, microchip- being adopted on Friday

• Mr Darcy: Neutered, shots, microchip
• Mr Bingley: Too small at weigh in. Spending the day with Kristen

• Scully: Fixed, shots, microchip

And at this moment we are both preparing to do it all over again, just in reverse. Tonight will be a lot of dopey kittens wandering around and two tired cat ladies eating leftover pizza.

Atticus and Scout

Atticus Finch and Jean Louise 'Scout' Finch joined me this week. They'd been living with their mom under a decaying mattress and box spring in the side yard of an abandoned home. This wasn't the best place to be with upcoming storms and interested free roaming neighborhood dogs.

Atticus is a short hair black male American bobtail mix with a half length tail. Scout is a black and white bicolor female with medium length fur. Both kittens were of a feral disposition at first, hissing and spitting whenever they were approached.

48 hours has changed their minds about life on the inside. Atticus is fearless. He sees not obstacles, only challenges to conquer. Scout is sweet of disposition but has a lot to say. She's a bit of a talker and if she is not getting what she wants, she will merrily let you know about it. These two should make weight in the next week or two and can then be taken for their vetting and fixing. By then, I imagine they will be champ indoor kitties.

They have already been wooed by the delicacies of turkey goo, the never ending bowl o' kibble, the pillow bed and the wonders of fleece. On demand clean water and the litter box that they don't have to clean also seem to be appreciated.

I'll post more about them soon, including when they will be available for adoption.

Grace O'Malley

Grace O'Malley is a tiny kitten that found herself dumped in a restaurant parking lot. Some nice staff folks took her and her two siblings into the offices for the day. Two were instantly adopted by folks who worked there, but little Grace needed a place to go. As one of my friends works at the restaurant, I was contacted and gave my usual answer: "Sure, why not?"


Grace was an instant sweetheart and it was easy to tell that she had been dumped and had never been feral. She was very clean, free of fleas and loved to be petted. I posted a few photos of her on my Facebook page, and a friend of mine fell in love with her and sent in an adoption request.

Grace went with Duchess Josiana for her "spa day" at Humane Society of Tampa Bay where she was spayed and vetted. She then headed to the home of another foster to see if she could help coax a feral kitten into being more social with people. She'll stay at this foster home until her new house is ready in a week or two and hopefully, she will be an excellent role model for the other kitten until then.

Current Cats: April 2016

Irene Addler

Although she still does not like to be touched, Irene has come a long way from the growling and unseen monster in the back of my closet. She is now a lovely girl cat that has received all of her initial vet work and has been spayed. Regular eating and not being in the shelter have changed her for the better. Irene is a curious girl, ready to follow you around the house, watch over your shoulder and stare balefully at you as you cook and don't give her morsels. She'll hang out and nap next to you on the couch, but pet her at your own risk. You'll likely be shanked in response.

She is extremely food driven and wet food and all kinds of human foods are of interest to her. Including cookies. Seriously, she will swipe a cookie from you with hilarious alacrity. She may even helpfully open the package for you. The one way she will merrily approach a human is is the have a handful of treats and are seated on the floor. In this case she comes skidding to a halt in front of you the moment she hears the treat bag and will delicately take the treats from your hand. She's quite the dainty lady when she wants something.

It's a long way she has come, but she still has a way to go. She'd make a great companion for someone who isn't too interested with having a cat that wants your attention all of the time but doesn't want to be entirely alone.

Allen Quatermain

This kitten has gone from skittish to sweet. Each morning he waits for me to wake so that I may pet him. Quatermain is deferential to all other cats and is certainly not an alpha cat. He enjoys sleeping in baskets, watching television, squishy food and being petting in two minute increments. Q is a sweet, soft and beautiful boy who has all his initial vetting done and is fixed. Although we had a few people interested in him, they seem to have wandered off in favor of other cats.

Quatermain started life as a feral street cat, but has become a happy house cat. He is a bit shy with new people, but once they settle down and are quiet, he will begin to explore the new humans. Q does have an upcoming meet and greet date this Saturday. I'm really hoping it will go well. He's such a good boy and I want him to have a great life.

Duchess Josiana, the odd-eyed cat

Duchess Josiana was a stray living in a local park. She and her already weaned kittens were all rather friendly, so they were trapped and have been taken to foster homes. I knew with the first sight of her, Duchess Josiana would find a home very, very soon.

Duchess Josiana has a lot going on genetically and health wise so this will be a somewhat long post with a lot of topics.

Odd Eyes

Duchess Josiana is an odd-eyed cat. Her most outstanding feature are her mismatched eyes, one blue and one gold. This eye color difference is a genetic mutation referred to as Heterochromia iridis. This mutation is most often seen in cats that are entirely white but can also be found in cats with the gene for white spotting.

Odd Eyes and a Name

In the case of this kitty, her name was entirely inspired by her eyes. She is named for Duchess Josiana, a character from the Victor Hugo novel L'Homme qui rit or The Man Who Laughs. In the novel, the character of the Duchess is described as having one brown and one blue eye. To be honest, I could only think of just one female character from literature that is described as having heterochromia. So, that nicely helped to limit my literary naming pool.

White Coat

White cats have a particular set of genes that creates their spotless coat: namely the white masking gene. The W gene, when found in cats, prevents the production of pigment-producing cells during embryologic development. No matter what other color genes the cat may have, if they are W/W (white masking dominant / white masking dominant) or W/w (white masking dominant / white masking recessive), they will have a lack of melanin producing cells and thus have a white coat. Some cats with the W allele are also deaf. In odd eyed cats, they may be deaf in one or both ears.

