A heartbreaking loss

Yesterday morning I noticed that River's left eye was a cloudy reddish color and her pupil was at pinpoint dilation whereas her right eye was open wide. After a frantic call to the Humane Society, I took her down to visit the vet. By the time I got there, her eye was looking a bit better. The vet diagnosed her with an inner eye infection and sent me home with eye drops for her. They also administered a vaccine she was due for. Back home she went.

She seemed quite subdued in the afternoon, but I've had cats respond to vaccines with sleepiness before. However, by the evening she was breathing rapidly. I called the Cat Program Manager and spoke to her. She said that several kittens had responded unusually to a vaccine, but usually perked up after 12 hours or so. I put on the humidifier for River and hung out with her for a while.

By 9:30, her respiration was very labored (72-84 breaths per minute). I phoned Juli again, and she said she would call the vet for more advice. I was extremely nervous; the last time I had seen this kind of respiration was when Tag died. Juli finally got back to me and said the vet said hang tight, and if she was the same or worse in the morning to bring her in.

When I awoke at 6am, she was gone.

RIP River Serenity. For your short life you were loved and cherished. Feb 18th, 2013 - May 7th, 2013.

My Geek Fan and Foster Worlds Collide

Yesterday I had the coolest experience. Tricia Helfer and Katee Sackoff were supposed to show up at Blazing Bagels in the morning before leaving on the Tulip Ride (www.tulipride.org). Being a HUGE Battlestar Galactica fan, I couldn't not go. I had no IDEA what the Tulip Ride even was. So Kya and I headed over then after my morning workout. Tricia Helfer was already there, so I screwed up my courage to let her know how much I loved her character in BSG, and I asked what the ride was for. Turns out it is benefiting the Red Cross and the Humane Society!!! I shared that I foster for the Humane Society in Seattle, and Tricia shared that she has 11 cats! So I got to show her a picture of River, and she showed me her baby, Maxie, who only has three legs. What an incredible experience. Tricia Helfer is one classy lady!

Tricia Helfer as Six from BSG

 


Tricia Helfer & I at Blazing Bagels



River looking relaxed

And then there was one...

This week has been a week of saying goodbye. On Monday I took the kittens and Serenity in to the Humane Society to get fixed. The plan was to pick up Grey and Kaylee afterwards so that they could be picked up from my house by their new humans. However, it turned out that River's heart murmur meant she needs a special surgery which couldn't be performed for another three weeks. Juli asked if I could take her home again until Friday while she worked on finding another foster home.

I also spent a few minutes with Serenity in her new digs in Colony Room 1. She seemed very skittish, but once I got her out from under the couch, she snuggled and demanded pets. I really hope someone takes the time to get to know her. She is such a petite girl, but she will make someone a good companion.

So I brought home three kittens on Monday evening. Kaylee was ready to play within a couple of hours of getting home, but Grey was more than a little bit tuckered out. He spent most of the evening crashed out on my lap.

I checked online yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon, and Zoe and Inara had already been snapped up. Long lives little ones!

So today both Kaylee and Grey's humans came to pick them up. It was hard saying goodbye, but made MUCH easier seeing first-hand just how much their owners already love and cherish them. Plus - I got promises of occasional pictures and updates.

Now little River is sleeping on the bed on my desk. She is not happy being left alone, but she seems fine if I'm in here with her. I really hope that her health issues do not become a challenge to adopting her out. If anyone knows of someone wanting a sweet, darling little kitten, please have them get in touch with me!

So close to surgery weights!

So my brood is growing so fast now. I took them in last weekend to get checked out, and they are all doing really well. Some minor eye gunk which they are getting drops for, but the vet staff were ooing and aaahing over them. They are all nearly at 2 pounds, so I am expecting to bring them in sometime in the next week. [sniff, sniff].

