Ollie my littlest feral



Beautiful Ollie

When I arrived to feed yesterday morning all the kitties came running out to meet me.  I put down the prepared bowls of food in each cat's fave eating spot.  Ollie sniffed at her food and turned away.  I put out a couple other bowls with different food and got the same reaction.  Then I saw her chin.  It was so swollen and when I looked into her eyes I could see she was in pain.

Ollie with swollen chin

Back in 2003/4 when I was trapping the kitties in the colony to take in for spaying and neutering Ollie proved to be the most difficult little cat to trap.  In fact she was the very last to go in for a spay and that was after numerous trapping attempts.  Since then I have always felt she would prove to be a challenge to trap again.

Yesterday I went out twice to try trapping her.  I was very concerned about dehydration so the sooner I got her medical attention the better.  Both the a.m. and later afternoon attempts failed.  So out I went this morning knowing Ollie would be good and hungry.

Swelling gone

I arrived to find her sitting on top of the feeding shelter, where she often snoozes.  The swelling was gone.  I strongly suspect she had an abscess because under her chin it is a bit of a wet bloody mess.  Ollie ate well and hidden in the food was a little pill (antibiotic).  I will keep her on the antibiotics for at least a week and thankfully my ferals are very easy to pill - much easier than my kitties at home.

Greta

Recently a friend of mine, Kim,  asked if I would feed her kitties while she and her family were on vacation.  This is the story of Greta, a former street urchin turned indoor kitty. 

I met Greta 4 years ago when I received a phone call from another friend about a feral kitty and her kitten.  Could I come and catch the kitten so she could be socialized and a home found.  Off I went and within a short time I had the little black and white kitten that we judged to be about 7 or 8 weeks old.  Much to my delight I found a home for that little kitten very quickly.

Greta,the mom kitty, continued to live outside under someones front porch through three more winters.  During that time she was trapped and taken to a vet for spaying and then returned to her outdoor life.

Last November Kim phoned me to ask if she could borrow my "kitten cage".  She was going to try bringing Greta inside to live.  For a few weeks Greta lived in the kitten cage in the master bedroom and it wasn't long before she was allowed out and had the entire bedroom as her space.

I got to meet Greta again in late June when I went to Kim's to learn the routine.  Greta was still living in the master bedroom because Puck, the resident handsome boy kitteh was not too thrilled with Greta living in his house and was a bit aggressive towards her.  Kim wasn't sure how she would respond to a stranger, but she was fine.  She allowed me to pet her and we even played with one of her toys.

During the three weeks of feeding and caring for the kitties, I grew very attached to Greta.  She is so loving and friendly and sweet.  I think she must have been someone's pet at one time because she loves attention.  I find it hard to believe this dear little cat lived outside for goodness knows how long and then in a short time with lots of TLC from Kim became a sweet laid back little cat.

A few days ago it became evident that Puck was very sick with no chance of recovery and he gently crossed the Rainbow Bridge.  It was very sad because the week before while I was caring for him he was an energetic 9 year old kitty that loved chasing the lazer beam.  On the bright side, Greta is now allowed free run of the entire house and I dare say is loving the indoor life even more now.  I love you sweet Greta and I am so happy you have a home to call your own.  You're a little gem.  Hug hug hug

Meet Valentine - Colony Matriach

It was a few days before Valentines Day in 2003 when I first met the beautiful brown tabby I decided to call Valentine. And she was pregnant. I was concerned for her and the arrival of her babies because it was mid February and it was cold. I called a local cat rescue group for some advice and I have to say I was somewhat disappointed in the response I got. They assured me Valentine could not be pregnant at this time of the year - it was too early in the season. Well she did have kittens. I'm not sure where or when she delivered but I could tell when she was no longer pregnant.

In early April Valentine came out from the lumberyard with the other cats from the colony to have breakfast. She ate and then wondered off and a few minutes later returned with 3 adorable wee kittens. She was weaning them and teaching them where to come for food. I was mezmerized. There was a little brown tabby that looked exactly like Valentine and two black kittens. I was so impressed with the way Valentine sat quietly as the kittens bounced around. They came for a bite of food but the slightest move from me and they dashed back behind the chainlink fence and the "safety" of the lumberyard. I named the shorthair black kitty Jet, the longhaired black F.J. which stood for Fluffy Jet but changed to Frances Jane when I learned she was a girl. The little tabby kitten disappeared shortly after I first saw her.

