Karma & Lux

I’m so happy today to have met another delightful couple Louis & Charlotte from Bristol both with enormous big soft hearts & who I’m delighted have chosen to become the new parents to not one, but TWO Naked Sphynx Cat Hampshire kittens.

Prunes blue daughter is now named Karma & one of the black sisters bears the monicker Lux (Latin for light - a clever play on words being as she is black).

We have a lovely play time together, then the two kittens chosen were even gave baths, with ear and claw cleaning practice. This made Karma so sleepy that curled up in her bed, she didn’t even notice that her siblings were tucking into their pouches in the kitchen. Luckily she didn’t mind being woken up for that!

As we said our farewells for a couple more weeks, I truly felt that rather than losing two kittens I’m very fond of, instead I’ve gained a new extension to my NSCH family to cherish, with promises that I will not be short of emails and photos of the sisters as time goes on.

Breeding these cats I adore with my whole heart is a vocation of abundant love. It’s not easy, I’ve learned that on one end of the scale there is risk, heartache and huge expense, often unexpected, but at the other end is the privilege of trust given to me by the mother cat, as she carries her developing embryos to birth, then allows me to be her birthing partner, and/or to be her nurse as might be needed in the first days. The wonder of watching her bring these beautiful new lives into the world & holding my breath as I wait for them to take theirs and the relief of hearing their first mew. The sleepless nights, a mixture of wonder and terrible anxiety at each different stage, from supplementary feeding to weaning and litter training to becoming playmate and caregiver as I watch each personality develop and finally when they begin the next part which are all of their futures. I’m truly blessed & I thank my lucky stars that somehow the right new families do find their way to my door.

There were lots of photos taken today, but Louis & Charlotte has a long journey to travel back so may not have sight of them for a while, but will share when I can.

Tomorrow I am excited to be meeting the final new family who are coming to view their kitten, that story is for tomorrow, today belongs to Charlotte & Louis, new parents to Karma & Lux.❤️🐾🐾❤️

8 weeks of age & a viewing

Yesterday, Wednesday morning was the 8 week anniversary of the births of Prune’s kittens & it’s so lovely watching these little personalities behaving exactly as ‘text-book’ kittens do, and indeed seeing my adult cats remember what it is to be a kitten & playing hide & seek.

My curtains are still safe at least!

The eighth week not only brings the kittens the first part of their vaccinations (which they had on Tuesday) but also our first viewing visitors.

This evening we were delighted to welcome a most delightful father and daughter team to our home. Dad, Maurice and young Ella came inside to be greeted first by Pru and then by Aunty Noo(dle) & the “wrecking crew”. Thankfully all little ones had all paid their visits to their litter boxes about ½ an hour before our guests arrived, and, as I’d held up their evening meal a while they were nicely wide awake rather than in a food-induced soporific doze of epic proportions.

Ella & Maurice seemed to enjoy seeing the 2 adult and 4 kittens all interacting while the three of us chose to sit on the floor (I do have a sofa, perhaps I forgot to mention that!☺️) . While it was the kittens who were really the focus of our attention, true to form Princess Noodle chose to swipe two bottles of anti-bac handwash off of my desk in order to re-gain the attention she believes is rightly hers! She is a spoilt brat, she did her usual nibbling which she thinks let’s people know that she requires firm stroking (how?) She was quite the stroppy pants this evening in fact yelling as if hurt when she given a cuddle. Obviously that was not on her agenda. How embarrassing!

Thankfully Prunella Prudence can be relied upon to charm, with her beguiling beauty and push-button purring. She is so slim again, regaining her sleek silhouette like all unspayed female’s do.

And need I say it, but the kittens were simply divine - their Buddha bellies wobbling as they waddled along, tails up to follow me to the kitchen where they sang like ardent Christmas carollers telling me just exactly how hungry they were and how many days it had been since last a morsel has passed their lips!  The little darlings, unused to being fed elsewhere, were confused to be asked to eat in another room where their visitors could enjoy watching them, but once I’d scooped them all up and deposited them in front of the dishes they soon tucked in, with Pru & Noodle, watching on and who hardly needed an invitation to swoop in to finish any left-overs (there was some tonight too!).

