Yes, my new feral fuzzball could indeed fit into a coke can, diet or otherwise. Today I have been graciously allowed to scratch his head through the door, with not having to hold him down. He started leaning into my rubbing his head, neck and chin. Being so little, he can only receive two-fingered little rubbings, and he now loves it. I took him out right away, holding him close with no towel. I had two of my sons hold and love on him, and then my 4 yr old graddaughter, Sabrina. I put a towel on her shoulder to prevent scratches and she softly patted him. I invited my two big boys over for a smell and Sandy, the older, gave our baby kitty little licks. Then Moses, being almost 1 year old came barreling in, nudging him over and over. Licking wetly on every part of him that wasn't covered by Sabrina's hand. Baby kitty leaned into the licks with closed eyes, and I knew that the very important bond with my dogs had begun. He enjoyed the strong licking, maybe reminding him of his mama's nurturing, just bigger and juicer. I was careful to keep it under control, no heavy action, and held on so that Sabrina didn't let go or drop him. It went great, and my soggy kitten went back to his crate a mellow fellow.

Last night his little problem got bigger, in the litter box, with sound effects. Called the vet and she had me get her kitten food (not the generic stuff I got, oops), saying the sound effects suggest he is probably not digesting the food well. If not better in 24 hrs, she'll check him out again. He doesn't go real often, the color is good, he is drinking good, and is active, so we'll just watch him until tomorrow. Nice subject...

He seemed to want to be near me last night so I slept with his crate next to me in bed. Isn't that what mama's always do with new babies? I would sometimes wake and watch him watching me. If he was a girl I would name him Precious.

Oh my, 36 foster cats. I could not even deal with a fraction of that. Unless you had special facilities and help you could never do it right. Poor things. She may have meant well but was surely not well versed in cat care.

I am not ready to jump into at-home cat rescue beyond one cat at a time. This boy is mine, and any others would have to wait until my house is less full of two-legged ones. As many dogs and cats come home again, so do grown children.

I do plan on helping or working with some of the people I met at the Hawaiian HS this week. One lady I know from before. She and many others seem on the verge of burnout. Most work, have families with children and do cat rescue, TNR and feeding. So many people are really worked up about that place. The electricity being generated from so many passionate cat people that night, just crackled all around me. I have never experienced that before. Too much information flying around uncontrolled, tempers flairing. Almost 30 people and every one with different issues. Oh boy. What an eye opener. They're angry, things are coming out. They want change.

Among many other issues, this is one I personnaly dislike. If a pet is lost and a report is filed, after 30 days it is thrown out. No follow up. These cards are kept in a folder at the front desk, not in the clinic where the animals are seen. How do they keep their personnel up to date on lost pets? If a pet is found, they send out a letter, instead of a phone call. As I witnessed, when the owner arrives animals have disappeared I suspect they have already been destroyed.

I was raised here and visited this facility as a child. A lot has changed. A beautiful office area, entry, library and other rooms have been built. New plantings and lots of green grass and wooden benches. A great new dog park, with grass, big trees, picnic tables and a waterfall and pool. A new "Cat House" the size of a storage shed.

My great concern is, where are the additional cages so more animals can be held longer and possibly be adopted. They still use the same ones that I walked past as a child. The turnover is too fast for lack of enough cages. Why? Their priorities do not reflect concern for animals first.

A former administrative employee has a lawsuit going right now for inhumane treatment. Along with other complaints, one is the lining up and linking together of dogs in a row, and mass injections for euthanasia. How sad, how inhumane.

I will heed your warning about being careful, for I truly saw the tremendous electrifying conflict even amongst those trying to help solve the problems. If the HHS would only work with these people with open ears, it would benefit everyone. Unless asked, I won't talk of this junk anymore. It's pretty negative and we have more fun and light issues to share. Right?

I received an e-mail from the lady who rescued my kitten. She said his brother is doing good in his new home, had his first bath too, but is still upsetting the young rescued resident cat who came from the same area 6 months ago. He has also stopped spitting but does a lot of hiding yet.

They have been back evey day looking for the mama kitty and the remaining two babies. They have not been seen since the first two babies were taken away on Saturday. The lady who took the brother of mine wants very much to also have the two still loose siblings. Newly appearing has been a white and very skinny adolescent. Another skinny white adolescent has been there all along. I suspect both may have been the missing mama cat's previous litter. There is also an orange striped cat, and one she calls house cat (abandoned but comes to her). In searching for a new cat feeder she found another lady feeding a small group in another area. But she retires this month and also can no longer feed her group. If I could do it I would. But cannot for two reasons. It is on military grounds, requiring a pass, which I do not have. Secondly, it is about an hour round trip in good traffic, two in the evening when I could go. I'm trying to help her find someone. I gave her some ideas, made some calls, but the solution evades me.

Jasper's Mom,
Sandy & Moses (baby kitty lovers)
and Baby Kitty