FIV+

Duchess Josiana tested positive for FIV. Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is found in about 2.5 to 4.4 percent of cats world wide. The virus is a retrovirus that causes immunodeficiency in cats, meaning that cats with the virus can be more susceptible to secondary infections, especially respiratory infections. Each infected cat is unique. Based on their overall health and the care they receive, they may live very long lives relatively free from trouble. If they are street cats exposed to more diseases and prone to more fighting/aggression they will be more likely to become ill due to their reduced immune system being less able to fight off various bacteria and infections.

FIV+ kitties are those who have tested positive for the FIV antibody. Cats who have had an FIV immunization will forever test as FIV+, so if your cat is immunized, make sure they have a microchip and that their chip file explains their immunization. Many shelters will immediately euthanize cats that test positive with FIV even though the disease has a fairly mild transmission rate. FIV is generally passed through one cat biting another and the FIV+ cat's saliva entering the wound of the other cat. Transmission is most common in unaltered male cats that are fighting for territory, resources and mating rights.

A Home for Her Grace

Because Duchess Josiana tested positive for FIV, we try to find her a home where she will be the only cat or where the family may have another cat with FIV. We found a winner! Leana and her family have one cat who is FIV+ and is 16. They know how to take care of FIV+ kitties and live in a nice rural place where Duchess Josiana can enjoy life and be well loved, especially by a little girl who is very anxiously waiting for her to arrived. The Duchess will be spayed tomorrow and goes to her new home on Friday

Learn more:

• Basics of Genetics (Wikipedia)
• Deafness is Cats
• Odd Eyed Cats
• Cats and FIV
• The Man Who Laughs by Victor Hugo (Project Gutenberg)

Irene Unwinds

She started coiled like a tight spring, full of fear and anger. Now, Irene has begun to slowly uncoil and show some personality. She likes to sprawl and roll. She likes comfy places and is quick to steal the warm spot on the couch as soon as you vacate a seat. Irene is enamored of squishy food and comfy places.

Sherlock and Mycroft: Adopt Us This Weekend!

We're at the Petsmart in Citrus Park Tampa. We're so cute it hurts! Come take us away to your home and we promise we shall thoroughly investigate it and then make it more interesting.

Sherlock Holmes and Mycroft Holmes are currently in our 

Petsmart adoption center located 

at 12835 Citrus Plaza Dr, Tampa

Irene Addler

Irene starts as a sad story. She was seized along with a number of other animals from an animal hoarding case and taken to the high-kill county shelter. She was sick and not well socialized so she went straight to isolation where her health issues were treated, but this, of course, didn't help her socialize.

Irene got mean. She was a terror in a cage. Tooth, claw and rage. She hissed and spat at anyone who approached her cage and thus she was slated for euthanasia. I'm a sucker for a hard case.

Irene is an approximately 8 month old, short coat black female. She came to me already fixed and fully vetted but was essentially feral. And she was mad. She'd been in a cage for a *very* long time and she was super pissed about that life.

I arrived to pick her up. The staff person looked at my paperwork and said "That one? Really?". I said "Yes, that one". The staff woman sighed and headed off, looking like the was readying herself to do battle. Fifteen minutes later my carrier was brought back with what sounded like a demon inside. I really never had heard such growling from a cat before.

The shelter was loud. It smells funny. There's people and animals just everywhere. People kept grabbing her to take her blood, or do surgery, or give her medicine, or stick her with needles... and she was just done.

I took the carrier out to the car and put it on the passenger seat. Inside, there was a towel with a small lump in the center and silence. I got in the car and started driving. Figuring this kitten could use some down time, I didn't put on the radio. Instead, I sang. A few slow and quiet songs later, a nose and pair of eyes appeared from under the towel to regard me.

Upon arriving home, I took her to the Bathroom of Isolation so she could have a couple of chill days realizing that no one here wanted to murder her. After a few days, I just stopped shutting the bathroom door. Irene was going to live in my closet. That was that. She'd come out to cautiously eat and then would be gone again, shimmied under a shoe rack or jammed behind a sweater box. For about a week there was no change.

Then she moved under the bed, displacing Kit and Allen Quatermain, which was actually good for both of them to get more socialization time. Since then, under my bed has become her den and she guards it well. If any other cat attempts to enter, they are quickly shown the headboard. If my feet venture too far under the quilt while I am making the bed, I receive a swat of warning or occasionally a light nibble.

In the last few days, things have started to change. She ventures out around the house. She's learning how to lounge about on the furniture and steal the warm spot on the sofa. Irene has discovered her great passion for squishy food and watching things on "Cat TV", also known as through the screen on the back porch. She's approached me for a sniff and does not run from me when I go about the business of filling food bowls. She still has zero interest in having my hands on her, but she'll sit companionably beside me and Quatermain to eat her plate full of cod in cheesy bacon sauce.

Irene Addler has lost her hate. Now we'll just see if she can find some trust. Until then, she'll be savaging this stick toy. It's hers now.

Mina and Dorian in their new home

Thanks to their new mom Angela, I have some pictures of Mina and Dorian all settled into their new home. These look like some seriously happy kitties. They are reported to be the most loving and sweet cats this couple has ever known.

Soft Kitty, a photo essay with Alan Quatermain

Soft kitty

Warm kitty

Little ball of fur

Happy kitty

Sleepy kitty

Purr, purr, purr.

Wait... you tricks me lady! I no like dis soft life of warms!

But... it is so warms here. Bah...