I’m hoping down the track to create a cat shelter for them in the backyard so they don’t need to be confined to the house. They follow the sunlight about like devotees, shifting from place to place as the sun moves. They are both such good natured cats, getting quite bouncy in that funny way animals do when it’s spring, dashing randomly about the house. I’ve a little cat toy which is a fluffy heart on a string and I can keep them amused for hours with it. I’ve snapped off some pictures in a quieter moment, here’s Cleo nesting on a blanket on the couch. She has a funny way of sleeping where she lies her head right down, most unusual in a cat:

She’s settled in well, no more frantic doing laps! She loves a cuddle, preferably right up close to your face where she can gaze into your eyes. She still likes high places and can often be found asleep on top of my wardrobe or a bookshelf somewhere.

Here’s Tiger, curled up happily on his favourite green rug:

He’s a big smoochy cat, not so keen on being picked up but he does like to lay across your lap or sleep at the foot of the bed. He’s always up for a chin scratch and is still a kitten at heart, playing with bits of string or balls of scrunched up paper or the dreaded green bug cat toy – that still has the power to make him run to the other end of the house! 

Tiger’s scabs and scratches are healing up well and he’s regrowing fur over the patches that were missing. He’s incredibly confident and nothing much fazes him at all. He’s very cuddly and loves to lay on your lap while you read or watch tv. He sleeps on my bed at night by my feet, very patient and settled. He really does not at all like the cat scratching post I’ve bought. He was clawing one armchair and one rug in particular, but I’ve rolled up an old rubbish rug and encouraged him to use that instead and I’m really surprised at how quickly he’s taken it up! He really loves it, he stands on it, reaches out to his full length and claws it with great enthusiasm.

He also gets into restless moods, where he plays coy and rolls onto his bowl, mewing and pretending to  be cute. Don’t be fooled! It means he wants to play fight and if you tickle his tummy he’ll chomp your arm. I throw him a little green bug that vibrates when you pull a string, he really hates it and attacks it with a vengeance then runs away and dashes down the other end of the house. He also likes to stalk his rug, he sneaks up on it from behind an armchair then bites and claws it. Then, feeling most pleased with himself, he takes himself off to the laundry for a snack. Here he is on his rolled up green rug:

Cleo has been more nervous being moved to a new house. She can’t sit still when she’s anxious, she moves in circles instead. So the other night, I was blogging away at my computer and she wanted a cuddle. But she was feeling too anxious to stay on my lap. So she lapped me for an hour instead. She’d jump up onto the computer desk, rub her face against mine, stomp all over my keyboard, on one occasion spill my drink, and then straight off the other side of the desk. Only to circle around behind me and do it again! She was making good time too, I think the whole circle took about 10 seconds to complete and she kept it up for the hour! I tried cuddling her but she’d jump straight off. I tried sitting with her on the couch but she’d just do a new circle of the couch instead. She was purring earnestly the whole time!

She’s feeling more at home now though, yesterday she circled for about 20 minutes before she could settle down onto my lap where she stayed for the rest of the night. She also sleeps on my bed, but she likes to be either up by my face, or sometimes underneath it, where you can hear her washing herself and purring, like a kind of reverse beneath-the-bed-monster. She’s more restless than Tiger though and hops up all night long for drinks, snacks, toilet stops, and presumably, just to check that the lounge room furniture hasn’t gone anywhere. 🙂 She’s also allergic to me reading in bed and gives sleeping on any open book a really good shot!

Here she is licking her lips after dinner tonight:

They’re both such sweet cats. I hope we can find good homes for them. I’ve had to rethink the litter tray with both cats indoors, it’s just not big enough for two, and the kitty litter is very expensive! So I’ve borrowed an idea from another cat owner, and I’ve got a big low sided plastic box and put half a bag of potting mix in it. This should accommodate them both a lot better, and can be put straight out in the garden compost so they’re actually contributing to my garden and I’m putting one less thing in my bin which always makes me happy. The slight downside is that the potting mix does cling to their feet a little more so it gets walked around the laundry. But I can live with that, they were kicking the litter all over the laundry anyway. I hope that’s got that problem solved. 🙂

He’s aptly named, a huge magnificent cat with tremendous presence. He’s about 18mths, and unfortunately has FIV –Feline Immunodeficiency Virus – the cat version of HIV. This can’t be passed on to people or any other animal except other cats, usually through a bite. So, he’s now an indoor only cat so he wont infect any other cats. Cleo has been vaccinated so she’s protected. At this stage his health is good. He’s a bit sneezy which isn’t much to worry about. Early warning signs of sickness are loss of appetite and weight loss, and there’s certainly no problems there! He weighs at least 6kgs by my reckoning, he’s a huge head, big feet, no neck at all, and a solid barrel of a body. And he eats with great gusto! We may need to feed Cleo separately…

Today he polished off her lunch and his. His coat is in excellent condition, soft, thick and shiny. He’s fastidiously clean and have given himself about 4 baths so far today. His markings are gorgeous, the black spots remind me of an ocelot, well that and his size! His paws are all black and his nose is a dusty pink.

He’s obviously been in at least one major scrap, his ears are ragged and his neck is covered in scabs and missing bits of fur.

He has loads of personality. He wasn’t at all intimidated being in a new house. He’s tried lying on all the furniture, sunned himself on all the warm spots on the rugs, admired some box opening and furniture moving, and demanded many cuddles.

