Note: this is a very very long post, it took me FOREVER to put together, and I cannot stare at it any longer. If you note any egregious typos or inconsistencies, please be kind and let me know so that Future Robyn doesn’t stumble across the mistake/typo/incorrect statement and get annoyed at Past Robyn.
2020 in review.
We began 2020 with two fosters – Josephine and Gabrielle – at Petsmart.
And none in the house.
Also at Petsmart was our former foster Kristi from 2018, who notably was NOT hiding in the litter box.
On January 8th, I announced that Josephine and Gabrielle were ADOPTION PENDING, and were back to stay with me until they could go home.
On January 15h, I introduced our newest foster, Natalia. She came to us as a cat who’d been showing up in someone’s yard as a stray. And then she started getting rounder, so they worried she might be pregnant, so she came to us. I never thought she was pregnant, though (like always) I hedged my bets and said it was possible. A trip to the vet showed that she not only wasn’t pregnant, she’d already been spayed.
On January 20th, I let y’all know that Gabrielle and Josephine had gone home. They have a Facebook page here.
And on January 21st, I let y’all know that Natalia…
Had been adopted. The day after we found out that she’d already been spayed, a family came to meet her, and it was a love match.
On January 30th, I introduced our newest foster, Isabella. She came from the same rural animal control facility many of our previous fosters had come from; she was an owner turn-in.
She was a hot mess when we got her – flea allergies had led to a lot of scabbing and fur loss. She was also pregnant, though I had no idea how many kittens she would have (you guys honestly ask me this question every time I have a pregnant cat and I never ever have a clue) or when she would have them (ditto.)
Time passed, Isabella got bigger, we waited for her to birth those kittens.
On February 9th, I announced that Kristi had been adopted. (Unfortunately, she was returned about 6 months later due to reasons that were not her fault. It just wasn’t the right home for her. She is currently at Michelle’s house again.)
On February 11th, I announced that Isabella had had her kittens! I stayed up late with her the night before because I was pretty sure she was in the beginning stages of labor, but when she seemed to settle down, I went to bed. Joke was on me – while I slept, she had her kittens. 5 of them, to be exact!
February 12th’s post was all about Isabella’s birth story and lots of pictures of the kittens.
I posted a collage of all 5 kittens with descriptions of what we were calling them – since we didn’t know whether we had boys or girls, we were waiting on deciding names.
And a few days later, on the 17th, we named them.
4 boys, 1 girl!
In the February 19th post, I told y’all that Kara was not doing well, and we were probably not going to have her for much longer. In the same post, I told y’all that Frankie was also ill, diagnosed with what was likely leukemia.
On February 20th we said goodbye to Kara, and I wrote this post about her on the 21st.
On February 21st we said goodbye to Frankie, and I wrote this post about him on the 24th.
In the post for February 27th, I discussed how Isabella’s fur was doing – in short, it was much improved, but she had recently started scratching. We were going to give it a few weeks for her hormones to calm down, and then if she needed it she’d get an allergy test.
In March, we voted.
The kittens turned 4 weeks old, and promptly started using the litter box.
In April, Fred crocheted a tiny cardigan, and Javier modeled it.
Also in April – in the post for the 8th – the kittens turned 8 weeks old, and I tried for my first kittens-lined-up picture. It went okay!
In mid-April mama Isabella had her spay surgery, and she came through it just fine. A couple of weeks later, she was adopted and went home.
She went to a home with no other cats (Forgotten Felines of Huntsville’s kitten policy doesn’t necessarily extend to adults, and we were pretty sure she wanted to be an only cat.) We haven’t gotten any updates on her, but hope that we will.
With their mother gone, we felt free to introduce the kittens to their uncles. There was floofing.
On May 6th, the kittens went for their spay/neuter surgeries and came through surgery just fine.
And on May 8th I announced that Diego and Pablo had gone home. Together!
In short order, the rest of the kittens headed home as well.
Alejandro and Javier together.
Carmelita became a Texas girl.
With the kittens all gone, I posted a video that showed them growing from newborn to 12 weeks old, which was kind of cool.
I took a one-day break between saying goodbye to the last of the Mewchachos to deep-clean the foster room, and then the new fosters moved in. I introduced them in the May 13th post – Bunny and the Fluffles.
Bunny and Bugs.
About 10 days later, we got two add-ins in the form of brother and sister Cutey and Clyde.
