When Beauty had her first litter, I was very excited by the magic of it all. On 24 April, she had her second litter. Although I cannot help but love all cats and kittens, I was a little upset that she had become pregnant so quickly after the first litter.
It is a very different situation for her as well, with her first offspring racing about like juvenile delinquents. There is very little privacy. I could see that she was extremely uncomfortable but in a fairly limited amount of space, I had to be very inventive.
She had the first kitten near dawn, after I had fallen asleep. When I went into the room to feed the cats their breakfast, they behaved oddly. Usually they purr wildly when they see me, and focus on the food in my hands.
On 24 April, they were a bit distracted... I did not understand this until I heard a very high-pitched little cry. Beauty was out and about so I had to search a bit before I found the baby. She had stashed it in the back of a little carpeted 'cave' that I bought for the kittens. The tiny baby was in there with Adoro. Evidently, it seemed like the safest, most concealed spot as far as Beauty was concerned.
I tried to set up a large box but the Putti were too fascinated with that and transformed it instantly into a playpen. I finally took out an old carrier that had a steel barred door. I took the carrier to pieces, removing the metal door, then fastened it together again without the door.
As small and cramped as it appeared to be for Beauty, she is content there for the time being. She could not deliver her litter in that cramped space, but she nurses her five kittens there and they are safe from the wild romps of their older siblings.
Even though they have the same mother and father, two members of the new litter are completely different in appearance. There are two Blue-Cream Persians, one Flame kitten quite like Beauty herself and two colourpoints who resemble the Puttikins. I have had little opportunity to look at them properly as Beauty still is very protective of them.
Your blog is a wonderful account of you as the mother of the entire cat clan. I'm impressed by the lengths to which you've gone to keep them comfortable and happy, and the pictures are beautiful. I see that the cats live in elegant surroundings. Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteFleming