Kitten rescue

It's over. Overnight he got much worse, and by morning it was clear he was suffering. Of course, there are no vets open on Sunday, but a call to our vet's emergency number got a callback and we made the appointment. I buried him next to his friend Tobbles, under the redbud tree. Unfortunately, MommyCat (his mother) had more kittens on March 3. I haven't seen them yet, and don't want to take any of them in, but I'd love to find loving homes for them. I want the same for MommyCat and Pants (Kirby's probable father). I wish I didn't hurt so much for these cats.

I think he's about done.

FeLV has gotten the better of him.

I haven't posted updates because of other matters that have me distracted and occupied in unpleasant ways, but the past month has been rough on Kirby.

He suddenly got weak and sick one Friday evening. We rushed him to the vet the next morning-- as soon as the vet office opened-- and she said it was his FeLV. She gave him some injections and an oral pill (4 per day). He's been on the pills 3 weeks as of today. He improved for a while. But it didn't last.

She did say it was going to be palliative care only and that there was no way to know how long it would help. She hoped it would give him at least another year or more.

He keeps having relapses. But since he recovered after a day or so each time, I held out hope. But I don't think he's getting better this time.

He doesn't seem to be suffering; he just seems to have given up. Unless he shows huge improvement by Monday morning I think it's time to make the hard decision.

Next Friday would be his 1st birthday.

I'm crushed and I'm going in for surgery on April 4th.

I was afraid something had happened to Pants. I didn't see him around for a few days. MommyCat seemed more nervous and suspicious than usual, but part of that might be that Pants gives her confidence. Oliver wasn't coming around as often, either. Something was different. There were a few of the occasional visitors showing up, though. And Watcher, outside the fence.

But, after a few days, Pants showed up and seemed fine. Maybe he was trapped in a shed. MommyCat seemed relieved and more relaxed again.

Pants has gotten to the point where he demands to be petted a little before he'll even eat.

I'm starting to suspect he doesn't have teeth. I can't get a good look, and he won't let me lift his lips to see, but something about the way he holds his mouth looks toothless. At least it looks like he may be missing his front teeth. So I've started giving him more canned food.

I've wondered if he'd let me brush him. His long fur might be more comfortable if it weren't matted. I may try to introduce him to the idea when I'm petting him at mealtime-- he still won't normally let me pet him-- or approach him-- at other times.

I recently stocked up on food for them, due to a generous supporter's help. Next month is going to be a little tight, but I may have enough to get through it. Thank you all for your help, from the cats and me.

(I keep trying to upload a photo, but I think it keeps crashing the site)

For some reason, I've been unable to successfully post an update. Will try again later.

I just wanted to say Thank you to all who have supported my porch cats. I can assure you they are better off and happier-- and healthier-- than they would have been without your help. They made it through the cold snap, staying inside their boxes most of the time. I fed them extra during the coldest days just so they'd have more fuel for warmth, and I gave them unfrozen water every few hours. Who knows what the next year will bring, and what needs they might have, but with your help I'll keep doing what I can for them. Again, thank all of you!

I've mentioned the small black cat who just sits and watches the yard. I finally got a picture of her (?) doing her thing. She's shy and doesn't let me get close, but she likes to watch me and the "porch cats" inside the fence.

Back when Tobbles was alive and Kirby and Whiskers would be in the yard playing with him, the little black cat would come right to the fence and watch. She'd move to different spots to get a better view, depending on what was going on.

I tried to invite her in-- for food if nothing else-- but she wouldn't come in. I've never seen her inside the fence.

She's welcome to come in to eat with Pants, MommyCat, and Oliver-- well, I welcome her. Maybe the problem is that the porch cats don't.

Pants actually raised up and bumped my hand with the top of his head yesterday morning. I took too long to pet him, I guess, and he got impatient. He still won't let me approach unless it's feeding time, but he's trusting me more all the time. MommyCat lets me pet her more, too, especially if I stroke her tail. But she still has to put on the feral act. Oliver still doesn't let me approach, but he doesn't run as fast or as far anymore. He just scoots out of the way.

Kirby is still doing good. He doesn't know he's scheduled to be neutered in a few weeks.

 I took Kirby to the vet Friday evening. The great news is that she says his eye doesn't need to be removed at this time.

Usually, when I need some donations for vet care, I can scrape by whether or not I get enough donations to cover the expense. Not this time, though. Due to other circumstances, mostly my own medical bills, Kirby is entirely dependent on donations to get his bad eye removed.

It's just how things are right now.

If you can help, I thank you. If you can't, maybe consider sharing this campaign with anyone you think might like to help.

Thank you!