Here he is with Cleo, look at the size difference! I’d bet he was the only kitten in the litter. (and yes, that’s our burgeoning Pratchett collection on the shelf there – got to love Book Depository) And now to Cleo, she’s about 4 years old, slender and on the petite side. She’s a gorgeous tuxedo cat with no health issues.

She’s far more timid and antsy. She’s spent a lot of time hiding behind the couch, behind the TV cabinet, under the dresser, behind the washing machine… I’m getting used to the hiding places now which makes life a bit easier. It’s very nerve wracking when a new cat disappears for hours. Here she is looking out the living room window. 🙂

Tiger doesn’t talk at all but Cleo does if she’s confused or upset. She has a really unusual trait in a cat – when she’s very anxious or excited she holds her tail straight up and shakes it, a bit like a rattlesnake!

Her white markings are uneven, she has a white curl over her right shoulder, like she’s thrown over the tail of her scarf. 🙂 She’s also very affectionate, she likes to kiss your face and ‘pumps’ with her feet.

They’re both asleep on the floor of the living room rug at the moment, so the house is quite and contented once again. I’m neurotic about keeping the doors shut and have to be careful not to fall over new furry bodies sleeping in the hallway.

We did get some more information about Abbie after all. She was suffering from kidney failure, likely caused by extensive neglect and malnourishment. It doesn’t show up on blood tests, so that’s why no one knew what was going on. So, there was nothing else we could have done, kidney disease is irreversible in cats. She was loved and safe and kept as comfortable as possible. As will Tiger and Cleo be until we can find them new permanent owners. 🙂

Abbie had a huge seizure in the car on the way over. Flick and I sat with her, keeping her warm and talking gently to her and stroking her for the next 2 1/2 hours until she stopped breathing. We’re still very confused about what went so wrong for her. She was a lovely little cat and deserved so much better. But she was warm and clean and very very much loved.

Here are a couple of photos from the days when she wasn’t so ill:

What an absolutely precious little cat.

Then I’ve come home, finally had some dinner myself, cried my eyes out, and watched the Bondi Vet episode I’d taped. Watching Dr Chris Brown nurse a tiny mouse through a huge operation is very comforting after today. For all the terrible people who neglect, starve, abuse and abandon animals, there are so many caring people who give their hearts to every little ragamuffin needing love that comes their way. I’ve told Flick I still want to help out fostering cats. I’ll keep you posted on any developments. 

(Flick is the wonderful woman who runs this network of carers I’ve just joined, taking in strays and abused and unwanted cats and nursing them back to health to adopt them out. Her website is here. Abbie is my first foster cat.)

Here she is last night after her bath, all clean and ready for bed:

She likes sleeping in a cardboard box of skirts I keep under my bed, it must feel dark and safe there.

This morning I woke up to Abbie looking like this:

She’s also incontinent, so this morning all the bedding had to go into the washing machine and she was in such a bad state she needed a proper bath not a sponge down.

She hates water but is so lethargic she just lay down in the sink and wailed softly. 😦 I had to soap her up with pet soap to properly clean her fur, her lovely white feet were all stained. Here she is after her bath, I was able to leave most of her back dry, just her tummy, feet, tail and face needed a good clean.

I sat with her in her favourite sunny spot by the back door and dried her off with the hair dryer. She hated all of it but is too tired to fight. It takes about an hour from start to finish to clean and dry her, and at the moment she needs this twice day. Here she is at last, clean and dry and resting:

Poor Abbie, new shaved areas she’ll have to grow out. At least its not cold anymore.

She’s mouth breathing as her nose and throat are all blocked up. I’ve been told I can wash her face only twice a day else her skin will likely become irritated.

Poor little darling. We have some extra top notch kitten food, which she’s been eating and keeping down at the vets so hopefully we can replicate that. She’s curled up on my bed in a patch of sunshine dozing at the moment. Still gives a lovely lovely purr when you stroke her or scratch her ears. Such a sweet cat!

But, it’s just me and the goldfish again tonight. 😦

(yeah yeah, goldfish don’t photograph well)
The vet is hanging onto Abbie for tonight at least. She’s badly dehydrated, not even keeping water down at the moment. So, it’s a drip and some tests for her. Horrible feeling coming home from a vet without your critter. I hope she’s going to be okay!

Feeling very down. Spent some time sitting in the garden today admiring all the gorgeous flowers.

So, here she is, very sweet and very timid:

But the prettiest little thing! Long white socks on all her feet, white tummy and white face mask. A lovely black striped possum tail, silver and black markings on her back, and lovely copper touches around her ears.

She’s painfully thin and was very excited about dinner. Shivering with nervous energy she’s thoroughly explored the house from top to bottom – the rooms I’ll allow her in. Ever minute or two she comes back to me to wrap herself purring around my legs, then disappears to explore somewhere else. I’d forgotten how much cats like hidey holes! She has found the gap under the computer desk, the space beneath the couch, under the dining room dresser, behind the microwave, behind the washing machine, and, well, you get the picture!

And it wasn’t long before I heard a crash from the bathroom…

She’d knocked over my make up box. Then she disappeared for 20 minutes, generating an increasingly frantic search on my part as I envisioned her somehow escaping through a corner of window screen I’d not noticed before was damaged. Finally found her behind the couch. Oh, the joys of parenthood!

She’s adorable, lively, affectionate and in need of lots of love. Can’t wait until she has a little more fat over those bones and the tummy stitches come out.