Lisa's Home For Criminally Insane Kittens

08/14/2024

Ever feel like you're being watched?

08/14/2024

Rocket and Groot are doing great. Eyes about healed, all systems go. Just so active, hard to photograph!

08/14/2024

The latest kittens. There's one more left out at the colony, but the caretaker is working on rounding it up. Cats Alive has been working on this colony for at least six years. There's just two intact females left of dozens of cats fixed from this colony.

08/09/2024

Due to illness, I haven't been able to foster for minute. BUT I thought I'd contribute to the general good in a different way this week: Do you know which of your plants are toxic to your pets? Do you inspect bouquets for lilies, eucalyptus, arum?

If you don't know the real names of your plants, get with Plant Identification here on Facebook. I'm a botanist, and I can say they don't screw around, their IDs are real. Then head over to the ASPCA list of plants to get details. And don't just read the list, read the page for the plant. For example, catnip is listed as toxic because it can cause vomiting and diarrhea in sensitive cats. I've been told that's due to letting them eat fresh nip, so only offer them dried leaves.

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/cats-plant-list

08/05/2024

Getting prepped for the next kittens. They're older kitties, so I will be looking for homes for them as soon as they're vetted. I understand they're not even feral, so could be available to adopt very quickly!

08/05/2024

Lovely Mystere is still looking for a gig as a house mouser. Look at this handsome guy!

Mystere needs his forever home!!! This handsome kitty is near a year old and still in foster in Creede. He is very very shy, not at all a couch buddy. He would do well as an indoor house mouser or at a shop/greenhouse situation. He seems not very fond of other cats, so perhaps a home without other pets, or lots of room for them to have their own areas. Please contact Pam directly at [email protected] if you can provide a safe home for this guy. He's healthy and well fed, neutered. We can make sure he gets his updated on shots and a microchip if you'd like that for him.

*PLEASE SHARE*

08/01/2024

Mystere needs his forever home!!! This handsome kitty is near a year old and still in foster in Creede. He is very very shy, not at all a couch buddy. He would do well as an indoor house mouser or at a shop/greenhouse situation. He seems not very fond of other cats, so perhaps a home without other pets, or lots of room for them to have their own areas. Please contact Pam directly at [email protected] if you can provide a safe home for this guy. He's healthy and well fed, neutered. We can make sure he gets his updated on shots and a microchip if you'd like that for him.

*PLEASE SHARE*

07/26/2024

I follow some plant ID and poisoning ID groups. Cats seem most inclined to nuzzle or nibble bouquets and houseplants. Please be sure to keep toxic plants out of their way and don't even have cut lily flowers in their space. I use ASPCA's database to look up my plants.

Our handy list contains plants that have been reported as having systemic effects on animals and/or intense effects on the gastrointestinal tract.

07/20/2024

I do not routinely have cats tested for FIV or FeLV.

I offer to test cats that are headed for homes that already have cats, to ensure they're not bringing it into the household. If they are under 6 months old, you're likely to just be seeing maternal antibodies, so a positive test for them needs to be followed up with a re-test at 6 months to be sure, as FIV/FeLV is not always passed to kittens. I recently had all my cats tested because I had adopted them without testing, and we have a straight up parade of kittens through here every season, one of which came up FIV+ on retest. Not an issue because it's so hard to pass that one.

I also have cats tested as part of a treat v. euth decision if symptomatic. I will not put them back on the streets to suffer and infect other cats with a deadly disease. I find 99% of caretakers understand this and concur IF they are brought into the process up front, not surprised with the decision in the middle of surgery day, which already has most of them nervous. This is one of the reasons to use a TNR agreement when I go trapping. We discuss rescue for kittens and tame cats, spay abort, and euthanasia up front.

https://www.animalhumanesociety.org/resource/felv-and-fiv

07/20/2024

I do love me some feral kittens!

