Progress!!

Although I just posted yesterday, I'm so excited by yesterday's progress that I just have to share.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, as soon as I open the door, Pippa hides behind the dresser. After a few minutes, she'll come out and sit under the couch. Yesterday, as I was sitting on the floor, she crawled out from under the couch and walked to the food bowl to eat. That bowl was about 4-5 feet away from me! She definitely kept watching me but didn't seem too scared or threatened by me. Eventually, she finished eating and retreated back to her position under the couch.

A little later in the evening, I returned. None of the kittens ran away as I walked into the room. Piper and Pickle were sleeping on the top level of the cat tower. Pickle enjoyed a belly rubbing. Piper was a little apprehensive at first but seemed to rather enjoy being petted. I stood there for quite awhile petting the two of them. Pippa then came out from under the couch and walked over to the food bowl. When she was finished, she walked over to the treadmill and laid ON it (not under!). I started to move about. Pippa casually jumped off the treadmill and sauntered to her favorite spot under the couch. Again, she didn't seem scared or threatened by me. She's just being very cautious.

I was able to entice Peter to play with me last night. The kittens like dangly toys. After quite awhile playing, I pulled the toy over my legs. He started towards it but then realized what I was trying to do. Several attempts later, I actually managed to get Peter to jump onto my legs for several minutes. He was willingly touching the scary lady!

This morning, as I entered the room, Pippa thought about ducking behind the dresser but then decided not to. She actually stayed out for the first time ever! She also walked around a bit before heading to the spot under the couch. And again, none of the kittens scattered as I approached them. I actually got to pet and pick up Norman! Piper and Pickle let me pet them again. Peter was the only one who avoided weigh-in as he kept wandering around his momma under the couch (and I'm not about to grab him when he's next to his mother).

Pickle is still the heaviest kitten. Pirate, one of the interlopers, is heavier than some of the older kittens by several ounces. Holy cow!

Pierce is starting to know me as the woman who plays with him. I played with him for several minutes before turning my attention to another kitten. He then walked back to the toy, took a step towards me, circled the toy, and then looked up at me and then back at the toy. Aw! He was trying to ask me to play with him again!

I am so happy by the progress everyone is making. One of these days, Pippa and I are going to be friends.

Week One

Parrot

The kittens have been with me for over a week now and I'm seeing signs of improvement. All of the kittens will play when I'm in the room. Most of them will even stay where they are when I enter the room (as opposed to fleeing to hide with their momma under the dresser).  A couple of them do not really trust me and don't allow me to capture them very often. I say capture because I have a feeling that's how they re-tell the story to their mother. Norman and Peter are wary of me, although Peter is coming around. Piper and Pickle are less likely to run when I enter the room but they're not a fan of letting me touch them. Pierce doesn't run and allows me to pick him up. I'm not quite certain he's enjoying me much but at least he doesn't run from me. Phineas and Parrot are my best friends. Phineas loves to follow me around the room. He's so tiny that I really have to watch my step for fear he might be under my foot. Pirate started off as my friend but I think some of the bigger kittens are influencing her and she's a little more apprehensive to be picked up than she was initially.

Phineas weighing 13 ounces (in this photo)

All kittens are litter box trained now. So exciting! I particularly love how teeny kittens insist on using a big cat litter box instead of the little, lower kitten sized box right next to the tall box. All kittens eat solid food. Pippa nurses them several times a day (the cam is a fabulous way to keep tabs on her). They follow her all over and even try to push her down. They love to slap her in the face! They have no respect. Hooligans.

Pippa hasn't learned to trust me yet. She's incredibly cautious around me. She hides as soon as I open the door. After 5-10 minutes, she'll usually come out of hiding and dart under the couch. Technically, that's hiding... visible hiding. She can see me; I can see her. I'm putting it in the win column that she comes out of hiding at all. She keeps her eyes on me a lot. I can feel her watching me. It's a little unnerving. I've tried coaxing her out with toys but those make her growl. I immediately drop the toy when she starts growling. I think I may try putting some chicken in my hand to see if she'll come to me. That worked well to establish trust with my feral. Pippa will actually walk by me in order to get to her spot under the couch. Today, she actually was crouching entirely out in the open just an inch from the couch for the first time. I was quite surprised she was willing to be out in the open since I was walking around doing things about the room.

Pierce showing off his tushy

The kittens are incredibly playful. I swear they're part kangaroo. They love to hop. Phineas, the smallest, does not let anyone push him around. He's actually the instigator in a lot of the wrestling matches. He's a butt biter. Pierce is going to be a gentle giant. He was helping Parrot, the second smallest, with her battle against Piper (I'm pretty sure Piper started it). Norman is insane. He reminds me a lot of Stroopy, Nadya's kitten. He's an avid wrestler and hopper. Piper is a toughy. She likes to battle everyone. Pierce, Norman, and Peter are playmates. Pickle and Pirate are best friends.