Kirby needs to have his eye removed. The last kitten who needed the same procedure (eye removal and neutering) cost around $400 in total for the surgery.

If anyone can chip in, I would appreciate it. And so will Kirby (eventually, if not immediately).

Thank you!

A couple of days ago I saw a couple of cats I hadn't seen recently. I don't know what brought them back around, but they were lounging on the patio with Pants and MommyCat. Lari was there, as was a white/gray cat that may be one who used to come over-- but it may have been a new visitor, too. I also caught a glimpse of someone darting around a corner, but I didn't get a good enough look to see who it was. This morning I saw Oliver, the black cat, and the white/gray cat fighting (not too viciously) behind the house. Not sure what the argument was about but it was over quickly. I haven't increased the amount of food I'm putting out, and I want to make sure the 3 regulars keep getting enough to eat. Pants actually lifted his head to be petted the last couple of days. I take that as a good sign. MommyCat still prefers not to be touched, even though I sneak a pet here and there.

Pants, the probable dad of Kirby and the longest-remaining current resident of the patio, has recently been letting me pet him more. He still gives me a shocked look when I touch him, but then he calms down and seems to enjoy it. While MommyCat (and sometimes Oliver) looks at him like he's doomed to be eaten.

I've been sneaky enough to give MommyCat a few pets while she's rubbing against Pants in her joyous anticipation of food, but if she notices she backs away quickly. And often hisses at me. I'll win her over yet.

Oliver never gets within several arm-lengths, so that's going to be harder to accomplish with him.

I'd still like to treat them all for fleas, but Pants' skin seems to be clearer now, like he's not being bitten as much. 

I hadn't seen Lari in quite a while, But she showed up again yesterday. I didn't get a picture of her, but she reminds me of Pants, but with fewer white patches and smaller. The shape of her head makes me think "female", but the shagginess of her fur makes it hard for me to see for certain.

I'm not sure she stayed around to eat. Unfortunately, I was mowing and she was not happy about that. She vanished into the cannas and I didn't see her again, but I'm glad to know she's still around.

Pants, MommyCat, and Oliver aren't the only ferals I take care of. They are just the only regulars. There's a cat I call Lari-- I think it's a female (if not, its name is Larry). I used to regularly see one I called Steve. I haven't seen Steve in months, so either he is staying at the neighbor's yard, or something happened to him. Then there are several who I only see occasionally, who I haven't named. Many of them stay at my neighbor's house and only wander over to see what I have to eat. I don't have pictures of them, so I'll treat you to another picture of Tobbles.

Sunny came through her tooth extraction fine.

Monday, Sunny goes to the vet to have her bad tooth (or teeth) removed. She gave the vets trouble when we took her in to set up the appointment, so I hope things go better tomorrow. She's not the friendliest cat with people she doesn't like, and she really doesn't like anyone but me. With me, she's very sweet. She may be angry with me after tomorrow.

Second, I'm pretty sure Ghost ended up with Covid-- the household humans got it and he displayed similar symptoms to those the humans had. He was really sick-- much sicker than I was-- for days. He finally started acting a little better last night, but he still hasn't started eating yet (other than small nibbles once a day or so). I hope he feels good enough to eat soon.

Kirby is still doing great. Growing and playing. His bad eye doesn't seem to be causing too many issues, except that he has poor depth perception.

More updates on the "porch cats" soon.

Ghost hung around on my porch for over a year. He was like my first Tobbles in that respect. He had mouth problems, but since he was a stray I couldn't afford to do anything about it but feed him. He was really friendly, though, and loved to be petted and rub his face on me while he purred. He, like Tobbles, was always really happy to see me come out the door. A year after he had shown up was when Sunny appeared and was brought in. I felt bad for Ghost because I knew he wanted to come in (he had snuck in twice already). Soon, though, I got backed into a corner. Ghost stopped eating. He looked miserable and was drooling badly. He got thin, fast, and wouldn't even close his mouth all the way. His mouth was just too painful. He was dying. So, I scooped him up, took him to the vet, and they removed some of his teeth and gave him antibiotics. And he got to come live inside. He's been indoors now for about 4 years, and is still very loving and happy. He sleeps with me frequently. His tooth/gum problems sometimes recur, but I get him through it. So far he hasn't had to get more teeth removed, but that's always a possibility. He doesn't get along with the other cats very well. Chocolate tolerates him. Sunny and Boots hate him. Whiskers and Kirby love him-- he's the fun uncle who likes to play. Unfortunately, Ghost isn't feeling well today. I'm giving him extra attention, and making sure he drinks water. It doesn't seem like it's his mouth. Someone in the house has Covid, so maybe he caught it, too. He'll probably be fine, but I'm watching closely.

