LB and her new friend

LB (now Alex) has been in her new home since Friday night. The first 24 hours was a bit stressful as the resident cat, Burta (who is 3) was not thrilled about a new kitten in the house. There was hissing. LB then spent about 20 hours in a bathroom where she played and jumped and snuggled with her new humans. Burta smelled her through the door.

Sunday night LB came out and hung with Burta and her humans - no hissing!

Monday night, this photo was taken (it's dark, but hopefully you can see them hanging out a foot apart):



It seems that these 2 will be fast and good friends. YEAH!

Mission complete: Little Bird goes home!

At 6:41 pm, 2 weeks and 1 day after FFF rescued her, LB went to her new and final destination. She's got 2 humans to adore her and 1 cat friend to teach her how to be a cat.

Her weight just before she went home tonight: 1 & 3/4 pounds. She gained a full pound since I met her.

Will she be long-haired? Medium-haired? Who knows, but she went to live with friends of mine and I feel lucky that I will therefore get to see her grow up and know who she becomes.

To everyone who helped - FFF, auntie Megan who "socialized" her during the day when she came to work with me (which meant cuddling and playing with her and bottle feeding her), her guardian who anonymously covered her vet bills, Laura who lent me the large crate and kitty hammock, Lori the pet-sitter who donated her pet-sitting services while I was away last weekend, my vets who showered her with veterinary expertise and got her back to good health, Robin who played with her over lunch, and of course my darling husband who tolerated me bringing another rescued creature into our small home - THANK YOU. It really did take a village but she was worth it.

BIG night of activity!

First, LB has to eat:



And then check out a sneaker:



Then it's play time:





Some videos of the evening's activities!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K27bHfJx93Y

Lb and her pal the DOG!

A friend to all, LB and Sky the dog are buddies. This is them when LB is in the kennel - but when she's out, the touch noses, Sky licks her, LB rides on her back, and they hang out. Of course, when I go to take a picture of any of the above-mentioned activities, they stop and LB comes charging or goes charging, whichever floats her boat!

Playing with a string!

Some LB videos!

2 videos of her playing with a string:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUGaIVEuYnk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceCI1gf5Xwk

Video playing on the couch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-_9ZUaiHGE

LB update!!

Sorry I haven't updated in a while - I was away for 4 days and LB stayed with a friend and professional pet-sitter who took GREAT care of her. LB started to eat on her own this past weekend, and now gets bottle fed and takes wet food. This was a huge milestone and she'll for sure now put on more weight and get even healthier.

I got home last night and moved LB from the bathroom isolation into our living room. She's in a large wire crate with a kitten hammock and toys. I have 2 sides covered with towels so she has some privacy. She saw one of my cats and did a kitten hiss and "growl" which was adorable but then backed down. This morning, she touched noses with my dog and didn't even care. She is obviously a dog lover.

The greatest news of all is that SHE FOUND A HOME!!!! Once she's done with her meds (hopefully next weekend) she will move to her new home with her 2 humans and her 3-year old feline friend, Burta. Burta is a shelter kitty who was a teenage mom and still licks everything - so we think she might mother LB which would be great. Burta is also still very very very playful, so LB will have a playmate. Last night, when the 2 humans came over to meet her, LB played with Katie's hair, played with her earring, and then promptly fell into a deep slumber on Katie's chest. It was beautiful. LB chose them as much as they chose her.

YEAH!!!!

LB goes back to the vet for a check up - things are GREAT!

Little Bird had a check up with her vet today. Once she was done growling and hissing at the vet (poor woman, loves animals but told me animals hate her because she pokes and prods the!), she settled in for a check up. Vet was able to clean up her chin and neck so she won't get more of the skin problems she has. She'll stay on her meds through Sunday and then maybe need another quick antibiotic to make sure all collateral problems are solved

BIG NEWS: she gained SIX ounces! That's a 50% gain! She was 12 ounces (less than a pound) last Thursday. She started eating on Friday afternoon and hasn't stopped since. She now weight 1.25 pounds. OVER A POUND! Amazing. This kitten has a spirit in her and she just won't give up. She's a fighter, a trooper, a survivor. I am so proud of her.

I'm traveling for a few days and she's staying with another cat lover who is very skilled at caring for young and sick creatures.* I'll get you an LB update on Sunday when she comes home.

* Another guardian angel - this woman is a professional pet sitter I know who offered to have LB stay with her free of charge while I'm gone. (let me know if you'd like her contact info for when you travel - she's amazing)

Later that same night - more playing

This time, where she's not supposed to play. Sigh. She's too cute to not watch and coo at!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5zsrH9PvF4

Little Bird advertises herself

She came to work with me and showed some interest in a certain website. She wants you to know that she's even cuter in real life!!



She also played a lot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmI0-zHBdJ0

Little Bird got a washcloth bath and new food!

LB got her first washcloth bath this evening. I managed to get most of the food crud off her that is a result of me figuring out how to bottle feed her. She loved the bath and sat quietly in my lap for about half an hour as I gently massaged and washed her chest. Watch out world - she's going to be cuter and fluffier than ever!

She also had her first experience at wet food (not being force fed, that is). Per a suggestion, I mixed some wet food into the bottle of milk she eats from. She loved it and it gave her a boost of energy. She rolled and played with her tail and played with my finger and attacked parts of her cat carried constantly! She was on the move and everything she saw - including her litter box - was a big game to her. She also learned that I would pick her up and move her if she jumped in the litter box to play - so she jumped in regularly, played for a second and literally looked at me as if to say "are you going to pick me up now?!"

She has the run of the whole bathroom now and when my husband went in there after I'd gone to bed, he said she was cruising the bathroom playing. She is very happy and appears she has fully regained her ability to play like a kitten!

Pictures tomorrow when she's all nice and dry. For now, though, here's another picture that was taken at work today by another cat lover:

Another hard morning at the office

Little Bird accompanied me to work again this morning. It's been tough so far, as you can see:

First, she had to explore:



Then she had to relax:




Finally, she had to eat:



All that in just one morning!

LB has another guardian angel!

LB is a lucky kitten who would like to thank her anonymous guardian angel who has offered to cover her vet bills. "Meow, meow, purrrrrr" which translates to "THANK YOU!"

All systems are a-go!

Little Bird pooped! YEAH!! I could not be happier over this. She then proceeded to have a dance party in the litter box which included her trying to roll around in the litter and her poop. I put a stop to that which prompted her to attack my hand in play.

She is now hopping into and out of her cat carrier, attacking the door.

Little Bird is officially back and on the move!!!!!

Little Bird has a favorite spot