At first Bunny wanted NOTHING to do with them, but over time she softened.
After being adopted out in January, Natalia was returned in June (she made it crystal clear that small children were not on her wish list.) She stayed at Petsmart for about a month, and then was adopted out again.
I got this awesome Fluffles Family Portrait in mid-June.
In early July, I got another family portrait.
On July 8th, Benjamin and Honey were adopted (together!) They kept their names.
On July 13th, Lola and Bugs were adopted (together!)
The same day, Bunny went back to Michelle’s house (where she still is currently) and I came home to scrub down the foster room. Cutey and Clyde were moved from the kitten room to the foster room until they could go home in a few weeks.
And two days later, I introduced you to the new fosters – Alexandra and the Mewsketeers. Three of her own kittens, three orphans, and two siblings.
The next day, we added orphaned kitten Anne to the bunch. Unfortunately, Anne started going downhill pretty quickly, and just a few days later we lost her.
Cutey and Clyde went for their spay/neuter surgeries, and Bunny came to let me know that I should just take those kittens and go far, far away.
I introduced y’all to the newest Mewsketeer, add-in Planchet.
Though I apparently didn’t mention it in the blog, Alexandra was so stuffed up and wasn’t eating, that she went back to Michelle’s so that she could be treated with a nebulizer. She did a lot better at Michelle’s house.
Cutey and Clyde were adopted (together!) and went home to Birmingham. Clyde remained Clyde, but Cutey was renamed Jasmine (Jazzy.)
On July 27th I reported that Alexandra had come back from Michelle’s doing much better and eating well. But bizarrely she started dragging kittens away from the litter boxes. She was being pretty rough about it and I was concerned that she might end up hurting them, so back to Michelle’s she went.
I posted a cheat sheet for those who couldn’t keep the kittens straight (and couldn’t remember who was related.)
Porthos, Athos and d’Artagnan are Alexandra’s biological kittens. They’re all boys, born June 2nd.
Aramis (June 2nd; boy), Winter (May 21; girl) and Planchet (May 24; boy) are unrelated to any of the others.
Rochefort (boy) and Constance (girl) were born June 16th and are siblings to each other, but unrelated to all the other kittens.
After many tries, I finally got a shot of all 8 kittens in one picture.
In the post for August 18th, the kittens met Uncle Archie and it made them feel floofy.
And another shot of all 8, lined up.
On September 2nd, Planchet – who was the last to join the Mewsketeers – was the first one to be adopted and go home. He’s now Jupiter!
Just a few days later, Winter went home! She is now Luna.
In the September 21st post I announced that we had an adoption pending on Athos, but since his people were going to be out of town, he would be with us for a couple of weeks longer.
On September 30th, I announced that Aramis was adoption pending – AND THEN the very next day I announced that he was home. Here. With us. And he’s now Charlie – or Charles, Prince of Wails, if you’re feeling formal.
In that same post, I announced that d’Artagnan and Porthos were adoption pending TOGETHER. Which meant that they didn’t have to go to Petsmart, and we were THRILLED.
A few days later, Constance and Rochefort went home – together! Constance is now Oleander and Rochefort is Rhus. AND they have their very own Facebook page, here!
With us down to three fosters (Athos, d’Artagnan and Porthos) who were waiting to go home, we moved them into the guest bedroom and moved the new fosters in. All of them. All FIFTEEN of them.
Not only did I have 15 kittens, I had 15 kittens with upper respiratory infections, who needed to be medicated twice a day. I’d like to retroactively pat myself on the back for getting through that with my mind (mostly) intact.
Porthos and d’Artagnan were adopted and went home on October 11th; they kept their names.
Two days later, Athos went home! He is now Leo.
In the October 13th, October 14th, and October 15th posts, I shared individual pictures of the kittens (5 kittens per day.)
And then I got a shot of all 15!
Upon deciding there’s no way all 15 kittens would fit up on the picture-takin’ shelf, I decided to line them up 5 at a time, by litter.
Left to right: Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Davy Crockett, Annie Oakley & Buffalo Bill.
Left to right: Tater Tot, Funnel Cake, Onion Ring, Hush Puppy & French Fry.
Left to right: Eclair, Candy Apple, Snowcone, Fritter & Pretzel.
And then a shot of all the house panthers.