About four years ago, we rescued a young cat who was trying to play with kids in the elementary school playground across the street. The teachers were screaming at the kids to not touch her; "It's diseased!" they said. So we took her in.

I think she was around four months old at the time.

Next Monday she has a vet appointment to remove a bad tooth that is causing her pain. She has a hard time eating right now, but at least she has a little extra weight to spare.

She's not the friendliest cat in the house. In fact, she really only likes me. I love her and end up holding her a lot. It has hurt me to see her in pain, but next Monday was the earliest appointment the vet had for dental work. I'll be glad when she is feeling better and can eat without screaming.

My first rescue cat, Chocolate, will be turning 9 years old next month. Chocolate was born on August 19, 2013- around 1 AM. She was stolen from her mother by a dog, and I got her from the dog's people when she was about 12 hours old. She was covered in dried dog-drool mud and was extremely dry and thirsty. I wasn't sure she'd make it, but she did. And she has thrived. I already had two cats, who were a year old at the time. Littermates from my mother's cat's only litter. She managed to fit in eventually. She has been "my baby" ever since I got her. She has a bit of an attitude-- she knows she's one of the people, not a mere cat. (Nor a meerkat.) She has her own FB page, although I'm not very active on that platform anymore. She sleeps with me nearly every night, and demands my attention whenever she needs it. She's a bit haughty. But I wouldn't trade her for anything.

This is a small black cat who sits outside the fence and watches the other cats and people, but hasn't gotten brave enough to come and eat. Yet.

I think she (I'm not sure of the cat's sex) will eventually decide to come eat. If she keeps coming around.

She used to sit and watch me play with Tobbles and Kirby. She'd move around the fence to get a better view as we moved around the yard. I've tried to talk to her and get her to come in, but so far she hasn't.

Oliver is less trusting than Pants or even MommyCat. He always keeps his distance until I leave the food bowl. When Tobbles was alive, Oliver would sit and wait until I was finished petting Tobbles while he ate, then he would come sneak some food.

This morning he was lying on the front steps after breakfast and I was talking to him through the screen door. He was comfortable with that situation.

He looks a little rough. He has some scars. But I care for him even if he isn't convinced I'm on his side.

This is MommyCat. She earned that name by mothering a couple of litters in the past year. Last summer her first litter (that I know of) was composed of two kittens whom she brought to my yard at about 6 weeks of age. I think she gave birth under a neighbor's house. One of those kittens vanished a week or so later, and my son adopted the other soon afterward (he is now named Mikan and is a handsome, spoiled boy-- I'll do a post on him someday. Remind me if I forget.) I have wondered if Tobbles was the second kitten who disappeared, but I doubt it for a couple of reasons. Then, this spring she was obviously pregnant again. On April 6, 2022 she was huge, then on April 8 she showed up for food and was skinny. So I marked the 7th on the calendar as the day she gave birth and waited to see kittens. Six weeks later, she showed up for food one day with 3 kittens. A few days later I discovered there was a 4th kitten, but it was very sick so it had been hiding somewhere. The sick kitten is now Kirby. A day after she left Kirby literally at my door, she took off with the remaining kittens and I haven't seen them again. I suspect they died. A neighbor said every kitten he saw born this year died. It was a kitten holocaust-- respiratory infections, eye infections, and rapid death. That makes me sad. This is why I would like to get MommyCat spayed. She doesn't trust me much. I can sometimes stroke her while she's eating. But she still hisses at me when I pass her on the patio. She is a cute cat, but I have my doubts she'd accept an indoor life. She deserves the best life I can help her get.

I've been so focused on Kirby, and upset over the loss of Tobbles, that I haven't said anything about the other cats.

Meet Pants. Originally I called him "the cat with pants" because his back legs looked like he was wearing pantaloons-- the way the fur was shaped and colored. I eventually shortened that to Pants.

He has been hanging around for a few years now. He isn't afraid of me, but he's not particularly friendly either. We have an understanding. I have petted him while he was eating, but he gives me a surprised look when I do. He'd really rather I didn't.

Tobbles liked him and treated him like a parent, but Pants only tolerated Tobbles. Tobbles would rub all over him when he'd come over to eat. He was OK with Kirby, but didn't want to play with him. Mostly ignored him.

He has a lot of flea bites (or something like that) on his back. I can feel the scabs under his fur. I'd like to be able to treat him for fleas-- and obviously, get him neutered. I believe he is Kirby's dad, and the father of the kitten I rescued last fall that my son ended up taking. There's no way he'd ever let me brush him, but his mid-length fur needs it.

