Monday, October 10, 2011

A LESSON IN MOTHERING - FROM A CAT!

Consider this post a third instalment in our ‘Adventures in Kitty Fostering’ series. After the stories of Hector and Maggie, we took a break in order to facilitate a smooth transition back into school routine etc. But once October arrived, I knew in my heart that it was time to check out if our friends in the DSPCA had need of foster families again. Not surprisingly they did and when I phoned them last Friday, I made a spur of the moment decision to provide a temporary home for a little family.... Moma cat and four 10 day old kittens. It should be said that poor Moma is only a kitten herself – not yet a year old.

So we now have a total of ten 4 leggeds sharing our lives and our home. The latest arrivals, like their predecessors are installed in the kid’s sitting room which is a bright sunny room in the front of the house. The nice people in the DSPCA provided us with a crate in order to coral the kitties as they get older. So inside we have made up a comfy bed with plenty of space for Moma to recline and feed her babies. I should point out that I am calling her Moma because after a couple of try outs we have yet to find a name that suits this magnificent feline. I am not happy about that.. I would far prefer that kitties in my care all have suitable names. But as TS Elliot famously said “the naming of cats is a difficult matter, it isn’t just one of your holiday games”. Her kittens however have all been given monikers appropriate to the season. So we have Samhain, Salem, Gandolf and Merlin. However the problem with their names is that they are totally interchangeable as each kitten is identical – jet black and so we have no idea who is who.

Anyway last night I was given a lesson in how magnificent cats are by Moma cat which left me feeling very silly altogether.

As they seemed to be all well settled into their new environment and as we had handled the kittens a wee bit without any difficulty, I thought it was time to attempt to get a photo of the four little bundles of blackness which I could post on Twitter and Facebook. (The online community love cats).

So I took each kitty and placed it carefully on the sofa, with cushions strategically placed so that they couldn’t fall off the edge. I went to grab my phone for the picture. As I did so, in arrived Moma cat who took one look at the set up on the sofa, shot me a filthy look and immediately jumped up and retrieved nearest kitty. Grabbing her by her scruff, she expertly jumped off the sofa and transported her swinging bundle back to her bed. By the time she returned to the sofa I was a gibbering eejit. Picking up all three kitties I placed them back in their bed, muttering “sorry Moma cat, ...... look they are all back,....... they are fine”.

She delivered me another withering look and I went back to the sofa alone, feeling scolded, stupid and shallow. Moma cat was still scowling at me from her crate. Her expression seemed to say “they are only 12 days old, far too young to have their image posted on social media”.

I apologised again.

PS – If you have a suggestion for a name for a beautiful, balletic, sleek, jet black female cat please let me know.

There is no photo with this post for obvious reasons!

6 comments:

  1. What a wonderful post! I admit I was scrolling down quickly looking for the picture though. :-)

    (No thought went into this but as soon as you said you wanted a name 'for a beautiful, balletic, sleek, jet black female cat' - the name Shira / Shera ? popped into my head.)

    PS. Thanks for the canal comment, I shall look out for the programme. x

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  2. This got me laughing. I loved it. That Moma cat is a classic. You have a gift to write humor, Barbara. Not easy to do! And T.S. Eliot, that great poet and his cat poems. Thanks for reminding me of him, and thanks for this remarkable post. It made the end of what has been a good day for me!
    Ann Best, Author of In the Mirror, A Memoir of Shattered Secrets

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  3. This made me laugh,the thought of momma cat scolding you for putting the kittens up high on a sofa,you silly girl! How lovely to foster them what a lovely thing to do. Maybe we'll see a photo when mum gives her permission.

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  4. Isn't she fabulous! The first name that popped into my head was Cleo.

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  5. Hilarious. I love your posts. I volunteer at reception on Friday mornings so there is a good chance you were talking to me at some stage. Keep up the good work and keep up the blog posts, it's great to hear how the foster kitties and dogs are getting on.

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  6. Thanks all for your comments...
    and for your suggestions for names..
    Thanks to my twitter friend @carolewhelan we finally have a name we all agree on and suits perfectly.
    Moma Cat shall henceforth be known as Willow.

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