Tandem jumping, starring Alice Mo and Lucy Peppers.
Alice Mo is 1/16th Cherokee. True story.
Eye on the prize.
Got too close to Lucy Peppers, got all hissy. Lucy looks terrified, no?
Okay, drama queen, dial it back.
“NO REALLY I AM NOT KIDDING YOU, LUCY PEPPERS ::HISS::HISS::HISS:: ”
Lucy’s like “No, seriously. WHAT is her problem?”
Leapin’ Lucy.
Apparently that jump was just an excuse to get closer to Alice and unleash the Peppers Paw o’ Doom. She’s a smart girl, that Lucy Peppers.
The bullies always crumble when you stand up to them, don’t they? A LIFE LESSON FOR YOU.
Note that she hisses at Corbie as she brushes by him, but he’s concentrating so hard on the teaser that he doesn’t even notice her.
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Thank you all for the name and group name suggestions! I am definitely naming little mama “Emmy”, and the litter name will be (drumroll please) “The Nominees.”
A couple of people suggested that group name, but Andrea/ Luanne suggested it first, which means that she wins bragging rights! Try not to let it go to your head, Andrea, though I’m sure that you’ll make room on your resume for that. 🙂 The instant I saw the name, I imagined the caption “The Noms nomming” under a picture of kittens nursing. I cannot wait to make that a reality.
The list of names that are in the running for the kittens (whenever they may come) are: Golden, Clio, Obie, Tony, Razzie (Fred insists that it’s “ie” not “y”. WHATEVS.), Espy, Darwin, Hugo, Sama, Olivier, Genie, Brit, Dundee, Peabody, and Pulitzer. These names are not in the running because they’ve been used for shelter cats in the past: Oscar, Juno, and Felix.
I can pretty much guarantee you that we’re going to have a Darwin and a Razzie out of this litter, because I REALLY like those names. Well, I like all of those names, actually, but I like Darwin and Razzie especially.
Mama Emmy is doing well. She seems to prefer to spend her days in the kennel and her nights in the basket on the wall. She’s no longer holding her ears out to the side in a manner that suggests “I hate you and want to kill you”, but rather holds them in a more relaxed, perked manner. I decided to stop being scared of her because I think that bringing that kind of energy into the room with me was not a good idea (have I been watching My Cat From Hell, do you think?) and look – if she lashes out and scratches me, it won’t be the first or last time that happens to me. I make frequent short trips into the room to visit her, and rub her ears each and every time, which she enjoys. She also talks to me a little – she talks to Fred more than she does to me, but I think we’ve established that the mama cats have a deep and abiding love for him.
She also howls at night. I thought, the first night it happened, that it might mean she was ready to have her kittens, but it’s been three nights running now, and there aren’t any kittens yet. I’m sure that she’s lonely – there were a lot of cats in that house where she was living, so being alone is probably not something she’s accustomed to. I had thought at first that maybe we should see about bringing another cat from that house here to keep her company, but mama cats are protective of their kittens and I’d hate to bring a cat into the room to keep her company, only to have her stressed about protecting her kittens from the other cat. I think that she’s still scared and lonely and just not sure what to make of this whole situation. But we are making progress, little by little, so I think we’re going to be okay.
She drew first blood on Fred yesterday, though it was HIS OWN FAULT. He tried to pick her up – have I mentioned that he always pushes the new cats further than I think he should? – and in her strong desire to get away from him, she scratched up his arms with her back claws.
I mean, let us not forget that when he tried to pick Rufus up, WAY before Rufus was ready to be picked up, we ended up with poop on the wall.
Isn’t she a purty girl?
Okay, a little bit glare-y. But I did wake her up. Maybe she’s grumpy when she first wakes up.
I was able to finally get a good look at her belly, though I didn’t touch it. I can report that I absolutely, definitely saw baby movement. I bet it won’t be TOO long now! (Though of course I thought that exact same thing with Maggie when we brought her home last year, and she hung in there for over two weeks before she had her babies!)
