Kittens - one month old
Our kittens are now one-month old. At this age, they are still a little wobbly and not exactly graceful. They still live under the protection of their mom and get most of their nourishment from her milk. Just a few days ago the mom started leading them out of their box to explore the immediate surroundings and try some solid food. Melise and I have enjoyed watching them clumsily chase after each other and play.
I started giving them names because I love naming pets. First, of course, it's good to know their gender. Three of them were easy because they are calicos, which are always girls. The other two are orange, so I had to find out the old fashioned way by looking. They are both boys.
This is Righty and Lefty, named for the position of the black spots on their faces. I originally named them Rita and Lola, but when I explained to Roy how to tell them apart he said, "Righty and Lefty, got it." I insisted on Rita and Lola for a few days, but it turns out that Righty and Lefty just come more naturally.
Lefty, by the way, is the bravest of all the kittens.
These are the other three kittens. They are much more shy. I haven't been inspired to name the two on the right yet. The orange and white one on the left is Trip because he took a trip off the platform where their box is and couldn't find his way back up. His mom would have retrieved him eventually, but since I was closer I grabbed him up. I think I frightened him because he's been travel-wary ever since!
Kittens are pretty heavily supervised by their moms, but even moms have to do personal business. She'll leave them to go hunt, go to the bathroom, or just to snoop the area. She's hardly ever out of hearing distance of them. I just wanted to mention this because too often I've come across people who find a bunch of kittens and feel the need to immediately adopt them because they were "abandoned by their mom". Most likely their mom is not too far away waiting for the human intruders to leave so she can take care of her babies. My advice is to leave a nest of kittens alone. If you're really concerned, bring them food and water on a regular basis and try to befriend them slowly. That way, if their mom is around you won't prematurely separate them, but you will also help them survive in case she isn't. You can then take your time to find out if they belong to someone and, if not, you can find them all good homes. When it's time to send them to their new families, the kittens will probably be easy to handle and friendly!
I should have an adventure to report come Monday about the guineas - hopefully it has a good ending, but that is yet to be seen!
I started giving them names because I love naming pets. First, of course, it's good to know their gender. Three of them were easy because they are calicos, which are always girls. The other two are orange, so I had to find out the old fashioned way by looking. They are both boys.
This is Righty and Lefty, named for the position of the black spots on their faces. I originally named them Rita and Lola, but when I explained to Roy how to tell them apart he said, "Righty and Lefty, got it." I insisted on Rita and Lola for a few days, but it turns out that Righty and Lefty just come more naturally.
Lefty, by the way, is the bravest of all the kittens.
These are the other three kittens. They are much more shy. I haven't been inspired to name the two on the right yet. The orange and white one on the left is Trip because he took a trip off the platform where their box is and couldn't find his way back up. His mom would have retrieved him eventually, but since I was closer I grabbed him up. I think I frightened him because he's been travel-wary ever since!
Kittens are pretty heavily supervised by their moms, but even moms have to do personal business. She'll leave them to go hunt, go to the bathroom, or just to snoop the area. She's hardly ever out of hearing distance of them. I just wanted to mention this because too often I've come across people who find a bunch of kittens and feel the need to immediately adopt them because they were "abandoned by their mom". Most likely their mom is not too far away waiting for the human intruders to leave so she can take care of her babies. My advice is to leave a nest of kittens alone. If you're really concerned, bring them food and water on a regular basis and try to befriend them slowly. That way, if their mom is around you won't prematurely separate them, but you will also help them survive in case she isn't. You can then take your time to find out if they belong to someone and, if not, you can find them all good homes. When it's time to send them to their new families, the kittens will probably be easy to handle and friendly!
I should have an adventure to report come Monday about the guineas - hopefully it has a good ending, but that is yet to be seen!
SOOOO Cute!!!! I can't wait to see more pictures! Don't count the calicos as females before you see their hoo hahs!
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