Music video by The Troggs performing Wild Thing. © 1966 Mercury Records Limitedhttp://vevo.ly/ZbbOYt

07/19/2024

Last night was step one of the kitten shuffle. OBi went home to his people (born July 9 at 104g, now 223g!), and they returned to me the three roof kittens, named for raptors (Hawk, Perry, Kessie, intake on June 22) in great shape and much more active and loving. The Starbucks kittens from June 1, Star and Brillo, should be going home tonight. That leaves the as yet unnamed NoGo pair from Rocky Ford on June 13. They still need meds, fattening up, and taming. I'll probably have them another month along with the roof kittens. Whew.

Happy forever home day, Star and Brillo!

07/17/2024

Obi has been doing well, although the attempted switch from syringe to bottle feeding didn't go well and he aspirated some milk. So back to syringe for now. He seems to be recovering fine and sneezed milk up, but it will still slow him down a bit. No sign of pneumonia, but watching closely.

I believe we are now on what Kitten Lady calls eyeball watch. I think his eyes have slightly opened and he can at least tell light from dark. He definitely hears me now, moving his head when I speak to him.

UPDATE: at weigh-in today, he was 2x his intake weight! GO OBI!!! He eats six times a day, about 10ml each feeding, which is right on track for his age and weight. Also, tomorrow he goes back to his original rescuer and I take back my three older bottle babies, who are now half weaned.

07/17/2024

I've taken in 15 kittens this summer, and TNR'd a dozen or so. I've loaned out my set of 15-20 traps several times, allowing others to TNR. And one friend managed to retrieve her lost kitty with one of my traps. 💕 I've farmed out some of my kittens to others to raise, to adopt out, etc. I even gave our local shelter some fixed and some intact kittens. I'm grateful for their help; the other fosters, adoption spots, and the shelter. I've supported other fosters with advice, goods, funds, kudos, and sympathy. I've worked at s/n clinics at least monthly, for 2-5 days each, some involving up to 7 hours driving each away.

I wish I had done more. But the truth is that I can't. And furthermore, this isn't a competition and there are no prizes. The satisfaction of making life better for hundreds of animals this year alone is HUGE. And I appreciate all the people who've been part of that.

I have on my to do list at least three colonies of 15-25 that have had zero TNR done, as well as at least ten colonies that have been worked on, but still have plenty of fertile kitties in need. I can't do it. But what I do get done helps.

07/17/2024

07/16/2024

So just a day and a half, these two littles are purring for me. Now we can begin treating their rather mild URI without so much trauma or any violence! 😻😻

07/15/2024

I was a bad girl this weekend and tried to talk a nice lady out of the biggest of her monster tomcats. But look at this hunka hunka!!! Not really, she was taking better care of him than I could, I have too many already. But getting to meet and occasionally snuggle such magnificent animals is one of the perks of working at clinic. 14.4 lbs, clean, sleek and well-muscled.

I'll be sharing Bergen's pictures and numbers for this event in Rocky Ford later, but know it's always hard and always worthwhile. I learn new things every time and have great admiration for the crew there, both staff and volunteers. Rocky Ford was a great venue and I hope I can go again next year.

07/15/2024

For all it kills me to not be able to rescue all the kittens (especially the criminally insane ones, my favorites) TNR is the only way out of this. We also need cultural change to make letting your pets get "accidentally" knocked up totally unacceptable, and convince colony keepers that they need to fix their colony before it starts. Folks should NEVER just feed because they feel bad for the cats. It creates even more suffering in the long run, as there's then 50 cats suffering instead of two or three.

some believe that removing all their feral cats will “fix” their cat problem. NOT TRUE! TNR WORKS!

07/15/2024

UPDATE: Oops, this is for tomorrow. Everyone get your birthday wishes ready for little guy TOMORROW! I'm just kinda excited for him. :)

Wee OBi has his one week birthday today!!! ❤️❤️❤️ He's one tough little guy, possibly the strongest neonate I've ever taken in. And nobody did anything stupid to him before I got him. He arrived half a day after he was born, clean, warm, no cows milk, with an intact umbilical. I would have thought he was older if his umbilical weren't still wet and pink. At three days the umbilical cord fell off, he's gained 12 grams a day, latches very well, and is a very regular little guy. I'm so used to miserable bebies barely hanging onto life, this has been a real change.

Folks at the Bergen Clinic were quite gracious about my bowing out of work every 2, 2.5 h for fifteen minutes to feed him.