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Spanky, mid-yawn.
He’s such a sweet boy.
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Previously
2011: Fingers crossed!
2010: No entry.
2009: I wish they didn’t get nervous and run back upstairs if I run into their general direction, like they think they’re in trouble.
2008: No entry.
2007: Smackdown at the Anderson Corral.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Looks like Alice might need some quality time with Fred… Spanky is such a handsome boy. And he doesn’t look a day over three — at least in the second picture (yawning is so aging!). Thank you for all you’re doing for beautiful Emmy, and the Nominees should put a quick end to those nocturnal howls.
One day I’ve got to get a picture of Alice Mo having her quality time with Fred. Every night when we’re watching TV, she climbs up on him and perches there like a big ol’ tick. She sure does love her daddy. 🙂
RE: Last picture (Spanky)
I SEE KITTEH LEEPS!
“Kitteh Leeps” would be an excellent band name!
Nobel would be a good name too. I missed the boat commenting on yesterdays.
I’ll add it to the list! 🙂
I hope Emmy continues to settle down and tame up before she drops the Nominees! Re: The Howling at Night – try keeping a light on and see if that helps. It worked for my howling Cleo way back when. Don’t know why, but it did.
I’d also recommend putting more of a cover over the kennel so the back and sides are completely enclosed, but that’s just me.
The Flying Kittehs photos are great. Poor Alice Mo getting her comeuppance. Just chill and play nice, Alice!!
There’s usually a towel over it, but I had pulled it back to let some light in so I could get some pictures of her face.
I actually did end up turning the light on last night, and it didn’t stop the howling, but it did lessen it quite a bit. I’m sure the poor girl has never been alone in the dark before!
She needs a night light and maybe a radio on real low….
Oh, believe me – she’s got a night light and a radio on low, those are permanent fixtures in that room. 🙂
I’m glad to hear a light helped the howling. Since she was with so many other cats, maybe some stuffed animals would help. That way she would get the impression of other fuzzballs around her and that might help her settle down to sleep. I don’t know if you have any stuffed animals… I seem to remember an orange striped one for some kittens?
I know that playing right before bedtime would help my howler — she would be so tired that she would just snuggle into me to sleep. I don’t know if you’ve tried playing with Emmy, but it might be something to try…
Oh, we’re not to the playing stage yet. We’ve tried feather teasers, toys, toys that chirp, the laser light… Basically any toys we have, we’ve tried tempting her with, and we usually get the “Why are you trying to kill me?” eyes from her. I did put a small stuffed animal in with her and she kind of cringed away from it. I think I’m going to find a bigger one and put it in the kennel so she can get away from it if she wants and snuggle up with it if that strikes her fancy.
I feel like last night, when I went in to sit with her and pet her for a while, she was on the cusp of purring. She didn’t quite get there, but I sense it’s on the horizon!
I hope she purrs for you tonight! May I suggest you put the stuffed animals in the room somewhere so she can avoid them if they scare her? If the kennel is her safe spot (and birthing spot), maybe having them in there will be too much?
Whatever you do, I’m sure she’ll come around. It’s only been since Friday and she has made much progress!
Keep up the good work! It’s great that you are helping another homeless momma!!
Amen to the Alice comment. She is a bit full of herself! LOL
Good idea, DB, I’ll put the stuffed animal where she can get to it if she wants (probably in a cat bed so it’ll be comfy if she does want to snuggle), but won’t be forced to snuggle. 🙂
Oh, how cute is Spanky and his pucker??! *love*
Poor Emmy! Once she has all of those kittens (yay!), she’ll wish she were single again. But Emmy! Look at that bed you have, girl. That looks comfy…
Am I the only one who thinks Emmy looks like a wild cat, a puma or something, it’s the shape of her head and the look in her eye!
Love the flying cats. Poor Alice, having to put up with all those cheeky youngsters! 🙂 love your commentary.
Loved how Miz Poo just watches from the sideline! LOL!