Lucky little boy blue has been chosen by this wonderful family, but has yet to be given a name. His next chapters are theirs to write & I shall miss him very much when he goes. I shall savour these last 4 weeks with him!

We now look forwards again, to the weekend when more prospective new families come for their viewings so here’s hoping that his sisters will all secure safe new homes where love abounds.

First vaccinations & Microchips

A big day for these beautiful kittens today as they received their first vaccinations (* minus the leukaemia element) & their microchips.

Each kitten in turn was weighed & their heart and lungs listened to by Mark our lovely vet. With all being pronounced healthy with weight gains of approximately 200g each, Mark said that they are exceptional kittens. While I think this, it’s always good to have this remarked upon by a qualified professional.

After each was examined they first received their jabs, followed swiftly by the larger needled microchip injector. One of the black ladies yelled loudly, the other and the blue boy whimpered just a bit while the blue girl remained utterly and absolutely silent. There was a tiny amount on bleeding afterwards quickly stemmed by a cuddle from me as I applied compression with a cottonwool swab.

All chips now in place they were test scanned and then the required paperwork completed with each kitten’s chip being registered to me**.

We returned home, this time my car seat remained dry, and upon being let out safely back indoors, each kitten went to the litter box. I’m so pleased that they were able to wait this time, and proud of them.

As each emerged from the carrier Prune was there to great them, I love hearing her mum song, and seeing her care for them. Next was feeding, with 4 pouches quickly demolished, more litter tray trips, a play and now they are sleeping soundly.

* the reason that I ask the vet to omit the leukaemia element is due to there being some suggestion that cats receiving this medicine can develop a sarcoma at the injection site. I discussed this with Mark today and he said that most cats affected are in America, where a different vaccine is used, there were very few cases and it cannot be proven that the vaccine is responsible. I err on the side of caution in this early time.

The new family’s of the kittens, can if they wish to ask their vet to give the leukaemia element as a single vaccine at any time. Or simply have it included in the annual vaccination booster.

** New family’s must undertake to have their details registered to the appropriate microchip after they have taken them home at 12+ weeks.

Off to the vet!

Mum welcomes us home again.

Time with mum & trying it on

As the kittens continue to wolf down the meat, Prune has no milk left to offer however, this isn’t enough to stop a certain young lady from ‘chancing her arm’ at every opportunity she gets to suckle at mums breast. At this stage of course, it’s a comfort thing rather than food seeking, but with sharp pointed teeth inside little mouths I can see Prune is caught up in a bit of a dilemma. She is driven to be a good mum & to give the kittens what they demand of her, while at the same time she wants to protect herself from those overzealous teeth! The way I know her expressions I can see this decision playing out on her face as she considers what to do. Bless her heart.

Speaking of food; the smell of all that meat wafting about so regularly at feedings brings Mummy Pru and Aunty ‘Noo’ to the kitchen..... Like circling sharks they will dive in at times grabbing a mouthful when they think I’m not watching.  With one eye on me, the other is carefully trained on the progress of the ongoing feed, they wait impatiently for the kittens to have had their fill. Each adult will then take a bowl to make quite sure they are properly cleaned, before moving on to the kittens faces to do the same!

By Jove, it’s worked

After just over 24 hours on the medication we have proper 💩 from all four kittens. I will soon be able to allow them full freedom - which will mean one thing, lots of early morning wake up calls as 16 tiny cold paws climb all over me to let me know they want food NOW!