All of them are completely weaned and litter trained - thank goodness. It is never my favorite part of the job to clean up puddles in my office. They are also very active, running and leaping all over my office. As much as I adore them, the office is completely unusable as an office right now. It's nearly impossible to hold a professional conversation while having your leg climbed or a kitten walks across your phone set. And trying to write or type or sort papers? Forget it! So the kittens are making it just a little bit harder to run my business - hopefully I will get back into a work routine soon.

Serenity and her brood

Gray lazing in amongst the girls

You can see their eyes are going green

Zoe investigates the camera (you can see the blue in her ear)

Handsome boy!

River looking pretty

Connection made

One of the fun parts of my job as a foster parent is introducing the kittens to people interested in adopting. It was wonderful to have my daughter's friend Madison and her family stop by on Saturday. Madison's grandma has been following the blog, and was enchanted with all five kittens. She met all five, and - as I would have predicted - Kaylee was one of the first ones to introduce herself. Within a very short time, she was firmly ensconced in in a lap, purring away. Madison's sister sat in the big armchair, and River made herself comfortable as well. Zoe and Inara alternated between quick cuddles and running around playing. Gray was kind of laid back and calm, watching the group of admirers.

The kittens continue to grow and change. I'm beginning to be able to tell them apart a bit. River has the softest, fluffiest fur of the four girls, and Zoe has the shortest hair. Kaylee is almost always the first to run to me, and Inara is still the most shy. But they all love getting snuggles. When I sit down in the big armchair, it's rare to have more than couple of minutes go by before I have 2-3 of them perched around me inviting me to play.

Serenity continues to be pretty laid back. Occasionally she will want some attention, but she often is content to just sit nearby as the kittens climb and play. I do often find her snuggled up with them, so I think she continues to comfort nurse them occasionally.

They are mostly using the litter box now. I do have to clean up accidents outside of the litter box, but it is getting less and less often.

Uber cuteness

The babies are loving the armchair in the office. I often go in to find the five of them all curled up together. It looks like Serenity is still offering comfort nursing, at least.

 

Serenity recovers and kittens get cuter

I can't believe it's been a week since I posted last! Serenity has improved dramatically since her surgery.

Last Sunday I reunited Serenity and the kittens. Within a few minutes of returning her to the room, the kittens were snuggled up and latched on to her. She seemed pretty relaxed, and spent most of her time in the nest with them. She really disliked getting her meds, but they seemed to help in her recovery. Amazingly, she has been eating up a STORM!! I have been feeding her as often as her bowl is empty, and it is not uncommon for her to eat 2 or 3 cans of cat food each day! She had a couple of bouts of diarrhea, but seems to have gotten over that as well. There have also been a couple of times where she has hissed at me when I come in, but seems to get over whatever she is reacting to pretty quickly.

The kittens are still growing well. They are all over a pound now, and love to scamper around the room chasing each other. Inara, our littlest, is the most timid, but she still gets into the playfighting. Zoe has started to climb, but seems to not quite know how to get back down from the stool or the chair once she gets up.

Pictures for your enjoyment!

Serenity's saga continues

So the kittens have (mostly) successfully switched over to bottle-feeding, and come running when I open the door. Gray prefers the slurry to the bottle. Since we brought them back from the SHS, the girls all have collars with their official numbers on them. I've been able to track their weights more effectively and we have FINALLY named them. So, in the spirit of Firefly, the four girls are Inara, River, Kaylee and Zoe. Inara is now the smallest because she really doesn't like the bottle yet, and she will only take about a teaspoon at a time. River is the one with the heart murmer, but she is growing much better now she is on the bottle. She is quite the little snuggler. Kaylee is the most adventurous, and has managed to get out of the room before I shut the door! Zoe is our biggest kitten - she is 14.65 oz to her siblings range of 12.5 to 13.6.

Serenity continued to refuse food for about 24 hours after I brought her back. She took her first dose of subcutaneous fluids OK, but when we tried to give her a second dose the next night, she fought us and got away. Between her not eating and me feeling inept at getting her the fluids she needed, I made the decision to email Juli. She said we needed to proceed with the surgery. We got it set for Saturday, and I kept trying to tempt her with various food options.

