Kittens born 1st June 2009

Glendavan Kissin Dynamite (Flora) x Riverfern Lord Of Kobol (Hobo) 

Flora has given birth to her first litter, a blue girl and two usual boys. The births of the first two kittens went without any problems, but a trip to the vet later in the day confirmed my suspicions that there was another kitten in there refusing to come out! When she hadn't given birth after a few hours the vet decided that it would be safest to perform a caesarean. This saw the safe arrival of her third kitten, a little usual boy. Despite her traumatic experience Flora is proving to be the perfect mum. She adores her kittens and is being surprisingly laid back about the whole business. All the kittens are doing well but I am helping to feed the little boy as he is slightly behind his big brother and sister, who are very greedy and don't like to share their mothers milk!

We were unsure whether it was possible for Flora to have blue kittens as we weren't sure whether she carried the necessary gene (dilute) so we were over the moon when she had her very first kitten and it was a blue girl!

Flora's kittens are now two weeks old and are all doing well. After a about a week of my feeding the wee usual boy he decided that he much preferred his mothers milk and is now feeding solely from her, much to my relief! Flora is coping really well with the kittens and continues to be a brilliant mum. She likes to come out for a short while each day to see the other cats but heaven help any cat (or dog) that threatens to go near her babies. The kittens are becoming more active, enjoying a tussle with one another and their eyes are just starting to open. It won't be long now before they are on the move!

We start with sad news this week. Despite doing well for two weeks, the big usual boy failed to continue to thrive and despite numerous trips to the vet, we were unable to save him and he passed away peacefully in his sleep on Saturday. We are understandably very upset, but take some comfort from the fact that the remaining boy (born by caesarean) and the blue girl are doing so well. Their eyes are now open and they are pottering about on wobbly legs. They are both showing signs of wanting to leave the nest but Flora is doing her utmost to stop them. She would like them to stay put for now.

It's been a busy week for the kittens. It was time to move into the 'kitten room' where they would have more space to explore. They soon found their feet and were toddling around on wobbly feet. Initially they were confined to a penned area but soon showed signs of wanting more freedom so they now have the run of the entire room. By the end of the week they were both showing some interest in solid food if encouraged. Flora is still tending to their other 'needs' so the litter training will come later.

Flora's kittens have really come on this week and become much more independent. They have started using their litter tray and eating solid food, although they both appear to prefer biscuits to meat. They even started lapping water from a bowl, though they think it much more fun to go for a dip, splash water over the mat and lick the water from there! They are really on the move too and are tearing about the place, climbing and generally acting like hooligans. Heaven knows what they are going to be like when they get bigger!

It's been all play this week for Flora's kittens. They spend their time eating, sleeping, or charging around like mad things. I have been trying to tempt them out of their room into the rest of the house to meet the other cats and the dog but they seem quite happy to stay where they are. The usual boy is definitely the more confident of the two, but both kittens seem more comfortable with the dog than the other cats. Mind you, this may have something to do with the fact that Star hates the newcomers and just growls at them. I'm sure they'll win her over soon though. I have decided on posh pedigree names for them both: the usual boy is now Abderus Brighteside and the blue girl Abderus Blueskye.

Flora's kittens have really come out of their shells this week. They have finally ventured out of their room and have started to explore the rest of the house. They are enjoying the extra space to run around in and, like true Abys, have discovered their ability to jump. The boy is definitely the braver of the two, his sister preferring that he checks things out before she makes a move. Flora is still being very protective of her babies so it will be a while yet before they get to play with the other cats. They have met the dog though but seem happy to completely ignore him.

To make way for Rosa's kittens in the spare room, it has been necessary to move Flora's kittens again. So I now have two 8 week old kittens and their mum in the bedroom with me at night! I'm not sure how much sleep I am going to get for the next few weeks but we will see. Once Rosa's kittens are tucking into solid food and are litter trained I hope to put the two litters together, but at the moment it would be inadvisable. Thankfully, although Flora is very protective of her kittens with the other cats and the dog, she seems to know that Rosa is a mum too and is happy for her to be near her kittens. Brightside and Blueskye are both doing well and enjoy nothing more than tearing about the house playing games of chase and having fights with each other and their mum.

It was time for the kitten's first vaccinations this week. Everything went well and apart from being a little sleepier than usual, they seemed pretty unaffected by the experience. Flora is spending less time with the kittens now and they are quite happy to spend their days charging about the place. As you may tell from the photo below, they have both discovered their ability to climb and, like true Abys, are making the most of their new found talent!

Week 10:

It's been fun, fun, fun for Flora's kittens this week. I have introduced them to Rosa's kittens and the two litters are now sharing a room together when they aren't charging about the rest of the house. They spend very little time with Flora now and she is quite happy and is no longer so protective. It took a while for Blueskye to get used to the presence of Rosa's boisterous kittens, but Brightside has loved the extra playmates from the off.

Week 11:

Flora's kittens are really starting to grow up now. They love to play with their younger cousins and it is quite a sight seeing seven kittens charging about the place. Of course they also have their quiet moments, as shown in the photos below. It seems that Flora has decided that she likes being a mum so much that she has started suckling one of Rosa's kittens. She doesn't actually have any milk left, but the kitten (Ruby) doesn't seem to care.

Weeks 12 and 13:

This is our last update for Flora's kittens page as they are now 13 weeks old and ready for their new homes. They had their second vaccinations at 12 weeks old and were neutered a week later, both without any ill effects. This last week the kittens have been enjoying playing with their younger kitten friends and after being neutered they were even allowed to cuddle up in bed with me for a few nights. Of course this means that is going to be all the more difficult to say goodbye when the time comes, but they are both going to good homes where they will no doubt bring much enjoyment to their new slaves.