About Me

My photo
There is always something going on in a multi-cat household. Erm 9... cats and counting...... Plus stories from the Sheffield Cats Shelter

Sunday 8 September 2013

Sunday at the Shelter 08-09-2013

I was working in Infirmary again today.

I was part way through cleaning out Texas and her kittens when she started to feed, so I left her alone for a while and finished the rest off later.

Tortie cat feeding her ginger kittens
Texas and her kittens

And here's a little video I took of them.  There was such a lot of purring going on, its a real shame the mic on my phone didn't pick it up!



While Texas took care of her babies I tackled a nice mess left behind by Lego and Cuebec who were moved into another room.

Messy and dirty cat cage
What a mucky mess!

The Shelter were expecting to admit 6 kittens during the afternoon, so I was to set up cages ready to receive them.  Normally, depending on their age, they would go into Holding or Maternity, but these 2 rooms are still trying to fully get rid of the last of the flu.

Next up was Amy, a 3 month old kitten.  The Shelter were desperate to find her a home as quickly as possible as she was now all on her own.  She's a lovely playful little girl.

Black kitten in a cage
Amy

Back to Texas and her babies, here are their close ups!

Tortie cat
Texas
 Here are her 2 week old kittens.

white and ginger kitten

Ginger kitten

If you read the blog last week you'll remember Percy who came in full of fleas.  He spent a couple of days in foster care gaining weight and then took a turn for the worse.

Ginger kitten
Percy in foster care
He was so poorly he ended up receiving IV fluids at the vets and staying there during the day.  He returned to his foster home with his little bandage.

Ginger kitten
Percy with his little bandage
Sadly he then started with diarrhoea and keeping his weight stable became a real issue.  At the moment he is back in the Vet Hospital receiving 24 hour care.  The Shelter regularly post updates on their Twitter page. You can follow them @CatsShelter


I met two people today of whom I'd heard lots of good things!  The first was Maggie of Friends of Ferals she is a real unsung hero.  This is the lady who gives up her own time to feed feral cats and trap strays and ferals.  She is so modest about what she does!  I'd love to go and spend some time out trapping or feeding with her so I can bring you the full story behind this amazing lady.

The second person I met today was Miki.  She's the lady you have to thank for all the amazing photos displayed by the Cats Shelter. I really don't know how she manages it!  Beautiful photos :)

Black cat
Pixie - Photo by Miki


My morning was almost at a close.  Then the 6 expected kittens arrived, but they came with an unexpected problem.  They all had terrible cat flu.

The staff put their heads together to work out how to accommodate the new arrivals and not risk any other cats or rooms in the Shelter.  The kittens couldn't go in rooms with a current infection as there is a chance that the flu strain could be different.  This could result in re-infecting those cats almost over the flu.

The decision was made and everyone was moved out of infirmary.  The 6 kittens were brought down and I helped to get them settled.


To begin with all 6 needed health checks.  These are done for every cat or kitten when they first arrive at the shelter.  Their sex is checked, their weight is recorded and then it's eyes, ears, nose, mouth, fleas and visual check to see if there is anything to be concerned about.

Out of the 6 kittens 3 had their eyes stuck shut with puss, several had crusty noses and all had filthy ears as a result of mites.
black kitten with sore eyes
Such sore eyes




Each kitten was given a name, these were Boston, Houston, Phoenix, Georgia, Dakota and Michigan.  It's possible they are from two litters as some weigh more than others.


We got them settled into two cages and encouraged them to eat.

kittens eating
Tucking into some food

It was so upsetting to see how sore their little eyes were.  Yet another reminder to make sure cats and kittens are vaccinated as soon as possible.  The ears were no better, cleaning these loosened huge chunks of dirt.


They will all have a visit to the vets tomorrow and I hope they will soon be looking and feeling much better.

Good news by the end of visiting time.  Little Amy left with her new family and so did Tilly, who'd been at the Shelter for a number of months.

The lovely pair, Charlie and Luke were pre- adopted and will go to their new home once they've had their second vaccination. 


3 comments:

  1. I really hope that Purcy is feeling better very soon, such a lot to go through at such a young age. I have been down to the cat shelter and told them that I would like to adopt him when he is old enough.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Really glad to hear that Amy has found her forever home. X

    ReplyDelete
  3. So sorry to hear about Percy, the poor little love is suffering no more but my heart breaks as I wanted him so much to be a part of our family.

    ReplyDelete