Left to right: Buffalo Bill, Onion Ring, French Fry, Pretzel, Fritter and Hush Puppy.
The biggest 10 kittens went off for their spay/neuter surgeries on November 17th, but first I lined ’em up for another picture.
I’d been sharing Kitten-Clown-Car videos (wherein all 15 kittens were put into their big crate so I could mop the floor, and then I’d make a video of them flooding out of the crate), and people asked how I got them in there. So I made a video of the process.
And also I’ve put all the kitten-clown-car videos into one video, which you can see here.
On November 24th, the kittens who hadn’t been spayed/neutered went for their surgeries, and I got a lineup picture of them.
In the post for November 26th I told you not to get attached – I was kitten-sitting for another Forgotten Felines foster mom, Lexi, and so got to hang out with these cuties for a few days.
The weekend after Thanksgiving was a busy one for adoptions! First Davy Crockett and Calamity Jane went home (together!) He’s now Mr. Mustachio and she’s Kiki.
And then Snowcone and Candy Apple went home (together!) He’s now Charlie and she’s Cleo, and you can see them at their Facebook page!
And THEN Alexandra, mama to the Mewsketeers, was adopted! She’s now Callie and she joined a family with an older kitty companion and some human children to love.
The next day, off went Wild Bill Hickok, to join kitty brother Loki, who is about the same age as Wild Bill. Wild Bill is now Leo.
Then Orange and Tan, the kittens we were kitten-sitting for Lexi, went back to her.
In the December 1st post, I shared pictures of the kittens meeting Uncle Charlie. There were a lot of floof suits being donned in that post, let me tell you.
I took a lot of pictures this year that I liked, but I think this one was right at the top of the list – Buffalo Bill in a sweater.
And then Buffalo Bill was adopted and went home to Georgia! He is now Klaus, short for Niklaus, one of the vampires from the TV show The Originals
The next day, Funnel Cake was adopted and went home to Texas – joining former foster Carmelita Los Mewchachos! Funnel Cake is now Bobby.
THEN, the day after that, Tater Tot was adopted and went home to North Carolina! She’s now Periwinkle/Peri and you can watch her grown on Instagram at SirBrinkleyPickles.
AND THEN, the very next day, Onion Ring was adopted! He joined a kitty family that includes Piper, formerly Dynamo, Ryder’s daughter who we fostered in 2018. Onion Ring is now Freddie Purrcury.
A few days later, Hush Puppy and French Fry went home! Hush Puppy kept his name, and French Fry is now Peppa.
That left us with four kittens – Annie Oakley, Eclair, Pretzel and Fritter – who were still available. BUT NOT FOR LONG! The very next day I reported that Fritter and Pretzel were adoption pending and would be going home after Christmas. The plan was for Annie Oakley and Eclair to go to Petsmart together, but…
Then they were adopted! Annie Oakley is remaining Annie Oakley, and Eclair is now Holly Eclair.
With just two kittens – Pretzel and Fritter – in the foster room, we let them have the run of the entire house during the day, and they quickly realized they could get to their beloved Uncle Charlie just about any time they wanted to – and they took advantage of that.
On December 28th, Pretzel and Fritter went home to Atlanta! She’s remaining Pretzel, and he is now Peanut.
And then I introduced y’all to beautiful Moira Rose, our new foster who is (we’re pretty sure) pregnant. She’d been in the guest bedroom for over a week, waiting for the kitten room to be vacant. She and her future kittens will be known as The Rosebuds.
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We had a total of 42 fosters move through this year (this includes poor sweet Anne, who passed away). We have four unadopted fosters – Bunny, Kristi and Katia, at Michelle’s house, and Moira Rose here. This is exactly TWICE as many fosters as last year. It’s been a crazy year!
We have fostered a total of… well. I managed to mess up my spreadsheet this past year, so the total is either 434 or 435 since 2005 (perhaps I’ll fix my spreadsheet by January 1, 2022. But you shouldn’t count on it).
Here are the sweet faces of the fosters we had in 2020.
Top row: Josephine, Gabriella, Natalia, Isabella, Javier.
2nd row: Pablo, Diego, Alejandro, Carmelita, Bunny.
3rd row: Lola Bunny, Bugs Bunny, Benjamin Bunny, Honey Bunny, Clyde Bunny.
4th row: Cutey Bunny, Alexandra, Athos, d’Artagnan, Porthos.