07/14/2024

Debatable whether it's me or the kittens who are insane. Both is an option.

07/10/2024

Happy National Kitten Day! Now go arrange to have a female cat spayed. SLV Spay and Neuter Alliance is in Alamosa Th-Sa and they have space available. Then they'll be in Antonito at the end of the month. Book at slvsna.org/bookslv . https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/national-kitten-day-july-10

NATIONAL KITTEN DAY National Kitten Day on July 10 purrfectly celebrates the cuddly warmth of a kitty. The miniature fur balls of energy snuggle their way into

07/10/2024

Clinic workers don't complain when we get bit. It does happen and it's serious. Seek medical attention immediately, a quick dose of antibiotics is well worth it. My best hint for handling feral cats is don't. However, sometimes you're faced with a furious tame cat or feral kittens that need to be grabbed. If they're in a contained area, just let them rage a bit and calm down. Use a net or thick towel, not your hands unless you really can tell this cat has forgiven you. If they're not contained, buck up and get it done. Then figure out how that happened and make sure it doesn't happen again.

Cat Bites – Protecting the rescuers

This is a good reminder - we've had several issues with cat bites recently.

Sadly, most bite wounds are preventable – and yet the cats get the bad reputation. What is important is to first learn how to read a cat, and understand proper holding techniques; then use them :) The picture in the post is of a very experienced cat trapper, who had grabbed an out of control tame cat by the proper method of scruffing. The problem came when the cat was screaming and she felt sorry for him… and relaxed her grip.

Lesson number one – if you have scruffed a cat, do not worry, you are not killing him :) Unfortunately, if you relax your grip to “be nice”, you just might kill YOU! Cat bites are serious in part because of those needle like teeth – the sharp point carriers the bacteria of the mouth deep into the tissue, and the tissue closes up on that pin point insertion spot really quickly. That is a big cause of the nasty infections that occur.

Lesson two – learn to read cats. If you have a cat growling, hissing and slapping at you, don’t play macho man and say I can do this… give him time to settle, and if needed use a net or other containment device to remove and restrain the cat. A cat bite quickly turns to cellulitis – an infection of the tissue – and if untreated can result in a severe infection that might put you in the hospital – or cause worse damage!

Lesson three – don’t blame the cat. Even the friendliest cats can go into protective mode, and are acting out of instinct. It’s not their fault if they get you – they don’t even KNOW it’s you. They are just reacting.

Lesson four – don’t let this scare you. Many times cat bites are not serious, and if it is – we thankfully live in a time when medication can resolve it quickly. Don’t delay treatment though – it is one thing to watch for a few hours or overnight, but if redness develops and increases, get seen now! One trick used in human medicine is to make a line with a pen at the base of the redness – later, when you take a look, if the redness has progressed beyond that line, you need antibiotics. Clean the wound thoroughly, soak in hot water 3-4 times a day, and just remind yourself next time to read the cat – and don’t relax that grip :) (The cat in this bite came up purring a few minutes later… !)

And the PS here is DON’T forget to update your tetanus shot! Tetanus can be a deadly disease, simply making sure your vaccination is up to date prevents it. “If the injured person hasn't had a tetanus shot in the past five years and the wound is deep or dirty, your doctor may recommend a booster. The injured person should have the booster shot within 48 hours of the injury.” Take care of the cats – and YOU,

07/10/2024

This morning OBi passed his meconium, so gut health looks good. Not really hungry, but he's quite the little prince about milk being fresh and warm, so we'll have another try in a few minutes.

He also has two small wounds on the top of his head. This gives me a chance at an alternative narrative, a more comforting one. Female cats that don't have kittens will sometimes steal another mother's kittens. I don't know what the motive is, if it's competitive or jealousy, but they don't treat the kittens well. Given the wounds, this could have been a stolen kitten and all the sibs are safe with their mom. I don't have time to investigate this morning, but when I get back to town, perhaps I can visit the colony and find out more. Ideally, OBi can go back to his mum until he weans.