Actually, while my dear little boy follows me everywhere, wanting me if I’m in the kitchen to pick him up for a cuddle, he is therefore always first to the kitchen when it’s me that rings the dinner bell, however when it’s the kittens who ring it, it is one of the black ladies who lets me know - in no uncertain terms - that she needs sustenance! And I should make it snappy. Then her siblings join her and are climbing up my legs in their frustration that it takes me a minute to open pouches and mash it up, adding their medicine as necessary (2 feeds per day are medicated at the moment)

I’m putting down 2 full pouches at every meal. They have 4 (or sometimes even 5) meals day. This works out in one day as 2 (+ 1/2) pouches each - which is wonderful. Having withdrawn the Orijen for a few days while I waited for tummies to resettle, I will begin reintroducing it slowly, a few ‘biscuits’ at a time in a couple of days time. They love it I know that, but perhaps it was too rich so soon into the weaning process. Funny that only 2 kittens struggled, but that’s just the way it is sometimes with little baby cats as their tummies learn to cope with solid food.

(photos not well focussed I know!)

First trip out... visit to Mark our lovely vet

I decided that the kittens needed a little extra professional advice today and took them all to the vet, their first trip out of the house and ride in the car.

Herding them all into the carrier was fun, but with a warm snuggle safe and heat reflective bedding they were not getting a chill anytime soon. There was some meowing as I drove, I decided to believe though that they were singing along to the radio (Heart FM).

Walking from the car to the vet, and indeed in the vets office, I was halted several times as people noticed my little travellers and wanted to look. I allowed looking through the mesh or when I was waiting to the one I was holding, but defo no touching. Twice, I was asked were they Persian? These were so obviously not cat people as the Sphynx couldn’t be further from being a long haired snotty nosed Persian if they tried! I was polite of course, I’m proud to show folk these amazing cats, whether adult sized or a crowd of mini’s.

The reason I decided to go is because I’d been having problems with two kitties with loose motions and, worrying of it spreading, I wanted to get them checked out in case of an infection. Mark agreed that due to the two sessions of Panacur they have had that any infestation is unlikely and that he felt it was food related, possibly the introduction of the Orijen kibble proving too much for some (though they love it!). I left with a prescription with advice to give it to all kittens, which is a pro-biotic which includes good old fashioned kaolin.

Kittens were all good weights of between 620-680g. He listened to hearts and lungs and was happy with them. All were added to the system ahead of their first phase vaccination injections next week. I will ask that the microchipping is done at this first session so that I am certain all wounds are well healed before they leave, which they may not be if they leave very soon after the second phase injections 4 weeks after the first ones. They have come a long way in the 7 weeks since their births that’s for sure. All kittens use the litter tray, all have great appetites and I regularly see them drinking water from a bowl. I have for now disabled the water fountain as I want to introduce a ceramic rather than plastic one and haven’t decided on the one I will buy yet.

The drive home was loud, with lots of urgent mewing. They must be getting hungry again! On getting home though I noted my passenger car seat had a wet patch. Someone had obviously been yelling that they were in dire need of a litter tray, bless.

One bowl each, but look, someone has their eyes on the dish to their left! Have you got more?

 But, yours looks better than mine!

 

Lane changers eat better together 

 Well, this one dish each isn’t working out so well!

Calling all budding models

Not quite a ‘cat walk’ show for fashionista’s, I’d asked a dear friend of mine if she would mind visiting to help me with a mini photo shoot.

Taking decent photos of kittens is not easy at the best of times, they do have a habit of moving just when you’ve framed the perfect shot. Adding to my problems, my home has large oak trees around it and does t get its best light late afternoon and that is weather dependent of course. We had to rely upon artificial light, and entertaining the kittens into a pose that showed them at their best.

Although I have a lovely digital camera, I decided, that my iPhone camera would suffice and so we set to work, taking each kitten in turn into a room where we had set up our ‘studio’ (the kitchen!).

Many shots were deleted, there were several shots where just a belly or back only appeared as a kitten decided suddenly to take off as the camera delayed the shot as it focussed.... some shots have been great if only they were not blurry because at the precise moment of capture their attention had moved elsewhere, and consequently so had they.

