Sorry it's been a few days since I've updated...the last I left you with was that I was taking Fluffy in for her surgery! This will be a long post...
So Thursday morning I set my "treat trap" plan into motion. At first, I had put the carrier in front of the futon, sat beside it (with the carrier door within my reach) and had the kittens on the futon. Yin has decided that she really likes treats too, so I didn't want her to end up in the carrier eating them. I put a few treats into the back of the carrier and called out to Fluffy. Usually, she'll come out right away for treats. Of course that day I think she knew something was up. After a few minutes, the kittens were getting restless, so I put them in the other carrier I had placed in our bedroom. Stitches was downstairs, I had shut the door so he couldn't come up, as it was early and I didn't want any distractions. I went back in the room with Fluffy (I had closed the carrier door so she wouldn't go in and eat the treats while I was out of the room!) and tried again, luring her with a few treats just in front of the carrier. This time it worked, and she went right in. There was a small protest once I had her locked inside, but then she calmed right down.
The cab ride to the vet was uneventful, and once there she was just in her "frozen" state. I explained to them how she is with human contact (basically, has had none) so hoped she would be okay for them. I was to call later that day to see how things went, and had an appointment scheduled at 6pm to bring the kittens in and pick Fluffy up. I called around 3:30pm, and it turned out they had had a couple of emergencies that morning and hadn't done her surgery. Having worked for years in that environment, I completely understood and we both agreed that Fluffy should stay there overnight and they would do her surgery first thing Friday morning. It would have been much more traumatic to take her home and back again, and there was no guarantee that the treat trap would work a second time.
I was spending some time with the kittens throughout the day, it being their first time away from mom. They seemed mostly unaffected, however. In the evening, I felt bad that they were locked up still so decided it was as good a time as any for them to meet Stitches! I was planning to wait until after their vaccine, but it worked out better as Fluffy wasn't there so the situation would be a bit less stressful for the kittens. I brought them out in the carrier, and let Stitches come up to sniff them, then I opened the door. Miss T Danger Paws (formally known as Yang:p) was the first one out and went right up to Stitches. He was a champ, so calm and they touched noses. Soon Yin came out, though she was more timid and just kept making herself as BIG as possible and staring at Stitches. Stitches was strangely nonchalant about the whole thing. I was really impressed and happy things were going so well. I brought some toys out and started playing with the kittens and Stitches (a family that plays together, stays together?!) to get them used to each other's movements and being around each other. Ohh, I should mention I only gave them exploring rights of the living room, dining room and kitchen areas, closing off our bedroom and downstairs. They all did amazingly well, with only a couple of hisses overall. Those happened as more of a "boundary hiss", when Miss T came up behind Stitches and sniffed his back feet etc...Stitches was like "this is MY space, don't come any closer right now". Otherwise they were great!
Here's a few pictures we took:
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| This was after about 10 minutes of seeing each other for the first time. Notice how Yin is looking all "big" further back. She was definitely less certain of the situation. |
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| They were both quite comfortable with exploring the space, however. Within a short time they were playing, and Stitches was watching them with some interest, even allowing them to use his chaise lounge:) |
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So I had decided to go out with friends that evening since Fluffy didn't have her surgery, so the kittens went back into their room for the night. Dan made sure to keep them company for a while, since again, it was the first night without momma around.
The next morning I let them all hang out in the same space again, and things went very well:) Even a bit of playful interaction between them. I'm glad that Stitches is such a good cat, since he's the only other cat they've ever seen. Hopefully he's help set a good example for them:) They had nap time in the afternoon, and then it was off to the vet for the kittens for their exams and first vaccines!
I had called the clinic in the morning to see how Fluffy did overnight, and she had eaten some food but was hiding (to be expected). I explained again that she's not used to being handled so I wasn't sure how she would be with them. When I called in the afternoon, her surgery was done, all successful and she woke up without incident. She was fine with them, scared but not mean at all:) She really is a sweet cat, just not used to people, so she just needs time. She was still a bit groggy from the anesthetic, which is to be expected. She also received her full vaccinations so that can also make them sleepy from their immune system being stimulated.
