FINAL WEIGH IN

We have appointments set up for viewings of all the kittens this Sunday, so I thought I'd get a final weight on them to see how much they've grown during the past two weeks.

Hana:  from 1.4 lbs to 2 lbs

Lucy:  from 1.1 lbs to 1.7 lbs 

Malcomb:  from 1.4 lbs to 2 lbs

Skooter:  from 1.2 lbs to 1.8 lbs

Starsky:  from 1.1 lbs to 2 lbs

So, it looks like Starsky has gained the most weight at 0.9 lbs, but even though Starsky, Hana and Malcomb all weigh in at 2 lbs respectively, Malcomb sure feels more heavy than the rest.  I guess he is just a big boned kitteh!

Nap Time!

Stretch and Yawn!

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:

http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

'KITTEH' vs. 'KITTY' or 'KITTEN'

My sister was reading my blog and was wondering if I had misspelt 'kittens' when naming my blog 'Fostering Kittehs'.  A quick search of the internet produced the following for the use of kitteh:

Kitteh

Online usage of the word "kitty" or "cat". Found most often in the context of lolspeak, or in the anthropomorphism of cats in pictures and other media.

Kitteh

Canadian Kitten. KITT'EH.

Kitteh

A fricken adorable cat or kitten that you find and love but have to leave it.

Kitteh

An especially cute and playful kitten.

I think all of the above apply to my batch of kittehs!

Kittehs and their nom-nom

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:

http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

LOVE AND WAR

Hana is the resident heavy weight of the kitty pack!  She loves to brawl with her siblings, usually attacking an unsuspecting kitty when he or she is not looking.

Every kitty is subject to Hana's sudden attack, but she tends to gravitate towards her bonded buddy, Starsky.  Who says that girls aren't tough?

Hana vs. Starsky

Hana with Starsky in a head-lock

Watch Hana in this YouTube video to see her at her full warrior mode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stcW3KFkxao


Of course, there are equal amounts of love as well.

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

CLOSE UP

Now that we've had the kitties for a week and a half, you really get to know their little personalities and their facial features.  Here are close ups of the cuties.

Malcomb

Cute little black marking on Malcomb's nose

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Skooter

Very distinct stripe down Skooter's nose
and very "cat-like" eyes

***

Luci

The smallest of the litter,
Luci usually looks like she's just
getting up from a nap

... or laying down for one

***

Hana

Hana has these adorable ears that
will flop down once in a while like a
Scottish Fold kitten

***

Starsky

When sitting still, Starsky takes on
the look of a stuffed toy kitten

I had to give them their deworming medication (1 of 2 doses) and needed hubby's help to keep them still while I put their medication in some kitten food and gently pry their little mouths open so that I could put it at the very back of their throats to ensure that the medication went down.

Malcomb was the only one that was able to eat the food and spit back out the medication.  Sneaky little devil!

The kitties will be 8 weeks old on Nov. 26 and will be up on the VOKRA* website for adoption.  I'm going to miss these little cuties, but I'm sure there will be another batch of kittens to play with in the very near future.

* Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

KITTIES EVERYWHERE

I must admit that five kitties is A LOT of kitties to have in one house.  You really have to be careful where you are walking when you have that many kitties in one room.  Accidentally stepping on a kitty is not fun for the kitty and makes the person stepping on the poor kitty feel really, really bad!

Also, with that many kitties, it gets really loud at feeding time.  Some kitties are so impatient that they start to climb up your leg thinking that they can somehow get to their food faster by doing that.  Um ... no.

Hana and Skooter

Of course, once the kitties have had their fill, it's then time to go and use the kitty potty and then crash on the softest surface they can find, which surface sometimes ends up being on another kitty.

Malcomb and Skooter

The life of a beloved kitty is pretty awesome.

Malcomb, Skooter and Luci

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

NAUGHTY, NAUGHTY !

Hana

Where do naughty kitties go at our house?  The kitty jail, of course (which, by the way, doubles as our toilet paper holder when not incarcerating naughty kitties).  

Mind you, some kitties willingly put themselves in there, so I guess they must be feeling a bit guilty?

Hana looks perfectly content and actually looks like she is posing pretty for the camera, while Starsky looks like he is posing for his mug shot!

Starsky

Then there are kitties that belong in there, but are planning a jail break!

