Fiber Babble: You Have a WHAT?

You Have a WHAT?

November 03, 2010

Abandoned book "Devil Bones" by Kathy Reichs ♦♦◊◊◊

Once upon a time, there was a nice man whose name was Mr. Wonderful. One day he came into his castle and said, "There's a little kitten that I've been seeing roaming around for about a week or so and it looks really skinny and cold. I'm going to go get it, because I can't stand to see it like that."

So Mr. W. intelligently dons a long-sleeved sweatshirt and leather gloves and sets off on his quest to rescue the kitten in distress.

When he returned triumphant from his quest, he had a tiny kitten that was just skin and bones, shivering and crawling with fleas. We put it in a big box, gave it an old towel and a few tablespoons of half and half. While I tried to not spook the little kitten, Mr. W. got on the phone to the Humane Society:

"Hi, I've rescued a kitten that is starving to death and I'd like to know what to do next."
"Oh, really? You can't take it because we don't live in your city but we do have a shelter in our little town? Okay, I'll call them. Thanks for the information."

"Hi, I've rescued a kitten that is starving to death and I'd like to know what to do next."
"What? You can rescue dogs, but you don't have the budget for cats?"
"So what are we supposed to do with this kitten?"

The answer, though given kindly, was essentially "Either release it back outside [to die] or Congratulations, you're a new pet owner."

So we call our vet. They agree to work us in that afternoon. When we arrive:

Vet: "What's the cat's name?"
Mr. W.: "I don't know."
"What kind of cat is it?"
"I don't know."
"How old is the cat?"
"I don't know."
"Is it a boy or a girl?"
"I don't know."
(laughing)"Okay, what color is the cat?"
"I think it's - Honey what color is it?" "Maybe cream?" "Cream."

When the vet was able to examine the kitten, we learned that it was a she, she was about 3 months old, she was at least part Siamese, she weighed one and half pounds, she was seriously dehydrated and she was full of fleas.

The vet said they'd keep her overnight, get the fleas off, try to rehydrate her and get some food into her, then we'd see what was what on the following day. If all went well, then, Congratulations, you have a new kitten!

In a bit of a fog, we left the kitten at the clinic and went to McD's for a bite of dinner. Over a Quarter Pounder with Cheese, we decided upon a name: MoonPie.

The we went shopping at Wally World pet department and came home and spent the evening on the internet learning as much as we could about being kitten parents.

The next day we picked up a skinny little scaredy-cat that was still filthy but not flea-ridden (I might have to look up the origins of "flea-ridden" as a phrase). Over the course of the next 2 or 3 weeks, we have been happy to find that MoonPie

knows her name
likes to be combed/brushed
uses her litter box and
purrs like nobody's business

It's been a very gradual process, but she has free run of the main part of the house now. The sewing room, guest room and utility room are still off limits because of the number of places she can squeeze in to (and the expected difficulty in extracting her).

After 2½ weeks, she went back to the vet where she got some shots and we learned that she'd gained a pound. We took the opportunity to asks lots and lots of questions that we didn't know we needed to ask the first time.

Mr. W. is absolutely smitten by this kitten. I have learned (the hard way) not to let him go near a pet department without supervision. He buys her toys. And scratching posts (we're up to three, so far). He feeds her at least 6 times a day (that's a good thing, the vet says). He cleans her litter box after every 'event'. She gets treats for eating, for pooping, for looking at him with those big blue eyes.

He loves to watch her play and stalk and pounce (the dental floss container is no match for his mighty hunter) and I haven't seen him smile this much for at least a couple of years.

We had no intention of getting another furry family member, at least not nearly so soon... but sometimes your choices are made for you.

And she loves me the best.

Today.

Labels: babble

permalink

13 Comments:

At 11/03/2010 9:01 AM,

Barb Babbled Back:

Now that post will put a smile on anyone's face. What a cutie...and what a sweet husband!

At 11/03/2010 12:06 PM,

old lady Babbled Back:

What lovely markings! Well done for saving that cutie. Looks like you both are getting much happiness out of this pairing.

At 11/03/2010 3:32 PM,

quilton Babbled Back:

Tracy she is beautiful. You and Mr. Wonderful will be rewarded every day for your kindness to MoonPie.

At 11/04/2010 11:53 AM,

Carrie P. Babbled Back:

She is so sweet. she does look like she has Siamese.
Moon Pie, a very cute name. We have found cats before and it is amazing how many fleas a little kitten can have.
She looks very happy in her new home. Congrats on your new member.

At 11/05/2010 7:35 AM,

Crispy Babbled Back:

Awwww she's so adorable and so is Mr Wonderful for rescuing her. Has he instructed you in the orgins of the Siamese cats origins yet? ROFL

Crispy

At 11/05/2010 12:34 PM,

Brenda Babbled Back:

Omg! She's so cute! Congratulations on your new addition. She's adorable!

At 11/05/2010 11:31 PM,

Gimpy Cat Babbled Back:

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh, just gonna say it one more time, Im in love with MoonPie xoxoxoxoxox

At 11/06/2010 5:08 PM,

Quilter Kathy Babbled Back:

She is completely adorable! I wish I wasn't allergic to cats...I'd have a whole house full!

At 11/07/2010 7:07 AM,

Darcie Babbled Back:

Aaawww...what a great story, T! Aaawww. Just so sweet. Enjoy your little MoonPie!

At 11/18/2010 7:19 AM,

golo8 Babbled Back:

How is MoonPie doing.... is DH still as attentive to the little thing... I bet it has already grown from kitty to cat.... You two will have a companion for many many years...

At 11/30/2010 11:11 AM,

Anonymous Babbled Back:

She is gorgeous & I totally understand the melting of a man's temperament by a furry creature.

Congratulations again (though you seem to have heard it a lot already)

And you must tell...why Moon Pie?

At 12/09/2010 5:15 AM,

June Babbled Back:

Bless you for saving that beautiful kitten's life! So many people don't love and understand cats, I am glad that I found your Blog.

At 12/12/2010 2:03 PM,

Anonymous Babbled Back:

One minute I was reading about acu-quilt next minute I was sitting with tears in my eyes! what a little sweetie!