# Big Hello From Ireland :)



## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

Hey, my name is Keri and I'm 20 

Am currently living in an apartment with my boyfriend of 5 years. Have been away from my animals for far too long - a year and a half now!! Sooo... When a friend of mine told me about a litter of kitties her friend found dumped in a church... I just HAD to volunteer to take one 

Basically, they are with a lady who rescues cats and dogs at the moment. They are still too young to go anywhere, she is hand-rearing them and they still need milk and the socialization with each other but will be ready to go in 2 weeks  I am in constant contact with the lady at the moment and am FINALLY going to meet the babies on Sunday to pick out our new member of the family. 

Been driving my fella mad with all of my cat research but he is on board so far. 

So. Now that I have babbled on and bored you all to tears... Is there anything (besides running eyes/nose and the obvious physical signs) I should look out for when picking out the kitten? ^.^


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

Hi there and welcome to the forum! How exciting, getting a kitten! My only suggestion would be to pick the one that seems drawn to you. Not necessarily the one that runs to you first but one that shows an interest in you. Please post pictures of the fur baby. We all love pictures here. Congratulations!


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

Of course  

I am just getting ready to head over to meet him/her now, am planning on spending a little time with the lady who has them anyway and finding out as much info as is humanly possible from her. Which means I should have lots of play-time with the little ones and lots of opportunities for pictures 

I'm too excited right now!


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Welcome to Cat Forum! Congrats on your new addition. I'm looking forward to hearing about and seeing photos of your new kitten. Are you sure you don't want to get two? They keep each other company and kittens are soooo high energy they will wear each other out!

I'm sure your new baby will capture your boy friends heart right away! He will be smitten for life!


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## howsefrau32 (Mar 6, 2013)

I'm sure you will end up picking the one that feels right to you, or maybe it will even pick you  Can't wait to hear more about your little one. I agree also.....two is better, then they don't get bored, they always have someone to play with


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

I didn't predict being too engrossed in playing with kittens to take photos  Sorrryyyyyy... I managed to take a couple pics of the little girl we are going to adopt from a mini video I took on my phone but the quality is awful! 







Baby pounce! 








I will be seeing her again before we get to take her home and will TRY to remember to take out my camera next time. Both me AND my not-overly-excited-by-kitties boyfriend were drawn to her instantly, love at first sight! We have named her Tami and she is just the sweetest little thing. Very curious about the 2 weird humans who appeared in her house and was the first of the litter to come investigate and play. She then fell asleep purring while I was petting her on my lap. Ahhh I can't wait 2 whole weeks to bring her home, it seems like forever.

Also, just to address the only getting one cat thing. To be quite honest while our cash flow is pretty good at the moment, we are both going to be doing degrees part time (3 nights a week) in about a year which we are footing the bill for and I want to be absolutely POSITIVE that we can still afford good food, vets visits, any emergencies that crop up and all of the other necessities. And through all of my budgeting, one kitty seems like the best option for us right now. I PROMISE she will be completely spoiled and will have all the playtime and cuddles she needs *scouts honour*


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

Hmmm, not sure how to edit that post on this app... But, just need to add that apparently my boyfriend took a pic while he was playing with her, still not a brilliant pic but wanted to add it in!


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

I was just emailed some new photos of baby Tami!

Couldn't resist


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## Jakiepoo (Jan 5, 2013)

She looks precious! I love classic tabbies (at least, that's what I think she is...)

2 weeks is going to seem so long, but it's going to be so exciting to go get her when you do! Seems like she has a very good foster mom until then. And never try to resist posting pictures, ever.


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

To be honest I'm not entirely sure what her fur pattern is called, it's a bit random with these lovely ginger splotches, but she is a beauty for definite!

I get to see her again next weekend, her foster mom has something of mine that she is going to let Tami sniff/play with in the meantime. When I take her home she will be cutting up the blanket the kittens share and giving me a piece to help the little-un transistion. I'm going to busy myself with kitten-proofing the apartment and setting up the ensuite as Tami's room, hopefully the 2 weeks won't drag too much 








The supplies I have gotten already!
(I also have a smaller litter tray to start with that will fit inside the big green one when she is old enough to get in easily)


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## MsMichael (May 11, 2013)

*Tami Looks Adorable!*

Just be forewarned! They go up so very fast... My Avatar picture is my baby "G". She was brought to me an hour before death (someone dumped a 3 wk old baby on a concrete slab in the sun). She survived (it took work and a really good Vet) and is now 11 weeks old. G is going through the "gawky adolescent" stage. But My husband and I love her dearly.