5th row: Aramis.
Top row: Winter, Rochefort, Constance, Anne, Planchet.
2nd row: Buffalo Bill, Funnel Cake, Pretzel, Fritter, Wild Bill Hickok.
3rd row: French Fry, Davy Crockett, Tater Tot, Candy Apple, Calamity Jane.
4th row: Snowcone, Onion Ring, Hush Puppy, Eclair, Annie Oakley.
5th row: Moira Rose.
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The state of the permanent residents in 2020.
We started 2020 with 8 permanent residents: Alice, Archie, Dewey, Frankie, Jake, Kara, Khal Drogo, and Newt. We said goodbye to Kara on February 20th, and the very next day we said goodbye to Frankie. We knew that Kara’s time was coming; Frankie went downhill and left us far too quickly. All these months later, we miss them still. That left us with 6 permanent residents for several months, and in October we added Charlie (formerly our Mewsketeers foster Aramis) as the 7th. Last year was the first time in a long time that we ended the year with the same permanent residents that we began the year with. My hope for 2021 is that all of our current permanent residents make it through this year healthy and happy. (And yes, I am fully aware that Charlie doesn’t have his own page yet. It’ll happen when it happens.)
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Former Foster Updates we received this year.
(Arranged, roughly, in the order in which we fostered them.)
Dora (formerly Inara) – July 26th, August 2nd, December 13th.
Kaylee – December 20th, December 20th.
Reacher & Gladstone (formerly Mr. Stripey) – May 17th.
Maggie – February 10th, April 27th, December 16th.
Flynn (Kohle) and Hook (Puff): January 13th, February 4th, April 13th.
Norbie/Norbert – September 21st, September 27th.
Thunderclap Newman & Jethro Tull: January 14th.
Gilly (Lucy) – February 10th, April 17th.
Amber (Ambercup), Phoenix & Stardust: January 16th, February 17th, March 10th, May 28th, June 2nd, June 9th, June 16th, August 16th, August 16th, September 27th, October 4th, December 20th.
Branwen (Juniper) – April 30th.
Patches (Art Vandelay) & Periwinkle/Peri (Bert Macklin) : January 6th, April 15th.
Ohno and Heygo (formerly Tessa) – November 24th, November 29th.
Dexter & Mollie (formerly Millinocket) – June 30th, November 29th.
Ryder – October 4th.
Piper (formerly Dynamo) & Freddie Purrcury (formerly Onion Ring) – August 9th, September 13th, December 13th, December 27th.
Axel (formerly Axle) – August 9th, December 27th.
RonRon (Tank) – April 16th.
Mary & Laura: February 4th, November 29th.
Kate (Amelie) and Pippa (Esmee) – March 9th.
Aiden & Molly (formerly Antoine and Madeline) – September 16th, September 20th.
Josephine and Gabrielle: January 20th, January 21st, January 24th.
Rocky (formerly Pablo) and Flint (formerly Diego) – May 17th, May 17th, December 9th, December 13th.
Fizzgig (formerly Alejandro) and Taco (formerly Javier) – May 17th, May 17th, June 11th, June 14th, June 28th, June 28th, September 13th.
Carmelita & Bobby (formerly Funnel Cake) – May 17th, May 17th, June 14th, June 28th, December 13th, December 13th.
Honey & Benjamin – July 12th, July 21st, November 23rd, November 29th.
Clyde & Jasmine (formerly Cutey) – July 26th, July 26th, August 9th, October 11th, November 15th, December 13th.
Callie (formerly Alexandra) – December 27th.
Jupiter (formerly Planchet) – September 6th, September 13th, September 20th.
Luna (formerly Winter) – September 13th, September 20th, September 20th, October 4th, November 1st.
Leo (formerly Athos) – October 18th, December 15th, December 20th.
Oleander & Rhus (formerly Constance and Rochefort) – December 20th.
Mr. Mustachio & Kiki (formerly Davy Crockett & Calamity Jane) – December 6th, December 20th.
Leo (formerly Wild Bill Hickok) – December 13th.
Periwinkle (formerly Tater Tot) – December 13th.
Klaus (formerly Buffalo Bill) – December 13th.
Hush Puppy & Peppa (formerly French Fry) – December 27th.
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I’m just going to go ahead and cut and paste what I’ve said for the past several years in a row.
