A few days after we said goodbye to Little Bear another cat appeared at our door. It seems that our area is a prime dumping ground for unwanted cats. It's not too far from the city and it looks more country than it actually is. And everyone knows that cats can fend for themselves in the wild, right? Even ones who've been fixed and declawed and have never hunted a day in their lives. Don't get me started :)
Anyway, being all set up with food and water dishes and bags of food, I started feeding her. Look at that face—how could I not? But she wasn't eating much and seemed kind of sick - maybe a respiratory infection? I took her to our vet, not only to check that out but to see how old she was. Well, she's five or six months old and did have an infection. Which antibiotics cleared up just fine.
Obviously, she can't come inside with my two indoor cats, but we'll set up the winter shelter we made for Little Bear and see what happens. If we have a really bad winter I can move her into the garage.
We've named her Bella because of her tiny vampire-like bottom teeth. Unfortunately, you can't see them in the picture here. Bella, like Bela Lugosi with a nod to Kristin Stewart's Twilight character Bella. And she's crazy with kitten energy so very rarely sits still long to take her picture. I only got this one because she just woke up from a nap. Five seconds later she was careening (that's really the only word that fits) across the patio to chase some birds. Unfortunately, she's gotten quite good at catching them. And I'm not too happy about that. Still, she's a cat and that's what cats do.
9 comments:
Thank you for giving her a forever home.
Bella! She's quite a sweetheart. I hope she works out - are you considering introducing her to your indoor crew at some time?
She's a cutie.
I can't believe people still dump cats that way -- it infuriates me.
Bella is a sweetheart -- the same age as my new kitten who is also unbelievably active. It's so great that you're giving her a home.
Gee, I sure hope all those folks who dump pets don't find themselves dumped at a nursing home when they aren't wanted any more! Sorry, I work in rescue.
Bella is a beauty. We have a new kitty too who is 4 months old now and he gives our other cats a run for their money! Too bad you can't bottle that kind of energy.
It's great of you to care for her, she's very lucky.
Hi Janet! Sorry I haven't been by lately. My knees are really acting up as well as allergies. I've been trying to get things done for the craft shows...and bearly able to get posts done. Little Bella is adorable. I know you said you were going to get her winter ready, but have you tried to get one of those dog cages...like 3ft long and 3 ft high at Wal-mart...and place her in there with a litter box and water....see if the other 2 get used to her in the space. We kept the kittens at the end of the kitchen hall with a gate up and Shadow got so used to them. I thought maybe if it worked with a dog it might work with your cats.
Bella is a cutie and you're an angel to give her a home.
YAY!! good for you, dearie. I've my own Bella - actually called InvisiBella, an almost feral tortoiseshell cat who came to live with me when she was six months old after having lived since she was *one* month old under a neighbor's porch where she and her brother were dumped by some guy in a truck in September five years ago. It took me until that December to get her to trust me enough to grab her and get help for her. She's still absolutely terrified of humans excepting me, but she lives inside with my other cat, and they get along fine. Six months old is a good age - she can stand up to your other cats and they will eventually accept her in. When introducing newer cats to my home (I usually get older, unwanted cats) I keep them in the bathroom for a week with the door closed but that's hard to do with a kit. Maybe keep her in a bedroom or attic or basement? Get it so that your cats get used to her smells and sounds gradually? It'll likely work out eventually, although there *will* be battles for dominance. It's a cat thang... (grin) Good Luck, whatever you choose to do! She's a lucky little lady any way.
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