I hope your baby girl brings you much love and happiness. If you haven't raised a little kitten before, they will use you as a teething toy, if not given a suitable replacement (suitable to HER, not you <LOL>). Also, keep her on wet food until about 10 weeks. Babies can't go from mom's milk to dry food without serious tummy issues. Also, most dry food has grain in it. Kittens like human babies have immature gut flora, which means they can't digest grain AND in both human and kitten early exposure to grains can lead to food allergies /intolerances. 

When I started, last week, giving G dry food at night (to tide her over until morning, after her dinner) I was nearly knocked to my knees by the stench coming out of her box!! Mind you, she is being given a special NO grain / all meat dry kibble. I called my vet and he assured me that it is just her gut getting used to a new food. I also added some goat's milk yogurt to her food to help with digestion. Thankfully, she's adapted and isn't anywhere near as stinky!

As I have mentioned on another list, don't yell or hit a kitten. They understand this behavior even less than a human child would. If you want to keep her out of something, *HISS*.. that is what he Mum would have done. Also, for better or worse, cats are insanely curious creatures. That's were the old saying comes from. So there is only so much cat-proofing you can do. Just put away all your breakables as she grows. Be aware that if you respond too much to something that she does or touches, you might besetting her up to use it latter to get your attentions. I had a kitten a number of years ago, that learned that my boyfriend at the time hated it when the jewelry on his dresser was touched. So needless to say, when I was gone and the kitten wanted to be fed (and said BF was ignoring the kitten) the kitten would jump on the dresser and start knocking things off of it one at a time. My BF at the time flew out of bed like his butt was on fire and fed the kitten. All the kitten understood was that batting things off the big wooden box got him food...
So be cautious to what things you respond. Cats may have limited understanding, but they have loooong memories.

Best of luck with you new baby! I hope you and Tami have a long and happy life together!
Ms M


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

Yes, I understand that they dont stay tiny for long which is why I plan to take lots of pictures to document her growing up. I am well aware that I will have an equally beautiful big cat in a year or so! 

As for food, I actually started another thread on the topic but I don't plan on giving her dry food at all, and definitely plan on keeping her diet grain-free. From what I have read it seems like the healthiest diet for kitty (besides an all-raw diet). 

I will definitely watch what I (and my BF) respond to. I'm hoping that lots of positive reinforcement and a few hisses will help Tami understand what is a pretty acceptable way to conduct herself  Although I realise she WILL have her little quirks and a kitty attitude to boot which just makes life all the more interesting I reckon  

I really hope all goes well but it's nice to know that there is a community here that can help me muddle through the kitty madness 
:mrgreen:


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## MsMichael (May 11, 2013)

*Kitty Madness!!*

Oh and when you called it "kitty madness", truer words have never been spoken!! They are adorable in the extreme. I think it was planned that way so we wouldn't kill them for all the insanity they put us through!

I know as much as I hate to admit it, it's the quirks that wrap me around G's little claws.:blackcat

Taking lots of pictures is a great idea. I'm jealous because my husband seems to get all the good photos. Me, I'm mostly squirreling around looking for the camera when the cat is doing something adorable. But looking back over the photos (I take at least one portrait picture each week) it is amazing how much they grow and how fast they change. 

I've been lucky enough to have been "owned' by some pretty amazing felines. I can't wait to have at least 20 years with G. I hope you are afforded the same blessing!!

We're all here in the "madness" with you!!!


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## LaurulFeatherCat (Sep 16, 2011)

What a pretty little torbie (tabbie/tortie)with white your Tami is! I always am jealous of people with new kittens. She sure looks like a beauty.


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## KaBOOM! (Jun 14, 2013)

MsMichael said:


> We're all here in the "madness" with you!!!


Thank you so much for the support! I'm already getting strange looks when I try to talk about her with people. It's like... "yeah okay, we get it, you're getting a cat" haha






LaurulFeatherCat said:


> What a pretty little torbie (tabbie/tortie)with white your Tami is! I always am jealous of people with new kittens. She sure looks like a beauty.


And thank you for the colour clarification I will post lots of pictures when she comes home!


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

AWW! She is precious. You are going to be a great kitty mom. Tami is one lucky kitten.


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