In late July Valentine delivered 5 more kittens. These wee babies were discovered by one of the workers in the lumberyard and thankfully he was a kind hearted man. He told one of the women employees about the kittens which set off a series of phone calls. The kittens were removed and Valentine was caught in a humane trap. Arrangements had been made with a vet who would allow Valentine to care for her brood until they could be weaned. Afterwards she would be spayed and homes would be found for her family.

Valentine returned to the colony about the middle of September. I was concerned she would be shunned by the others in the colony after her absence but she marched right back into their midst and resumed her roll as the matriach.

I'm not sure when it happened but eventually Valentine allowed me to pet her, and even groom her. She loves to rub up against my legs when I arrive with the food. In the 8 years I have been feeding this colony, I think Valentine has only missed about three meals. She loves her food.

Sometimes Valentine plays and runs and carrys on like a young cat but I think she is at least ten, maybe even a bit older. She loves catnip. When she finishes rolling around in the little pile I give her she will walk over to another kitty and take over their catnip. Valentine just has to look at any of the other cats and they move off.

The past few days she has been particularly affectionate. She has made a point of rubbing against my legs so that I will stop and scratch behind her ears. She is a sweetie but when she has had enough she is swift with the paw.

Winter and the Ferals

Tess, Jazz and Que at the Logan feeding station come when they hear me call "kitty kitty". Their sleeping shelters are inside a chain link fenced area and the shelters are surrounded by bales of straw. This fall I added a few more bales around the shelters.

Before I built the shelters for these kitties they spent much of their time across the road in a garbage plant which meant crossing a busy street with lots of heavy trucks. In the mornings before I arrived they made their way to the feeding station to wait for me, unless it was really cold. It really bothered me that these kitties didn't have a safe, dry spot to sleep or to wait for my arrival.

In November 2009 I decided I would make some winter sleeping shelters for the cats and install them in the vacant lot beside the feeding station. It is a fenced area and is private property but has not been used for the past few years. I had my fingers crossed that no one would see them and have them removed. My fingers are still crossed, but so far so good.

I bought 3 Rubbermaid containers and three sheets of insulation Styrofoam and production began. I had Boomer as my tester, first for the entrance hole to make sure it was the right size and then for making sure the interior would offer enough comfortable sleeping space.

I cut the insulating foam to line the bottom and the sides, which I also covered in a Mylar sheet that reflects body heat back to the cats. Once everything was fitted and secured in place I put in a thick layer of wood shavings so the cats would be comfortable and warm. Then I cut a Styrofoam top and secured it to the sides before putting the lid to the container on.




Next stop, vacant lot to drop off the shelters. Now that was a fun exercise! I was able to drop the containers over the fence but was unable to climb the fence here. There is a spot that is easier to climb which is way on the other side of the lot. A few days later my sister came into the city from her farm to bring me a load of straw. She backed her truck up to the fence and we heaved bale after bale over the fence. The next day I returned to arrange the bales around the sleeping shelters for the cats. It is relatively safe inside this fenced area, but I have seen a fox scoot through the same hole that the cats use to come and go. Because of this, I arranged the bales in such a way that the cats have two exits through the bales to escape if necessary.

The picture below shows Tess (foreground) and Jazz sitting just outside their shelters. It didn't take them long to discover these shelters and they were well used last year and are being used again this year.

I would like to add that shelters should not have towels or blankets for the cats to sleep on. A cat sleeping on a damp towel or blanket loses body heat. The ideal bedding is straw or wood shavings. Also, it is not a good idea to feed ferals too close to their sleeping shelter as it could attract other animals if all food is not consumed.

Doodle Noodle

Lately Doodle has been picking at his food but mostly because he is very nervous about something. However this week he has been eating much better at the end of the day.

This morning he ate about 3 tablespoons of food so I was again concerned. This evening when I went back about 4:00 p.m. he ate so much I thought he might explode. In fact I even took the food away after he ate about two bowls of food, which equals two cans of Friskies 156g cans.

This picture was taken this afternoon of Doodle eating beside FJ on top of the feeding shelter. Once he was finished eating all he wanted to do was give me headbutts, which I glady accepted.

Today's temperatures were warm compared to what we have had recently. No wind and sun this afternoon made all the difference.

Even though Doodle hasn't been eating as well as he usually does, he does not appear to be losing weight. I am going to keep my fingers crossed that Doodle will continue to eat well, if not at the morning feedings, then the evening feedings.