Sunday, August 12, 2007
Daisy Lives Next Door
Daisy, a black and white female, appeared nine years ago. She showed up on our front porch one morning, a small blimp gobbling dry cat food. I called to her expecting her to flee as did most of our cat visitors. She took a few steps back, then stopped. I talked to her,"nice kitty, kitty, kitty..." as I tiptoed closer. She came to me. I petted her, then took a chance and scooped her up. She purred. I hurried inside and placed her in a carrier. She growled. I knew she needed to see a veternarian before I introduced her to my pride. I also knew she was very pregnant. I delivered her to my veternarian with the request to check her out, then left. My vet kept her overnight. The next morning, his assistant called. "She's disease free. Come and get her before she has the kittens here." I picked her and three days later, she had five kittens.
All was not well, however, while Daisy was disease free, she was in poor overall condition. She had not been eating regularly and was really just skin and bones and kittens. My vet was afraid we would lose both mother and kittens. She came home from the vet with vitamins, supplements and instructions to feed her all she could eat. Eat she did, and I gave her vitamins and supplements that she thoroughly enjoyed. The vet suggested that I also bottle feed the kittens after their first week of life to take some of the load off Daisy. So, twice a day for the next six weeks I fed the kittens.
There were three black kittens, one black and white, and one white. Two of the black were short-haired, one long-haired. The long-haired black was the only male in the litter. I named the black ones Wynken, Blynken and Nod (the male). The black and white one became Rosie and the white one Violet. All enjoyed their extra feedings and all enjoyed attention. After a few days, I noticed that the little white one had dirty feet. I was surprised because I changed their bedding twice a day, and Daisy was a very good mother bathing her babies regularly. On closer examination, it turned out the feet weren't dirty, the hair was getting darker. Violet was a Siamese. I asked my vet who informed me that Siamese are born white, then develop their distinctive markings. Violet grew to be a beautiful seal point Siamese.
Daisy was a superb mother as long as the kittens were nursing. Once weaned, though, she decided she had no relationship with these little things. She was absolutely sure that she had never seen them before and that she wanted them no where near her. The kittens soon attached themselves to one of our older neutered males who happily became their surrogate mother.
Daisy put on weight and seemed none the worse for her time with the kittens. We tried to integrate her into the pride. She would not associate with any other cat. Her antipathy aroused a reciprocal feeling in two of the younger males. They desired nothing better than to torment Daisy.
We had hoped to make Daisy an indoor only cat. We did not succeed and soon she was venturing outside regularly. Over time, we found out that Daisy was checking out the neighbors looking for a new home. Most would not allow her inside, a prime prerequisite, or there was another cat already in residence. Daisy wanted a home where she reigned alone. At last, she found a compromise. Our next door neighbor did not want a cat, but she did enjoy feline visits. Now Daisy goes over in the morning, stays all day, then returns home and indoors for the night. We have fewer cats now, so she tolerates this arrangement.
All was not well, however, while Daisy was disease free, she was in poor overall condition. She had not been eating regularly and was really just skin and bones and kittens. My vet was afraid we would lose both mother and kittens. She came home from the vet with vitamins, supplements and instructions to feed her all she could eat. Eat she did, and I gave her vitamins and supplements that she thoroughly enjoyed. The vet suggested that I also bottle feed the kittens after their first week of life to take some of the load off Daisy. So, twice a day for the next six weeks I fed the kittens.
There were three black kittens, one black and white, and one white. Two of the black were short-haired, one long-haired. The long-haired black was the only male in the litter. I named the black ones Wynken, Blynken and Nod (the male). The black and white one became Rosie and the white one Violet. All enjoyed their extra feedings and all enjoyed attention. After a few days, I noticed that the little white one had dirty feet. I was surprised because I changed their bedding twice a day, and Daisy was a very good mother bathing her babies regularly. On closer examination, it turned out the feet weren't dirty, the hair was getting darker. Violet was a Siamese. I asked my vet who informed me that Siamese are born white, then develop their distinctive markings. Violet grew to be a beautiful seal point Siamese.
Daisy was a superb mother as long as the kittens were nursing. Once weaned, though, she decided she had no relationship with these little things. She was absolutely sure that she had never seen them before and that she wanted them no where near her. The kittens soon attached themselves to one of our older neutered males who happily became their surrogate mother.
Daisy put on weight and seemed none the worse for her time with the kittens. We tried to integrate her into the pride. She would not associate with any other cat. Her antipathy aroused a reciprocal feeling in two of the younger males. They desired nothing better than to torment Daisy.
We had hoped to make Daisy an indoor only cat. We did not succeed and soon she was venturing outside regularly. Over time, we found out that Daisy was checking out the neighbors looking for a new home. Most would not allow her inside, a prime prerequisite, or there was another cat already in residence. Daisy wanted a home where she reigned alone. At last, she found a compromise. Our next door neighbor did not want a cat, but she did enjoy feline visits. Now Daisy goes over in the morning, stays all day, then returns home and indoors for the night. We have fewer cats now, so she tolerates this arrangement.
Labels: cats
# posted by January Cat @ 1:12 PM 