As we begin this new year, I’d like to take a moment to thank you all for reading. I know that a lot of you say that you like to start (or end) your day at Love & Hisses, reading about the kittens and the permanent residents. You give me (and each other) advice, ask and answer questions, fall in love with the kittens we foster and our permanent residents, and grieve with us as we’ve lost permanent residents. I started this site because I can’t shut my face about cats and kittens, and to have y’all enjoy the pictures and stories I post means more than I could ever begin to express. I appreciate each and every one of you, whether you’re here every day or just come by every now and then. We’ve built an amazing community here, and I certainly could never have done it alone.
So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you all so very very much!
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Previously
2019 in review.
2018 in review.
2017 in review.
2016 in review.
2015 in review.
2014 in review.
2013 in review.
2012 in review.
2012: No entry.
2011: No entry.
2010: No entry.
2009: This is going to be hard – it always is – but I have to trust that they’ll end up in fantastic homes with people who spoil them as rotten as we do.
2008: No entry.
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Thank YOU and Happy New Year!!
Happy NEW (yay!) Year Robyn and Fred! Thank you for all you do and for sharing your lives, perms and fosters with us. You were a constant bright spot in a crazy, unpredictable year.
Cheers to 2021! And let the first kitten birth count-down of the year begin! 😀
Happy New Year to you and Fred and the permanent residents. Moira Rose is so lucky to be with you for the upcoming birth of her kittens. Thanks for giving us something to smile about every day – multiple times a day on IG! – during a really tough year. Seeing the kitties and reading about their antics helped keep a lot of us going. You and Fred should be proud of yourselves for giving so many kitties a soft place to land. Thanks for everything and I hope you have a wonderful 2021!
I know Katia wasn’t adopted but I thought Kristi was. Was she returned and that’s why she’s at Michelle’s?
Yes, she was returned after several months unfortunately. (I thought I had included that in the post, but apparently didn’t – I’ll go add it in!)
Love the year in review! I know it must have been a lot of work to compile, but your work is much appreciated–it’s easy to forget how many cats and kittens went through your home in one year. You are just the best cat photographer, not to mention the best cat/kitten foster Mom! My best to you and yours and much admiration for the great work you do in saving so many kitties!
Thank YOU, Robyn! Here’s to 2021 being a pleasantly uneventful year
Maybe I’m not keeping track right, but did anyone have to go to PetSmart this year? If not, that’s quite an accomplishment!
Thank you, Robyn, for sharing your kitten adventures with us. Happy New Year!
Thank you, Fred and the permanent gang for all you do for these furballs. We are beyond thrilled to have finally joined the Love and Hisses family and are thankful every day for our sweet girl. Happy 2021!
Wow! What a year and what a recap! Thank you for all you do and for letting us fall in love so many times. Happy 2021!
A special thanks for a 2020 recap that doesn’t include the words COVID or pandemic but does include KITTENS! Seeing each tiny face brought a smile to me. Cheers to you and I wish you much success in 2021.
Oh, you are just *awesome*! What an amazing year. Thanks for fostering all these guys and for posting all the wonderful stories an photos. I’m looking forward to the 2021 new batches. Happier New Year!
As rotten a year as 2020 was it brings a smile to my face that the vast majority of 2020’s kittens were adopted outright and didn’t have to languish at PetSmart.
I’m exhausted just reading that.
I hope you and Fred and all the rest of the permanent residence have a wonderful 2021. Let this be a better kind year for us all!
Thanks for all you do, the great posts, the excellent care of your fosters, and letting us all read and look too!
Pablo’s eyes still crack me up every time I see his picture! I hope he never loses “the look”!
I looked back at all of them, and asked myself which was my all-time 2020 favorite, but it was too hard to pick one. :-/
Happy New Year!! I luv your FB page and this blog, to see all the lucky kittens/cats that you foster and the permanent residents. I luv your sense of humor, you give many giggles and laughs. “I can’t shut my face about cats and kittens” luv the honesty!! and we your followers are glad for it, LOL.
Happy New Year! Thank you so very much for all that you do for these furbabies. So love reading this year in review, it’s the best, and my favorite. It’s wonderful that so many were adopted straight from your house. And another mama to watch and wait for!
Just want to add a note that I love the number of updates from former fosters. I think that’s just wonderful that people want to let you know that the kitties are doing well and that they’re still loved and happy and smart. You’ve done a great job!