Since this group has so many look-a-likes (in addition to Winter/Tater I think the black ones look similar to others of the past), is there a chance they are distantly related? Kitten genealogy seems way easier than REAL genealogy in that they aren’t all named Mary Elizabeth Smith or John Johnson.
It’s entirely possible!
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Is it just me, or does Annie have those Constance eyes? She got my attention right away, she and Calamity. I’m keeping a close eye on those girls to see how pretty they get.
Annie Oakley totally has those big Constance eyes!
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More about the backwards feet, please. I’ve never heard of that.
and
Can you tell us more about the backward feet situation? That sounds terrifying! Why does it happen?
Joy said: I don’t know if this is the situation for these particular kittens, but I found this article to be very interesting.
I never saw the kittens myself and I haven’t asked Michelle about it, but I am pretty sure that that’s what these kittens had. (If you don’t want to read the article, it says that it’s due to contracted tendons.) Michelle has probably splinted a zillion kittens in her rescue career (I’m pretty sure these guys weren’t even the first this year) and they look perfectly normal now.
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Is there any signs of Snowcone being deaf?
Snowcone is not deaf. He’s also not all-white, he’s a cream point – his ears and tail are very lightly colored, and they’ll get a little darker as he gets older.
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Every time I see Athos, I think of Ponyboy. Something about that little wee face…
I have actually thought that very thing! Here’s Ponyboy from 4 years ago.
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Additional questions (on Facebook and elsewhere) –
How many litter boxes do you have in a room with 15 kittens?
Three big ones. I scoop every time I step into the room, and so far so good. (I am filling up the Litter Genie about every day and a half, if that gives you any perspective.)
How do you tell them apart/how do you keep them straight/how do you remember their names?
The black kittens have colored collars, and I’ve got a printout of their pictures/names/collar colors in the foster room (and also downstairs next to my desk.)
How do you medicate that many kittens?
One at a time and very carefully. I’ve got a spreadsheet with their names in one column, their description/collar colors in the next, their dosage in the next, and spots to mark off when they’ve been dosed. I find that medicating them at breakfast and dinner works the best because I can pick them up while they’re eating, give ’em the medicine and put them back in front of the food. They don’t miss a beat, though sometimes they look a little confused.
If they were on medication that they only needed once a day, I’d do half of them in the morning and the other half at night. Or even 5 in the morning, 5 at noon and the other 5 at night.
How is Fred dealing with 15 kittens in the foster room after he mentioned wanting to stop fostering.
Fred suggests we keep whichever kittens are his favorite and stop fostering with every single litter. He knows it’s not going to happen but that doesn’t stop him from suggesting it.
Fred is handling having 15 kittens in the foster room just fine – because he doesn’t go in there except for a few minutes at the end of the day. These kittens are at an age he finds boring (the only kittens more boring to him are newborns), and he won’t spend any real time with them until they have the run of the upstairs. That’s not anything new – he truly doesn’t spend much time in the foster room unless I need help with something and I don’t expect him to. The kittens always still like him just fine when they do see him!
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They’ve discovered the bed on my desk and like it quite a bit (when they’re not trying to tromp across my keyboard, that is.)
Nap time with Porthos and Charlie.
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Wild Bill would like to speak to your manager.
Have yourself a floofy cup of Tater Tot.
Tiny Candy Apple in the Tiny Basket.
I can tell you that’s Eclair on the right, Tater Tot on the scratcher and Funnel Cake in the tree (over by the window) but I’m not sure who the black kitten in the crate or the black kitten in the box of toys are, because I can’t see their collars.
Tiny Annie Oakley in the Tiny Basket.
Calamity Jane finds it easiest to lie in the bowl of food when eating.
Tater Tot and Wild Bill atop the crate.
Line ’em up! Left to right: Pretzel, French Fry, Hush Puppy, and Davy Crockett.
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This is Dewey’s “I hear you’ve brought more kittens into my house” face.
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Previously
2019: Henri is the biggest of the litter, and thus Fred’s nickname for him is “Chonks.”
2018: Please look closely and admire Cruise’s teeny tongue.
2017: Snack time at the milk bar buffet.
2016: “Good morning, innernets! Is you awake yet?”
2015: “This a good sock, lady. I approves.”
2014: Ralph’s got places to GO, y’all.
2013: :::maniacal laughter::
2012: “It’s infested with a Joe Pickle. This sink does NOT pass inspection. Joe Pickles are impossible to get rid of.”
2011: No entry.
2010: No entry.
2009: I’m thinking, one more kitten tries to squeeze in that bed, it’ll explode.
2008: Kara goes to Petsmart.
2007: Keith, doing standup while Chemda gauges audience reaction.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Or that black kitten in the pink chair either I’m assuming
That one too (that one is the entire reason I took that picture, as I recall!)
Annie Oakley and Wild Bill may be tiny, but I think both can hold their own in a brawl.
15 kittens…that would be heaven…
Actually, Tater does not look so much like Winter, but more like Katarina from 2018.
https://love-and-hisses.com/images/LH/2020/10/2020-10-09-06.jpg
https://love-and-hisses.com/images/fosters/2018/olympians/06Katarina.jpg
I’m really wondering why you didn’t stop at the traditional 5. What caused you to take on 15? Was Michelle pressed for space? Not enough foster people to take the others? That’s a detail I missed in the story.
Yes and yes – Michelle is always pressed for space and there’s nothing near enough fosters in this area. (To be fair, when Michelle (jokingly) offered me all the kittens, I don’t think she expected me to say yes.)
So many kittens! I think I would be a little overwhelmed!
Thanks for the article on twisted legs — so interesting! I’m glad these kittens had Michelle to help them out.
I think we need an audio recording of what it sounds like downstairs when all 15 are running around…Thanks for what you do.
I’m waiting for a recording of a fifteen-kitten purr symphony, myself. 🙂 That, or if all fifteen are talking to you at once, or the mew and purr fest that doubtless occurs when the human sits down in the middle of the floor and is suddenly climbed on by a crowd of kittoons! I’m picturing a bunch of playful tinies, somebody wanting a lap, somebody else wanting to be picked up, someone playing with your hair, two or three going Z-O-O-M! across the room…