Interestingly, once the kittens started taking the bottle, Serenity seemed to regain some of her appetite. She ate some of the dry cat food and two cans of the fancy feast I gave her. Unfortunately, she was still completely refusing the high calorie slurry - even if her kittens seemed to like it.

I took her in to the SHS this morning, and went back to get her this afternoon. Juli reported that all but her canine teeth were removed, and that they spayed her at the same time. Serenity was very woozy, and needed to be kept separate from the kittens until the morning. When I got her home, I set her up in our master bathroom. She got out of the carrier and paced groggily around the bathroom. She wouldn't let me near her. I was kind of worried, but hoped it was just the drugs in her system. Sure enough, when I visited her an hour later, she came out and wanted to be petted and cuddled. She still seemed to pace the room quite a bit. I'm wondering if she may be looking for her kittens. I'm looking forward to reuniting them tomorrow morning.

More challenges

This has not been the easiest fostering experience! I was worried that Serenity was not responding well to the Clavamox for the URI, as she seemed to have some gastrointestinal upset, and she didn't seem to be eating much.Then on Saturday when I weighed the kittens I found that that they had lost a small amount of weight. . So I was worried that her milk might be drying up. I contacted Juli at the Humane Society. Keep up the Clavamox and try supplementing the kittens with a bottle. I tried getting food into them with very little success. They are not fond of the bottle compared to mama.

But by the next day the kittens had gained a small amount. On the other hand, Serenity seemed dehydrated when I tried a skin pinch test. I called the SHS and was told to bring them in on Monday morning.

Upshot of the vet visit: Dr. B. got to finally look at Serenity's teeth, and discovered that our poor mama is probably 8, not 2-3 as originally estimated! And ALL her teeth need to come out. So our sweet girl is probably having a painful time trying to eat (exactly as I suspected). Plus, Dr. B. said that yes, she was dehydrated and yes, her milk is probably drying up. So...I get to keep trying to bottle feed, give Serenity high calorie slurried, see if the kittens will take to the slurrie, AND give Serenity sub-cutaneous fluids plus continue Clavamox. WHEW! Lots of work ahead.

I got everyone back home and the kittens are slowly getting the idea how to bottle feed. They still want to nurse on Serenity and I am pretty sure they're getting something, as they are continuing to gain some weight. They also will lick slurrie off my hand.

On the other hand, Serenity is refusing the slurrie completely. I tried it warmed, in a dish with sides and in a wide flat dish. But, like Sam-I-Am, she will not, will not eat it. Strangely enough, she is continuing to eat the dry food. And I tried the fancy feast with gravy, which she ate some of. She was not happy about the sub-q fluids, but I know how important they are to her wellbeing.

I will be so happy to have this set successfully weaned!

Baby pics!

Checking out the edge of the blanket

Little Gray sitting pretty

What is this shiny brown stuff?

It feels funny on my paws!

Playing with the Daddy-man

 

Iz gonna stick close to the big guy. He keeps me safe!

No, seriously! We CAN walk on it. It just feels funny!

 

Why you leave me all alone?

See, I tolz you she tastes good. And she's warm!

Healthy again

It's been a while since I have posted! Serenity and the kittens are doing well. The gummed eyes got a bit worse, so my husband took the brood in to see the Vet at the SHS. Early stage URI, so meds for mama and eye drops for the kittens. That was Wednesday. I went in to see them this morning and already the eye gunk seems to have cleared up - YAY! Serenity is the easiest cat I have ever had for giving meds to. When I grab her by the scruff of the neck, she almost goes limp. But boy is she reproachful afterwards. She'll make herself small in a corner, and when I go to pet her, she seems to cringe. Of course, within a few minutes, she is back to wanting snuggles and pets.

