Uh... So, We Maybe Have a New Kitty?
Mar. 3rd, 2016 07:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lydamorehouse Last night when we came home, a very skinny, friendly orange striped kitten was loitering around outside. We stopped to pet it, like you do,figuring it would head home after a few friendly pets.
Nope.
When we opened the door, the kitty hopped onto the porch like he thought he lived here.
And... I think he might be right.
We let him stay on the porch for a while. Mason kept him company and instantly named him "Buttercup." As the evening wore on, he ended up inside, in our downstairs bathroom, away from the other kitties with food and water (all of which he gobbled up.) I gave him a box and blankets to sleep in, and... our family debated about what to do with "Buttercup." We decided to put out signs letting the neighborhood know we have found a cat. We haven't done that yet, but we will. But, I think it's no coincidence that several weeks ago a neighborhood kid knocked on our door and desperately asked if we would take in the family cat because his mom was pregnant and can't have cats around any more. Someone has also snipped this kitty's whiskers, deliberately. I highly suspect, given how hungry and thirsty this kitten is, he was dumped.
So... I think we have a new kitty. We're trying not to attach, while simultaneously doing all the things you do to slowly introduce a new cat into a pre-existing household of cats. This morning, I've moved Buttercup upstairs to the TV room, and have left his overnight room, the downstairs bathroom, open for inspection by the other kitties. He's basically going to get a tour of the rooms in the house that have doors that close, so that everyone can get used to everyone else's smells. Of course, if he stays everyone goes to the vet. We've been very careful not to let the cats get within nose-touching range (and they were all inoculated against feline leukemia and everything else), but you know, it pays to be careful. Plus, I don't think Buttercup has been neutered yet. He's very little, all ears and eyes at this point.
If he ends up staying, I'll try to post a picture.
Nope.
When we opened the door, the kitty hopped onto the porch like he thought he lived here.
And... I think he might be right.
We let him stay on the porch for a while. Mason kept him company and instantly named him "Buttercup." As the evening wore on, he ended up inside, in our downstairs bathroom, away from the other kitties with food and water (all of which he gobbled up.) I gave him a box and blankets to sleep in, and... our family debated about what to do with "Buttercup." We decided to put out signs letting the neighborhood know we have found a cat. We haven't done that yet, but we will. But, I think it's no coincidence that several weeks ago a neighborhood kid knocked on our door and desperately asked if we would take in the family cat because his mom was pregnant and can't have cats around any more. Someone has also snipped this kitty's whiskers, deliberately. I highly suspect, given how hungry and thirsty this kitten is, he was dumped.
So... I think we have a new kitty. We're trying not to attach, while simultaneously doing all the things you do to slowly introduce a new cat into a pre-existing household of cats. This morning, I've moved Buttercup upstairs to the TV room, and have left his overnight room, the downstairs bathroom, open for inspection by the other kitties. He's basically going to get a tour of the rooms in the house that have doors that close, so that everyone can get used to everyone else's smells. Of course, if he stays everyone goes to the vet. We've been very careful not to let the cats get within nose-touching range (and they were all inoculated against feline leukemia and everything else), but you know, it pays to be careful. Plus, I don't think Buttercup has been neutered yet. He's very little, all ears and eyes at this point.
If he ends up staying, I'll try to post a picture.