Malcomb

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association
https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

SKOOTER, LUCI & MALCOMB

We picked up three of Starsky's and Hana's siblings tonight, which brings our grand total to five!  There was supposed to be a sixth kitten, but it was the runt of the litter and needed to have one-on-one time with mommy.  One of the five kittens that we currently have will be returning to buddy up with the runt and will be staying at another foster home.

Skooter (Left), Luci (Middle), Malcomb (Right)

We now have two tuxedo cats (Starsky and Skooter), two calicos (Hana and Luci) and Malcomb.  I'm not sure what type of cat Malcomb is.  I need to google that.

If you are wondering why their names are spelt non-conventionally, it's because we need to give the kitties a name that is not already taken in the VOKRA* database.  With over 1,000 kittens going to various foster homes, you can imagine the confusion if everybody named their kitty "Abby".

Luci weighs in at 1.1 pounds

Malcomb at 1.4 pounds

and Skooter at 1.2 pounds

Luci is the very sweet, slightly scared little girl.  Skooter is quite active and scoots around all over the place (hence his given name).  Malcomb is the VERY vocal alpha kitty and lets the rest of the clowder know it.

I learnt what 'clowder' meant on an episode of 'The Big Bang Theory' and can now finally use it in a sentence.  I love Sheldon.  I'm waiting for the day when I foster a kitty version of Sheldon.


Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association
https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

HOMEMADE KITTY TOYS

Who needs expensive toys when all you need to make a great toy for your kitties can be found in your own home?  I used a feather and attached it to some black string and taped it around a wooden dowel and VOILA! - instant kitty toy.

Can you see the anticipation in their eyes?  At times, they would be falling all over each other trying to get the feather.  Absolute cuteness.

Starsky and Hana better get use to sharing because they are going to be reunited with two more of their litter mates tomorrow.  Can we say "MORE cuteness??"

Starsky (left), Hana (right)

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SAFETY FIRST

After this happened to one of my colleagues last week when her kitty accidentally scratched her, I thought it best for me to train my foster kitties to get use to getting their little claws clipped.  If you start them off young, they will not protest (as much) when they get older.  I have been clipping Starsky's and Hana's claws since I got them, so they are already getting use to me handling their little paws.

Gently press down on their paws to expose their claws like this and cut ONLY the clear, milky white tips of their claws.  Do not go anywhere near the pink color.  You just want to clip that sharp, razor-edge tip.

I make it like a little massage session for my kitties.  I just want them to know that I am not trying to hurt them.  I take their paws and gently massage them, then take a quick clip and then start massaging them again.  Once in a while, I will throw in a quick belly rub and then continue clipping.  The back claws are a bit more challenging, but if your kitties think that you are giving them a massage, then I find they don't even notice!

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

SHOULDER RIDING KITTY

I have found that Hana loves to sit on my shoulder and observe everything from atop her high perch.  When I walk around the house, she balances herself on my shoulder and admires the view, every once in a while purring to her heart's content at how lucky she is to be a VOKRA* kitty.

Even when I am sitting down on my couch, looking out at the mountains, she will sit on my shoulder and look out at the view.

A loud truck going by or barking dog will cause her to stand up on my shoulder and wonder what all the fuss is about, but then she settles back in and continues her purring, which acts like a bit of a shoulder massage for me!

* Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association

https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/

FIRST WEIGH IN

To properly gauge how fast these little kittens are growing, I decided to weigh them on my scale (that I normally use for my out-going packages).

I knew that Hana was going to be heavier than Starsky, but by how much?  Well, it looks like Hana weighs in at 1.4 pounds, while her brother Starsky weights in at a fractionally smaller 1.1 pounds.  So, when you hold them both in your hands, you have 2.5 pounds of absolute CUTENESS!

ARE THEY FOR REAL?

When you take pictures of kittens, you have to have a really good camera or a really quick hand.  I tried taking pictures of these two on my IPad, but all I got were blurry kitten faces, so I had to pull out my Nikon DSLR and set the camera to the mode that allows you to take 100 pictures a second, because that's the only way to get a picture of these two.

Look at what the camera has produced!  Starsky looks like a stuffed toy and Hana looks like the kitty in Shrek!

I am trying to get them use to being around our black lab, Hockey, and hope to get some pictures up soon of the kitties sitting with Hockey.

Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association
https://www.facebook.com/VOKRA

Adoption application:
http://www.orphankittenrescue.com/adoption_application/