Each kitten we took from their play time rough and tumble into our  ‘the studio’ (except the boy, who we wrenched from sleep). Each little kitty behaved so differently as Sarah tried to get them to stay in place & adopt the perfect pose while at the same time she tried to keep the toys she was using to distract them out of shot & not to create shadow. It was a lot to ask. Even with two of us, 4 hands were not really enough. For the final sequence we wanted to have both of the black girls together, these images were the least successful since, as you can imagine,  just when one kitten was perfectly poised the other would suddenly lurch out of the shot or move it’s head. Aaarrgghhhh!

At the end, we had managed a few questionably ‘serviceable’ photos ... some better than others however disappointingly, none are dynamite nor do they thrill me as I’d hoped to have achieved. Poor light in my home is the biggest culprit of all and even clever photo editing cannot correct this.

I will be uploading a couple of pics of each kitten on separate posts (because this silly website keeps moving them from where I am placing them (using iPad))

Anyone for tennis? 🎾 

How things change....

So, my last post was about my pretty scary Monday night into the wee hours of Tuesday morning... but my, how quickly things turn around... on Tuesday, supper time, almost 24 hours since the horror show of the previous night,  as I bottle fed the little lad I was also being mugged by the black girl who was still also wanting milk and had not yet successfully moved onto solid food.

I gave her a half feed of milk so that she was not so boisterously trying to do her little bro out of his meal, then I got back to feeding him while with my other hand (you know, the third one!)  put the sloppy pouched food onto my fingers and she began to suckle it hoovering it in. Finally she had got a taste for it. Again and again I covered my fingers. She began to bite in her haste to eat more of this delicious food, and each time I re-dipped I moved my hand toward the dish leading her forwards until at last she twigged and just went for it - ta-dah!

I then turned my full attention back to little boy blue, and since he had also started biting on the teat (a sure sign that sucking was receding and milk no longer suitable). He was interested but not enough to follow my fingers....so I filled his belly with milk.

Wednesday morning dawned. A busy day for me since I spend the day with my 18month old grandson, Holden. I was up early to feed the kittens and to clean litter trays (and on this particular day, surrounding furnishings and floors) then be off up the road.

Since the kittens were born I set up a security camera at home so I can check in and see what’s going on, and I also come back home periodically bringing Holden with me to see the ‘baby cats’ which he enjoys.

Though pushed for time that morning due to the sheer amount of cleaning required that particular morning I tried boy blue with the pouched food again and suddenly, by jove he got it/ Within a minute he too was eating side by side with his siblings!

The same occurred later on when I returned both times with Holden and they were so stuck in they took no notice at all as he took on the role of dinner lady and began to poke one kitten in the ear, saying “eyes” !

Horrific night

As weaning slowly continues, come yesterday I had two kittens, a black female and the blue female eating pouches meat.

The black girl took to it immediately, the blue girl began by having it from my fingers which I moved closer and closer to the dish until she got the hang of it. She does still ask for milk but isn’t that interested.

Meanwhile, no matter how I offered it to the others two kittens, meat or softened kibble was refused. As I prepared food, they were on my feet yelling “feed me, feed me’ but the teat was all they would accept, even though they had begun to bite it.

Last night, at supper time, I went to do a feed, but one kitten did not come. I walked into the lounge to find am epic ‘kitten mess’ on my chair, and a comatose kitten on the cold floor.

I picked him up. He was floppy but still there. I knew I had to act fast. He was not interested in milk, so I decided fluids were what would keep him alive and so I made boiled, cooled water and offered this. He refused to open his mouth or to swallow. Next I added some Manuka honey to the warmed water, but again, this was refused. There was nothing for it but to put a tube into his tummy before his organs shut down for good.

He did object a little but was weak.  I got the tube in and set about  injecting approx 15ml of milk, water and honey which I’d now mixed half and half. Removing the tube I laid him on my chest and very soon he was purring as he would normally do when with me. We were not out of the woods but I seem to have saved his life.

Prune came over to see us and began licking him. He proceeded to wee - on me- but it’s a small price to pay if he is going to revive & recover.

