FONT face=Georgia>How did two tiny orphaned kittens, not more than two weeks old, born under our mobile home, know to go towards a tiny bit of light they saw seeping through a vent? How did they know to go right to the only spot I could have reached them? How did they know I WOULD rescue them? They had no adult cat to direct them. So do kitties have angels? I think they do.

Sparky, you've seen me feeding the neighbourhood strays.  Well, one of those strays is your uncle and one is more than likely your father.  But there used to be another stray, a female—beautiful, but wild—She didn't have a name, but her mother was Keeper.  I had not seen the female Siamese at the feed dish for quite some time. I had suspected that she may have had kittens some place. But where? I put the thought out of my mind, thinking that she had gone off somewhere in the neighbourhood to have her kittens.... But wait! Here is the full story:

Friday, June 17, 2005 - At 4 pm, when I went with Rocky to get the mail, I heard a loud mewing sound coming from under the house. Rocky and I scrambled around, trying to find an opening where a cat could have been trapped. We went to the vent just under our office window. With a hammer I pried off the cover. Reaching down, I pulled out a very tiny kitten with Siamese markings, probably no more than 2 weeks old, still unstable on its feet. I took it into the house and fixed up a cat carrier for it. I know that cats often cannot tolerate dairy milk, but that is all I had to offer it. So, after supper I started off to the store to see what else I could get for it--maybe pabulum or something. Just as I was leaving the house, I heard another  mewing, louder than the first. Going to the same spot, I reached in and pulled out a black kitten--you, Sparky. So now, here I was with two very young kittens on my hand.Where was your mother? It was too dark to look that evening, but I was sure she would come looking for her babies soon.  In the meantime, I had to become your mother. I came home from the store with Whiskas cat milk. But I still was not satisfied that this milk was enough. Kittens should have some sort of supplement, as you would have had on your mother's milk.. 

Saturday, June 18 - Still no sign of your mama. I fed you from a mixture I had concocted with what I had gathered and began spoon feeding you. I did that for a few times until bedtime, listening and watching out the window to see if MAMA had shown up yet.  At bedtime I fixed up a mixture and put it in tiny containers and encouraged you to eat on your own.  You, Sparky, caught on right away. Your tiny brother, I had to spoon feed.

I knew you couldn't stay penned up in a tiny cat carrier for long, so I got some boards and made a barricade to keep you in the kitchen, where cleanup would be easy, and where you couldn't get into any dangerous places. I put down a few toys for you, and something soft and furry to play with. I was used to watching where I stepped while I worked around the kitchen, as this is not the first time I had been nurse mother to kittens. Scooter had to be babied at first when we took Keeper away to the Vet's, and Ezee  was very undernourished when, as a neighbourhood stray, he came to us. He was older though, about 10 weeks old, I estimated. Another mystery that makes me think kitties have angels. How could a kitten so young, lost or abandoned, find his way to someone who would care for him, and how did he survive in cold, rainy October weather? {But he did and now he is a very big kitty.}

Ezee

To shorten the story somewhat, I will skip a few details, but I will tell you  the reaction of the other pet residents, those first few days that you came on to the scene. Scooter, nine-months old at the time, was very curious about these two new "things" that were stumbling around on the floor. He cautiously sniffed you out, but was afraid to play with you. Ezee snarled at you, jealous of the attention you were getting from me. Casey and Casper  totally ignored you, and Keeper--your own grandmother--hated you. No mother instinct left in her. I guess she lost it all in December when we had her fixed. (The Keeper Story). Rocky, with his great shepherding instincts, took on the role, as he did with the other two--Ezee and Scooter--of guardian. He got into your enclosure and  played so gently with you. And to think, when we took Rocky at 17 months old, in 2002, he was dubbed "a cat hater!"

Monday, June 20 - Time for you and your tiny brother to explore your full surroundings. I gave up struggling  to make a kitten-proof barricade to keep you in. And you were both eating from a small bowl now--cat milk mixed with chicken cat food. Scooter had begun playing with you. Ezee looked on, but still reluctant to join in on the fun. Casper and Casey? Well, they just stared.  Keeper still would have nothing to do with you two little intruders.