Princess Sofia Soy Sauce.
Christopher Chutney is having a snuggle with Sofia Soy Sauce, and he’s raaaather pleased about it.
Christopher Chutney has a sleepy.
Theo Pesto’s milk drunk.
Molly Marinara’s keeping a close eye on something.
Tia Teriyaki at the milk bar. Please admire her lovely eyeliner!
Theo Pesto at the milk bar. Check out those Ears of Concentration.
In case you wondered what Tia Teriyaki looks like from behind.
So Molly Marinara is off for her spay surgery this morning! I expect things will go well and she’ll be back here by mid-day or thereabouts. I’ll attempt to keep her sequestered in the bathroom for a little while, but if past mamas are anything to go by, she will object loudly and will be back with her kittens pretty quickly. (Also judging by previous mamas, she will continue to produce milk and will let the kittens nurse until they’re separated… though she might surprise us and wean them. ::Wave of acknowledgement to Neko (formerly Katriane), the only one of our mamas to actually wean her kittens before they were separated:: )
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Wait! Don’t go yet! You have to say hello to Hannah Hollandaise, the newest Dipper.
She’s a beauty.
“I AM rather good-looking.”
Sleepy girl.
Hannah Hollandaise came to us last Wednesday (and you thought I couldn’t keep a secret.) She was part of a colony of cats trapped near Animal Control; she has two sisters who were over 2 pounds and were spayed (they are currently at Petsmart on University Drive here in Huntsville, Alabama if you’re local and in the market for a kitten or two), but Hannah was just a bit too small to be spayed.
Molly is such a mild-mannered cat that I thought she’d be okay with Hannah as an addition to the room. Just to be safe, we set up a cage in the room where Hannah could stay for a few days and Molly could get used to her. The instant Molly caught sight of Hannah, she started growling and hissing, which surprised me. She calmed down a bit over the next day (I only let Hannah out of the cage if I was in the room), and I thought things were going well. I made sure to keep myself between Molly and Hannah, but Saturday evening I wasn’t paying attention and Molly decided she’d just had ENOUGH and went after Molly. She didn’t hurt her (I’m not entirely sure she even made contact, but there was a lot of screaming (from Molly)(and possibly me) and flying fur). So I started moving Hannah into the bathroom during the day. Sunday and Monday I got into a routine where I’d put Hannah in the bathroom and then put two of Molly’s kittens in with her for a couple of hours, then swap them out for another 2 and so on.
I had actually made arrangements to take Hannah to stay at Michelle’s when I changed my mind because she is SUCH a sweet little thing. I suggested to Fred that we put Hannah in the sitting room off of his room during the day (it’s just like the room off the kitten room where I have the litter boxes, only his sitting room has a window), and then at night return her to the cage in the foster room. That way she’d have the day to run around and play (with other kittens to keep her company) and perhaps over time Molly will become acclimated to her presence and decide she’s not so bad. Fred agreed that I could do that (while grumbling about it).
So that’s what we’re going to do for now – fingers crossed that Molly finds some love (or hey, even tolerance) in her heart for that sweet little blue-eyed girl.
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In a corner of the back yard is a lace-leaf Japanese Maple, and under the Maple is what I’m pretty sure is liriope/monkey grass. I pointed out that area to Fred when we were looking at the house. “The cats will love hanging out there!” I said.
Within 10 minutes of being allowed into the back yard, this was Archie. (He’s hard to spot, but he’s there!)
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Previously
2020: I pulled this cave out of the cabinet to see what the kittens thought, and Winter approved completely.
2019: No entry.
2018: Millie’s all “ALWAYS SOMEBODY’S BUTT IN MY FACE!”
2017: Chip’s all “I’VE GOT IT!!!”
2016: Spruce is all “I sees what you’re doin’ there, lady.”
2015: This is what I did during the 2 1/2 weeks while I was gone:
2014: No entry.
2013: Brandon is NOT sharing his toy and you better BACK OFF (you can hear him growling)
2012: “YOU ARE A STRANGER TO ME. I AM CONSIDERING PUTTING ON MY STRANGER DANGER FLOOF.”
2011: But she IS working on her anger management…
2010: Poor long-suffering Moxie.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry.
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
At first glance, on a small screen, I thought that last pic with Archie hiding in the grass was a picturesque view on a secluded beach of a Maple like yours, thinking to myself: Which beach did Robyn go to with those lovely trees and lush sea grass? Why didn’t she just take a pic of the Maple in her back yard? I didn’t see Archie at first at all. The top of the cat fence looked like the water, the branches above I thought was a little jetty, and below the fence looked like beach sand. Clearly I need a bigger monitor or maybe just bother to put on my glasses.
I could use a visit to a beach right about now!
Oh mylanta. When my dad sets eyes on Hannah, we’re likely gonna need to roadtrip for HER and Theo!!
Oh baby Hannah Hollandaise! My heart! Maybe Molly will be more accepting when she comes home today. Fingers crossed.