Awww mama kitty is adorable – hope she doesn’t feel too lonely soon!
Take care
x
I think she will be too busy soon to be lonely…AND will yearn for the days of peace and quiet! LOL
Yay! You picked “The Nominees”! I had hoped to be the first to suggest it, but oh well – maybe next time! 🙂
I love the pictures – always do!
What, no BAFTA among the kitten names? 🙂
That is actually on my list (which I have here in front of me), I must have missed typing it in!
Awesome! I want to name a kitten Bafta now. 🙂
Oh my gosh, I was watching the Maggie is a talker video on the “poop and bob’s yer uncle (which made me spit water everywhere”, and at 28 to 29 seconds, you can see a kitten kick!!
I am still laughing at Bob and his uncle and the poop. Oh My Gosh.
OMG! You are right!! I clicked right over to watch it!! AWWWWWW….how precious was that!!!???!!!???
That is so neat, I never noticed that before! Hearing Maggie’s voice again made me smile, she was such a sweet girl!
That is funny!! Maybe that accounted for the extra yow from Maggie at that moment! Here’s the link if anyone else wants to see!
Yayyyyyyy! 😀
1/16 Cherokee. You crack me up. She does look like she’s doing a rain dance!
So Alice Mo may qualify you to open a casino on Crooked Acres! Or at least hold a “Vegas Night” fund raiser for the Challenger House. 😉
Oh man, I do everything short of TAKE NOTES when My Cat From Hell is on – trying to pick up pointers for the fosters! I’ve got a “moody” one right now – OUCH!
Lucy, the bully breaker!
Am I crazy or does it look like Spanky is giving love eyes and blowing kisses?? Do I hear the sound of lady cats fainting?
I agree with Diddleymaz that Emmy looks like a wild cat. I think it’s the dark stripes coming down from her eyes along side her nose or rather, ‘whisker humps’ that gives her that wild look. Wild, yet lovely!
Spanky is TOTALLY giving the love eyes. He’s a lovah – and the happiest cat you could ever hope to meet. He’s just always been a SUPER happy cat, from the moment we got him. He’s not a huge fan of strangers, but in his old age he’s decided that they might not hurt him, so he’s not as scared as he used to be. 🙂
I’m sure this name has already been used, but I just saw something in the news about the Gracie Awards (for female created programming).
Old man Spanky and the smoldering eyes of love make me swoon.
Oh, I would have LOVED to use Gracie! Someone had suggested Faith as a name for Emmy, but of course that’s been used. I was thinking that a group of cats with really simple, strong names like Grace and Faith and Hope would have been nice to use for cats who came from such a horrible situation.
Reading your blog always cheers me up, and right now I need some that. My little Yorkie Midget ran for the bridge last night. He was almost 14 years old and had battled Congestive Heart Failure for 3 years (same thing that took my wife back in 07). My 6 cats are doing their part, keeping me company, and that’s helping a lot.
Just keep doing the wonderful work you’re doing, and good luck with the new batch of kitties.
I’m so very sorry for your loss – your wife and Midgie as well. Cats are good at comforting (well, when they want to be!), I’m glad that they’re there for you!
::hugs::
Don’t know how you knew, but Midgie is what I always called him.
Thanx for the hugs.
I think I must have combined “Midget” and “Yorkie” in my head! Lucky guess. 🙂
Logie and Aria didn’t make the list for kitten names? Fine. sniff. it’s not as if i care…
have you gotten her used to having her ears touched so you can do t-touch circles on them? no? fine. sniff. doesn’t matter.
you don’t have to consider ANY OF MY SUGGESTIONS! it’s not like i’m gonna cry about it or anything…sniff…
PS: How cute is Spanky? That boy is not 15! Geeze, Alice, chill. goodness me.
I can’t wait until they’re born and named and you post “And the Nominees are…”
This made me smile!
Oh please, please, please name one of the babies Dundee!!!!! It is a perfect boy kit name but would work on a girl too!