The kittens are getting more and more adventurous. They love to be taken out and put on someone's lap or on the blanket so they can roll around and play with each other. They are getting steadier on their feet too, so they are more likely to crawl over each other or whichever human is cuddling with them.
They can hear quite well now, so when I come into the room they will hear me and start squeaking. I am pleased that if any one of them seems upset, being picked up and snuggled seems to calm them right down.
All of the kittens are now over the 10 oz. mark. There is about an ounce difference in weight between the smallest and the largest kitten.

I will take and post more pictures over the weekend.

 

Crouching mama, hidden kittens

Exploring under Mama's watchful eye

Serenity and the kittens continue to grow as a family. The kittens have started rolling around and batting at each other clumsily. They still don't have any real teeth, so the baby nips are more gumming each other.

Crusties!

A couple of the kitttens, including Gray, have some eye gunk. I have been diligently wiping down their eyes with a warm cloth every time one of them can't open their eye. They aren't very happy with the process, but I want to make sure they can see properly.


On Friday afternoon I went in to the office with my cousin so show off Serenity and the kittens, but when I looked into the dog carrier - everyone was gone! It looked as though Serenity had gotten sick as the blanket had some diarrhea on it. But where were Serenity and the kittens? I could hear some squeaking under my desk behind my shredder, so I crawled under. Serenity was there with two kittens. I pulled them out and started searching for the other three. My cousin kept saying, "Are you sure they're not under there? I can hear them" After a moment, we thought perhaps they were next to the book case. Nope. Then my cousin started pulling out the magazine files I have on the bottom shelf of my bookcase. There, stuck in one magazine file were the other three kittens. You can see from the picture that it was not easy to get the kittens in there - and I have NO idea how she would have gotten them back out.

The kittens were crusty, Serenity's back end was still covered with poop, and she was not going near the kittens. I was more than a little worried. But I grabbed a warm washcloth and proceeded to clean off the kittens, then I started to clean her off. She was pretty patient about the whole thing - not that she liked being washed, but I got the sense she knew I was helping. I pulled out the soiled blanket, got a new one, remade the nest, heated the kitten warmer, plopped them back in to the nest, and went out of the room. I was hoping that if I left a cleaned up Serenity alone, she would go back to being the amazing mama she can be. I was right! Within a few minutes, she was back in the nest.

When I went back in to the office to visit her, she seemed to be OK. I petted her and as I was pulling away to get up she reached out her paw and grabbed my hand as if to say, "Don't go!" It was really sweet. Since then, every time I go in to visit, Serenity gets up and wants love and attention. It is amazing how quickly my fosters recognize that I am there to care for them. When people ask me why I foster, I always am reminded that I make a difference in the lives of these cats.

Strike a pose!

When I talked to Juli later that night, I told her I had given Serenity the high calorie wet cat food. Turns out many cats have a tough time digesting the prescription diet and they get the runs from it. So no more A/D wet cat food!



What did I do to deserve this?

Happy family

Peek-a-boo

The kittens' eyes are opening! They are starting to blink when I turn on the lights. They also seem to like cuddling up to my hand when I pet them.

 

They are all above 7 oz at one week old! Serenity has started to come out of the nest when I go into the room for love and pets, and the kittens seems to be sleeping for longer periods rather than nursing all the time. Serenity still runs back to the nest when they squeek for her.

Aarrrgh Matey!

Oooh, that's what you look like!

Squee!

The kittens are quickly gaining weight and are SO DARN CUTE!! Today's post will be mostly pics, so everyone can get their daily squee in.

Little all grey one - I think it's a boy

One of four identical tabbies

Itty-bitty

So tiny!

Serenity and her brood

Feeding time

Little gray going for a wander

Headed back to mama

Out of the nest on a blanket

You can see how similar they look

Uh oh - here comes Mama

"no, you may not play with my babies"!!! (Serenity picked one up and took him back to her nest)

Sleepy baby

Crashed out, but mama's right close by