Setting a timer for two hours, I later tube fed again, this time giving a belly full strength milk to get him through the night as it was now 1am. He again objected to the tube and it was a struggle especially with those sharp teeth and a surprisingly fierce bite force. I removed the tube only to find it had become very short! He had bitten the tube. Quickly, I prized open the jaws and could see an end, so I managed to get hold of this and pull it out, but it was only a short piece. Holding these lengths against a brand new tube there is about 12cm missing. It’s inside of him and I’m waiting for it to come out.

I’m glad I caught him in time. I’m super fond of this little dude. Undoubtedly he would have died without that first tube of fluid and sugars. But I will feel worried until the tube inside has passed through him. It has a smooth surface and blunt front end so with luck he will pass it in the next 12-24 hours. I’m watching him like a hawk for signs of duress (obstruction) or of the tube appearing.

This morning, he did have milk from the teat, but he is not ravenously going for it as he normally would. As we sat slowly feeding, I was mugged by the other black sister still on milk. I fed her and once she was satiated I began to put meat into her mouth, over and over. She liked it. So I worked her slowly toward the dish, putting more food in as she seemed so keen now.

So, as of today, we are 3 kittens moved onto pouched meat, with milk there if it’s wanted, and there’s always water which I saw the little lad drink from on his own today which is a good sign I think. I’ve not seen Pru feeding any of them in days now, not even at night to settle them as she was doing.

A small victory. I will take it!

I decided to try a new tack for this weaning lark, so today I went to buy some grain free kitten pouches. Opening one, I squeezed a small amount out and made it very loose with some formula.

I placed this in the pen, and Prune was immediately interested, and while watching her closely as I noticed one of the black kittens doing so often recently, she began to inch forward. Seconds later she was noisily eating/supping from the dish. She strayed there doing so even when mum moved away.

Her siblings however were far to busy and wrapped up in their games to notice and now the family are snuggled together for their siesta!

First baths

Since the kittens are now growing up a bit, I thought it time they had a first bath, as

a) I did not want them to grow up to be as terrified of bath time as their mum is and
b) they were grubby!

I made a shallow warm bath in a washing up bowl, and beside it a deeper bath in my little ‘half-sink’ in which to give them a final rinse.

As I put them into the water they were totally unafraid, immediately putting their heads down to smell it to see if they could identify by sniffing. There followed some little sneezes as they breathed some water into their noses. Some water was tasted too.

Very quickly though they became interested in the world that is outside of the washing up bowl and just as fast I rather regretted my decision to bath all four together as each began their bids for freedom from 4 different directions. Unperturbed I took each kitten in turn and with Dove baby bath wash (other brands are available!) gave them a quick sudsing on the draining board, back into the bowl for a rinse, then a final dip into the clean water before wrapping in a warm dry towel- all done while keeping the siblings safely in place!

Back on dry land, I took each kitten in turn to prize the toenail gunk away (baby-wipes) work best for this and clip their needle-sharp claws. With the adult cats I would make ear cleaning a part of bath time but I’ve decided I will not subject them to ear cleaning quite yet.

Weaning & litter tray use....

Well, as you can imagine, while I’ve not had time to post, things have been changing daily here at Kitten Towers (😂).

I’ve had to shuffle a few things around and move them into a new territory. The crate I usually use I decided was too small to allow them room to play and grow strong so I got out my soft play pen and placed this in my lounge where it fills the floor. Inside the pen is a food station for them and for mum so they can watch what she does, a sleeping and a playing area and a place for the litter tray.

Weaning is slow slow progress, despite my efforts over the last 6 days, they show zero interest in moving on to lap milk from a dish or to eat anything resembling food. I have however seen one of the black girls using the litter tray and so they are learning to be independent of mum.

I’m not happy with the new set up with them easily scaling the netting panels when they see me coming with their milk rations, nor Pru jumping onto the netting roof so that it all collapses in on them, so I have ordered a new metal play pen which arrives tomorrow. It doesn’t however have a floor like this fabric one does, but I’m sure I can find some way to manage until they are all using the tray.

Meanwhile I will continue to make up the solid food “gruel” and offer it everyday hoping that eventually they will decide it tastes nice!

As you can see in this photo Prune has no respect of a roof at all!