Visits to the Vet

A wonderful part of having a pet is always going to the vet. We spent painstaking hours going through all the clinics in our area and finding one that was perfect for our tiny black cat. Just kidding- we chose the Petsmart next door. So far we've had a very positive experience. The first time we went the vet went over our kitten and we discussed care options. When we came back they were very surprised- it turns out that 95% of abandoned kittens don't make it through the first week or so. And even then, out of that 5% only a small percentage end up thriving. I often think about how lucky we ended up being.

First Days

Our cat was growing quickly. This was evident when she climbed out of her box in my room and crawled completely under my bed on the first night she spent with us. She was quickly moved to a new basket and was unable to escape, much to her dismay. 

The routine was basically sleep, explore, eat, repeat. Eating was a messy affair, which involved heating the goat milk for exactly 4 seconds- 3 was too cold, 5 was too hot- and manipulating the clumsy, glass eyedropper correctly. Of course this was an imprecise art made even more difficult by her constant pawing in her fervent quest to obtain milk. The pictures will show the food all over her face!

We knew that soon our cat would be out of her box and most definitely ready to tour her personal domain. 

A Cat of Miracles

We passed around the puffy, black, day old kitten as my aunt told us how the mother had abandoned her in the chimney of the barbecue pit at her house in the 103 degree heat. She never would have been found had my aunt not been at the right place at the right time. Even then, she had received none of the vital nutrients provided by mother's milk. My Aunt had called every place in town that would take a one day old kitten, but they were either full or did not have the capacity to take care of such a tiny cat. Frustrated, she began to feed the mewing feline goat milk from an eye dropper. Having planned a trip to Austin to visit us she decided to bring the kitten with her to find a place that would accept her. But after everyone had fed her and petted her and grown attached to her constant but adorable mewing we knew the kitten would be ours. Follow this blog to experience my family's journey to raise this miraculously resilient kitten.