He's a good cat. Pretty calm and even-tempered, from what I've seen. He's been on his own so long I doubt he'd ever take to being an inside cat, but if anyone wanted to give it a try-- as long as they brought him back if it just wasn't going to work out-- I'd love to give him the chance.

He's one of the cats you'd be helping. More to come...

Kirby got good news and bad news.

The good news is-- no eye surgery for now. Maybe never. His eye is covered with scar tissue from the corneal ulcer he had, but it's not infected and-- although he'll never see out of the eye-- shouldn't be a problem as long as it doesn't get infected again. 

The bad news is-- he is FeLV positive, which is also bad news for the rest of the cats in the house. There's no way to keep them separated, and is probably too late anyway. So we'll just have to deal with things as they arise.

His lymph nodes are swollen, but that is probably from the eye infection and upper respiratory infection he had. The vet said it may take a while for the nodes to recover, and the FeLV may make it take longer. But that shouldn't be an issue.

He'll still need to be neutered, but that will come later.

The vet bill today came to $160.50

Losing Tobbles was a devastating personal loss. I expect a kitten with health problems to be at risk, but Tobbles was a healthy young adult. I was very attached to him and I haven't taken his death well. But, it's time to try to move beyond the loss.

I'm going to be thinking of this as The Tobbles Memorial Cat Rescue now. 

Tomorrow Kirby has a vet appointment. A check-up, probably some shots, and I'm expecting an appointment for an eye removal. Not sure what the full cost will be, nor whether inflation will have an impact. I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

Thanks for your support.

I lost Tobbles overnight. I'm pretty torn up over it right now.

Today is the birthday (or what I figured is close to it) of last year's rescue kitten.

I found Whiskers on the side of the street, sick and starving, on the morning of August 1, 2021. I figured he was about 5 weeks old.

Lots of medicine and 2 surgeries later (to remove an infection-destroyed eye and to repair a hernia) and he's the happiest cat in the house. Very loving. Altogether it cost around $600 to get him healthy, and it was worth it. Much of the cost was covered by donations, for which I am very grateful.

That's why I started this project. I'd like to have money coming in regularly so I could handle these situations without having to make an appeal every time.

I thought I had found a group that would help.

I was mistaken-- or was misinformed.

I found a lower-cost pet clinic that does spaying and neutering in the Big City 90 miles from here. They directed me to a group they said helps with TNRs ("trap, neuter, release") for feral cats. But after the group finally responded to my message, no, they don't come this far. 

They said I could trap the cats myself, bring them to their vet, stay all day and wait to pick them up in the evening, and take them back with me, and it would cost $100 per cat. 

That's a worse deal than the other place where I would still have to do all the same, but the cost with them is $35 (male) and $45 (female) per cat. Still way out of reach under current financial circumstances.

I also thought the porch kitten-- I'm calling him Kirby-- had found a home, but it looks like that has fallen through as well.

Not the best day for my efforts.

The porch kitten is now living in a cage on the covered patio. For his safety and my peace of mind.

The young adult cat who hangs out on my patio was starting to get a little aggressive (jealous?) toward him and I was worried.

The good news is, he seems to really enjoy climbing and playing in the cage. I think he feels more secure, especially since he doesn't see well. I still let him out to play, too, as long as I'm there. He's eating well, and the infection in his eyes seems to be clearing up, but it looks like his cornea is ulcerated. We'll see how that goes.

I'm still looking for supporters to help me help the cats. Do you know anyone who might like to pitch in?

Porch Kitten is so energetic and playful. A real ball of fire. His eyes are still pretty bad, and I think he's now mostly blind, but it doesn't seem to affect his mood much. I wish I could have gotten enough money for a vet visit when his eyesight might have been saved, but that wasn't to be. I'll do the best I can with the situation as it is.

I've started a Patreon for this project, too. Just to try more options. I'm not going to give up.

Getting a little monthly money to use to help ALL the cats would be great. Yes, the original goal to get the kitten to the vet would also be wonderful, but that won't solve the problem. I need to try to get the local strays neutered. And I'd also like to get something to help with fleas (or whatever causes the scabbing on some of the cats). And to keep feeding them.

It's a bigger project than I'm able to do on my own.

I found someone who says they rescue cats in my area, but... over and over they've promised they'll bring me some medicine for him, and then they don't.

They don't have room for another kitten at the moment, but they also don't seem too interested in getting back to me with the medicine, either.

So, I'm still doing what I can. His eyes actually looked a little better a couple of days ago (not the eyeballs, but around them). No further improvement, though.

If I can't collect enough money for a vet visit, I will spend what I collect on food and medicine for him. I'll do what I can.

I hate to admit it, but I'm getting attached.