We have kittens! Five of them to be precise - they are absolutely gorgeous. They were born three weeks ago to Little Red. I went off to meditate in Barcelona and Little Red's belly was huge. Poor little thing, she was only small herself and she ended up looking like she was wearing an enormous skirt. I was hoping they'd be born before I left but it was not to be. However, the night they were born, I had a dream about them being born so although it was nearly a week later that I found out they'd arrived, I'd already dreamt about them the night they made their debut.
The dad is Tom, the red tom cat that is often seen around the garden as he knows when our cats get fed. He likes to join in at breakfast time. Anyway, we've had the chance to get a look at him with all his hanging around and although he's a stray, he's a good-looking stray and has blessed our kittens with eyes that are deep blue in colour.
Two of the kittens are red and white, the other three are all red. It's difficult to tell if they're boys or girls but you can see distinct personalities already. Two are quite adventurous, wanting to discover the world beyond the blankets and fortress of boxes that make up their home. Of the three red kittens, one is bold and confident and I think he may have been born first. I also think he's a boy. He never has to wait for a feed and is distinctly bigger (or maybe it's just fluffier) than his siblings. The other two red ones are smaller and remind me of Simba from the Lion King. One is a real scrapper, fighting his way to get a feed. You can always tell when he's pushing his way through from all the squealing. Sometimes I wonder whether we have piglets or kittens.
One of the red and white kittens has been named Splodge by me. You can see Splodge in the photos, it's the one with three red splodges on his back. The kittens are a constant source of joy, seeing them develop day by day. They've got to the stage where they're starting to play fight with each other, tumbling around and biting. I don't think they'll do much harm, I haven't spotted any teeth yet. They're discovering their own paws and can now be seen with paws in mouths. Although Tom the dad has been keeping his distance, I think he did see them once when he went in to try and steal the extra food that we put out for Little Red. The only other cat who steals her food is her brother, the other cats are treating her and the babies with a degree of respect.
Although she's not even a year old herself, Little Red has made a fantastic mum and is doing a great job with the fabulous five. She has a routine that I'm sure any mum of five would quickly get in to. If the kittens are sleeping (and like most babies, they do sleep a lot), she'll go and wake them by quickly licking them on the top of the head. This soon rouses them from the deepest slumber and squeals of excitement follow. Next it's time for a feed and often fights ensue. I'm not sure why, there are six nipples and five kittens but inevitably someone doesn't like the position he's got so squeals in protest and tries to push someone out of the way for a better position. They usually have a long feed and then Little Red will put them all to sleep and stay with them a while. Then she's off, in search of food herself (this usually involves coming to find me and miaowing to let me know she's hungry). Once fed, she'll hang out around the house, leaving the kittens to sleep in peace but never being too far away in case they squeal in protest about something. Although it can't be easy looking after five little ones, she looks serene when she's feeding them. She's infinitely patient with them, even now they've started clambering all over her!
We have to find homes for them although I'd like to keep one for myself. Hopefully we'll find good homes for them without too much trouble. I'm sure their striking good looks and deep blue eyes will help them win the hearts of any prospective owners! They've certainly won us over!
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