The kittens were troopers at the vet, very well behaved and both checked out healthy. They received their first FVRCP vaccine (Feline viral rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, and panleukopenia) which is one of the necessary core vaccines. They'll get a booster in a month and then rabies vaccine a month after that, then they'll be set for a year. The vaccine protocol that's been accepted now is another booster at a year, then rabies every 3 years, and FVRCP every 2-4 years. That one depends on the antibody level, which can be tested in the blood. Research from a couple of years ago (the last time I personally read anything related to it) showed that the vaccine can last up to 7 years, but it depends on the individual cat's immune reaction...just like people. Technically, the same immune response applies to the rabies vaccine. But Ontario has a law stating that all dogs/cats must be vaccinated against rabies, and the vaccine is only licensed for a maximum of a 3yr efficacy. This law is a very important one for all cat owners to remember. Sure, your cat may be strictly indoors and never comes into contact with any creature that would give him/her rabies. But if, for some reason, your cat bites someone...that person can technically complain to the government (heath department) and they can take your cat away if it's not vaccinated against rabies. It seems barbaric, but the only positive way to test for rabies is to examine the brain, and this can only be done post-mortem.
http://www.cdc.gov/rabies/specific_groups/veterinarians/testing.html So it's not really that the veterinarians are trying to take your hard earned money when they send you reminders to bring your cats in for exams/vaccines. It's the law. Plus, cats are pretty stoic and bringing them in for exams on a regular basis will help detect signs of diseases that can be easily treated when caught in the early stages (kidney disease, hyperthyroidism, heart murmurs, diabetes, etc...)
Anyways, enough of that rant! I get carried away with educating people, which is a good thing I suppose:p I brought home their deworming medication and will give it to them next week. I don't like giving multiple medications or vaccines at the same time, in case they have a reaction to something. They were also given some flea medication at the vet, so that was enough for one day. Call me paranoid, but I've actually seen (and had a part in saving the life of) a dog who had an anaphylaxis reaction to vaccines.
On a happier and more adorable note, here's a couple more kittens/Stitches pictures:
So the kittens have now explored our bedroom and the upstairs bathroom (they didn't find the bathroom interesting at all:p). They spent most of yesterday afternoon exploring the bedroom once it was opened up to them. Yesterday morning was spent by us doing some more "kitten proofing"...basically gathering and bundling up wires so they aren't everywhere, and tidying up. Fluffy did well overnight, she ate and drank water, and later Friday night she came out and walked around. Saturday she ate some treats and seemed back to her normal shy self.
Kittens vs. stairs has been fun to watch! Here's Yin at her first attempt:
So far, they've both gone up and down all the steps a couple of times, and made it halfway through the basement level of exploring before getting a bit nervous and going back upstairs. It will take some time before they're comfortable everywhere, and that's to be expected since up until a couple days ago, their whole world was one little room:p
This morning, I let the kittens out to play after feeding and litter scooping time, then shut the door to their room with Fluffy inside. After a few minutes, Fluffy started meowing and seemed to want out. I was hesitant, and also sleepy, but I basically acted on instinct and just opened the door. Stitches came up the stairs, walked into the room and up to Fluffy, who was right by the door. She stood her ground, and he literally walked up to her, looked at her like he was looking past her, and walked away from her and farther into the room. He basically just ignored her existence. She followed behind him, sniffing his tail as he walked around, they touched noses, he walked away, then she hissed once and went under the futon. Stitches didn't react to her hiss, and then he went under the futon.
At this point I didn't know what to expect. Part of me was prepared for hearing battle sounds and having to break them up, so I stood really still and just listened. Nothing. No growls, no hissing, no sounds at all. I peeked under the futon and Fluffy was just looking at Stitches, and Stitches was looking at me. I called to him and he came out (he's a rare cat that actually comes when called) and meowed (he's also very vocal) and went into the living room. That was it. Their big meeting that I was so worried about. Anti-climatic and well, I'm very glad!
I've kept the door open all day so far, and the kittens have wandered about, playing with Stitches. Fluffy has pretty much stayed under the futon, not venturing out of the room. Just now I closed the door, with her and the kittens inside, in case she needs to use the litter box but was afraid to while the door was open. It will probably take her some time before she feels comfortable exploring the rest of the house, which is fine and understandable. I'm just very happy the meetings between all of them are going so well, and gradually they will all have access to the whole house:)
I'll leave you all, after this long post, with a cute video of Stitches and Miss T Danger Paws:)