07/09/2024

Just traded my three five week olds (Hawk, Perry, and Kessie) for a one-day old. Momma dropped it and ran, didn't come back to get it. The people who took in the little orange dude both work in places that wouldn't allow them to be hauling a neonate around and feeding it every two hours. I however, don't have the needed room to let five week old kittens have the play space they need. I can haul a newborn around with me. The original rescuers do want this baby back, so I'll trade them for my three back when it's old enough to fit in with their work schedule. Hopefully all goes well and that happens.

OBi is now warm and has had about 3 cc milk. Not having gotten colostrum from mom, he's facing extra challenges. If anyone has a mom with real NEWBORNS, as in gave birth today or yesterday, OBi would really benefit from her milk.

UPDATE: Evette Young brought me some colostrum mix. Yeah!

07/07/2024

ALL the shelters and rescues are drowning. My house is full, and not a nibble for homes.

Handing off free kittens may be getting rid of your immediate problem, but you're literally handing off the problem to someone else. 😞

When people call us for help with spay and neuter, this is one of the most common reasons:

"We rescued this kitten from a lady to help her out, but we really can't afford to get her fixed."

At least they called, MOST do not. 😢
If you TRULY care about cats and kittens and the well-being of them all, you will stop and think before handing off free kittens to the first person who contacts you. And you will spay the mom cat ASAP. ✅ You can safely rehome kittens yourself with an adoption process, but I would encourage you to reach out to a shelter or rescue for guidance on how to do that correctly.

We all need to be aware of the bigger picture and work together to MAKE SURE these mom cats and kittens are all getting fixed before landing in a home. It is not the new owner's responsibility. It is not the old owner's responsibility. It's not a volunteer organization's responsibility.

‼️ It is EVERYONE's responsibility to make sure spay/neuter happens ‼️

07/06/2024

This is not a drill. I've seen quite a few 6 month old momma cats, and it's not a good thing for them or their kittens. Would you want to see a 12 year old child giving birth? Do not let this happen, please spread the word. h/t Spay Colorado

Help us spread the word about the best time to spay and neuter kittens – BEFORE five months of age! Kittens can be safely spayed or neutered once they are two months (or once they weigh two pounds). And considering kittens as young as four months can become pregnant – it’s never too early! Save lives. Fix by five. Learn more at felinefixbyfive.org.

07/06/2024

Been a while since I gave a little kitten update. I have a bit of a cautionary tale this time, and one I should have been more on the lookout about.

I left a full bottle of milk out between feedings, on a warm afternoon. Come dinnertime, I gave the bottle a quick shake and offered it to the biggest and loudest kitten, Hawk. You can kinda see what happened to the poor guy. He sucked down an entire bottle of iffy kitten milk. I didn't see what had happened until the bottle was nearly empty and the thickened milk was stuck all over the inside of the bottle. He was in pain for two days, vomited twice, refused to eat. I had a moment of panic that I had a PanLeuk litter (happened to several of my friends this year) but it really was the bad milk. He's resumed normal eating and elimination, but he's been set back and likely to stay that way for quite a while. It looks like Kessie got a touch too. Lesson: don't let the fresh milk thing slide, always clean the bottle, at least daily.

As you can see from their belly pictures, Kessie now looks like a normal plump kitten, Hawk is a little lean. Perry remains bloated and seems to always have trouble with elimination. He's the only kitten I've ever had whom I considered might need food restriction. He certainly needs more help at the litter box than his sibs, who have that part totally figured out. He's also the only one in the group who even thought about nursing on his sibs and eating dirty litter. There's always one I guess. Some of this might clear up when he weans, hopefully.

07/04/2024

Brillo will be available to adopt on July 15. His adoption is $100, which covers the kitten vaccine series, microchip, surgery, and dewormer. Even at SLV SNA's excellent rates, that's $100.

He's been a delight to foster and if I didn't need to space to keep fostering, I'd keep this excellent little buddy for myself!

07/03/2024

Brillo will be available to adopt on July 15. More photos coming this afternoon.

Brillo, snuggler and all around lovey relaxed kitten.

06/30/2024

Not to brag or anything, but this little guy took his lunch, and when I put him down, he marched right over to the litter box and used it. He's like three weeks old or something. His canines came in two days ago. He's using his litter box the very same day he learned to p*e on his own at all.