Eeeee newbie! Hi newbie! *snuggles* What color(s) is Hannah? Blue eyes makes me think either a solid white kitten or points of some kind. Ohmygosh, don’t tell me you have a teeny ragdoll in the house?
Jeez, Molly, chill out. Silly girl. Hopefully the spay goes well.
Chanter, Hannah looks like a Siamese mix of some kind–her little fuzzy body is sort of a pale cream color with just a bit of a brown overtone here and there, and she does have darker brownish points, but they’re kind of “blotchy,” not one smooth and solid color like a classic meezer. She has a couple of white toes on both her front and hind paws on the left side, and the coloration on the back of her ears seems to be asymmetric as well. And the pointing on her face is very smudgy and irregular-looking, a bit like the facial markings on a Snowshoe but not nearly as dark. One side of her muzzle is cream and the other the darker brown color, and it looks like there might be the very faintest hint of some tabby-stripes on her upper nose and forehead too. I’d say “lynx point” is probably the best “official” name for what she looks like, but whatever her genetics, I don’t think anyone here will disagree that she’s 100% adorable!
That’s a GREAT description, thank you!
Brittany refers to her as a tortie point – I did a quick google and found that the description of a tortie point is “white markings (spots) on the face and around the body.” and that certainly fits!
Ah, I’d never heard of a tortie point before, but I just went and did an image search of my own and you’re right, there are some very similar-looking kitties out there under that name. You learn something new every day!
Oh, my goodness. I just fell over, ker-splat, from the adorableness of that description! You’ve got descriptive skill, and Hannah is clearly the poster kitten for cuteness! <3
LOL–you are very welcome, and thank you in turn for the compliment. I’ve been a hobbyist author since I was in junior high (and I’m hitting my mid-40s now) and while I mostly did fanfic and have thus never had anything formally published, you tend to pick up a few skills along the way when you practice anything for that long. Glad I could put them into service here!
Robyn, I watched your IG video explaining the situation and oh my goodness I was so distracted by Hannah Hollandaise’s sweet yawns, Sofia Soy Sauce’s flirty eyes, and Theo Pesto’s sleeping grin that I could barely follow along. Hannah H is obviously very content and happy, and I’m glad you figured out a way to keep her while also not stressing out Molly. The rotating cast of dipper friends is the absolute best. I can’t even imagine what their little potato heads think about this other special room!
We have what we call “the studio” for our cat Fern and I named it the studio since it describes it better than a cage/crate. It’s an XL dog carrier/crate that has a nice blanket and toys and Fern goes into her studio when I’m especially busy in meetings or phone calls. This is because while she loves that I’m working from home, she hates that I’m working from home. Apparently if I’m home, she needs 110% of my attention. Video/phone calls offend her greatly, and she will not even let me type or use my mouse. She hates being locked in the bedroom away from me and will cry and scream no matter if she’s in there for 10 minutes or an hour. Being in the studio allows her to stay close to me and be part of all the action (since my desk and the studio are in the living room) AND I get to have my zoom meetings without Fern attacking/biting the laptop and therefore I can keep my job because she is accustomed to a certain lifestyle now. 😉
This is just a long winded comment to say… Hannah’s “studio” is a perfect solution to keep her from being lonely at night but also safe from Molly. I hope Molly will lower her guard eventually but if not, you are doing everything you can to keep all your fosters healthy, safe and happy!
That sounds like the perfect setup!!
Hannah Hollandaise is a little beauty, with a great name.
Robyn, could you try rubbing Molly Marinara with a cloth and then rubbing Hannah Hollandaise with the same cloth to transfer Molly’s smell? If Hannah smelled familiar, maybe Molly would stop seeing her as a stranger.
Oh, that was the first thing I tried – also rubbing the kittens and then Hannah (and vice versa), giving Hannah a bath and rubbing Sofia Soy Sauce all over her (wish I’d been making a video, because the looks on their faces were priceless). Also giving Hannah and Molly tasty treats right next to each other. (Not all of this at once, of course, trying each thing and then moving on to the next.) Molly just will not be swayed. I’ve got a couple of the onesies like Canasta wore on order (I had to toss Canasta’s because they got pretty ratty after going through the wash so many times) and am hoping that those will help. All I can guess is that a siamese mix kitty did Molly wrong at some point in the past and she’s holding a grudge!
Regarding weaning, will you be using the Weansie again?
Ooh, I love the colourpoints. I hope Molly takes to her soon.
Oh, Hannah Hollandaise is just what I needed to see tonight!!! C’mon Molly…
I so so love seeing these baby kitten pictures! (Remember when you posted that picture of Archie back at Crooked Acres, with a super annoyed look on his face and the caption “eff all y’all…” ?? Yeah. That’s my day today!!!!)
I can’t stop giggling at Tia, apparently standing on Sofia’s head at the milk bar. Am I a bad person?
No, it made me laugh too!
I love the photo of Hannah admiring herself in the mirror. She’s thinking, “Of course I’m beautiful”.