Peter professing his innocence (that's Phineas under him)

For the most part, kittens get weighed daily. There are at least two who avoid the weigh-in. I don't try to force it. As long as I can get ahold of those more reluctant kittens at least a couple of times a week AND those kittens are gaining weight, I'm not too concerned about enforcing my daily weigh-in rule. Norman, Peter, and Piper have missed a couple of weigh-ins. The biggest kitten surprised me. It's Pickle. She's heavier than all four males. To me, she looks little in person but when I watch them on camera, I have no problem distinguishing between Pickle and Pirate due to Pickle's girth. Pirate, one of the three interlopers, is over a pound now. Parrot should be there tomorrow. Phineas at 4 1/2 weeks old only weighs 14 ounces. He should weigh a little over a pound. While he's only about 3-4 ounces behind in weight, that's actually a big gap. He's gaining weight every day so I'm not too concerned. Perhaps in a couple of weeks he'll move beyond his target. I remember from Nadya's litter that I had a tough time getting Double Stuff to put on weight. He's now 12 pounds. Twelve. He's not even a year old yet (soon, very soon).

Pirate professing her innocence (with Phineas beneath her).

Pierce spent a couple of days puking up his momma's milk. It took me a couple of pukes to find the culprit. He happened to announce his distress with an incredibly pitiful cry right before he puked. So thankful to him for letting me know. Big litters pose a challenge when you need to find out what one kitten is doing something bad. I gave him some sub-Q fluids to re-hydrate him. When he continued to be a little pukey, I took him to the vet to make sure there was nothing really wrong with him. The vet couldn't find anything and recommended that I continue with the sub-Q fluids until he feels better. Lovely. I hate taking kittens to the vet only to have them tell me what I already know and am doing. Peter also got a trip to the vet since he lost several ounces over the course of a few days. Every weigh-in showed a lower weight than the day before. Ugh. Again, the vet told me to give him sub-Q fluids to keep him hydrated. And wouldn't ya know it? The next day he gained half an ounce. I think he was scared into eating. Scared that if he didn't eat, he'd get poked with an ouchy needle again.

Piper

Norman

Funny story about Peter's vet trip: Since Peter is one of the kittens who isn't fond of me capturing him, I had to tiptoe into the room and sneak up on him while he was playing in the tube. I blocked his exits from the tube and caught him right away. So surprised and relieved. I had allotted 15 minutes (more time than I would normally give myself) to wrangle up kittens. I put him in the carrier but didn't latch the door all the way (I didn't want to have to fumble at the lock when trying to put the second kitten - Pierce - inside). I figured there was no way a one pound kitten, weakened from having lost weight over a few days, would have the strength to push open the carrier door. I couldn't have been more wrong. Not only did he get out, but he got out seriously a second after I put him there, darting out like he was shot out of a cannon. The carrier door flew open and swung open and closed for several seconds after he darted out from the force he applied in his escape. Sigh. I then knew I had to give him time before I could capture him again. I set my sights on rounding up Pierce. I got him within a few seconds as he's one of the kittens who likes me. I finally lured Peter out from behind the dresser with a dangly toy. When I tried to snatch him, he darted away under the couch. While my back was turned, he darted under the treadmill. I was then able to trap him under the treadmill. He was not happy about it and spat and hissed at me any time I even glanced his way in the carrier on the drive to the vet's office. Once at the vet, the vet examined a different foster for a good 45 minutes before we moved on to Pierce. Fifteen minutes later (well into an hour of our vet visit), we finally got to Peter. The vet looked him all over, I explained what was wrong. She suddenly got a funny look on her face. She checked his chart. She then picked him up and looked at his butt. She then asked, "Did you know Peter was a girl?" Say what? No, Peter is a boy, definitely a boy. I looked at the kitten's face. Gosh darnit. It was Piper. No wonder this kitten was incredibly hissy and snappy! Poor Piper endured a needless car ride for simply looking too much like her brother. (Of course, then the vet said condescendingly that I should put colored collars on the kittens so that I can tell them apart. Um, yeah. I CAN tell them apart. I can tell them apart from across the room. I just didn't even think that I could perhaps be grabbing the wrong kitten. I had the right kitten the first time.)

Anyway, the kittens are slowly making progress both with gaining weight and with trusting/liking me. Pippa is coming around. At least I can see her now. I'll take that.