I was out at the smoking section early this morning at work. Having a cigarette. (no i don't plan on taking up smoking again. This was hopefully only a one day relapse,) when I heard a familiar yelping sound. A distressed kitten.
Curious as to where the sound was coming from I looked around. It was a cold and rainy morning, an oddity in the desert. On first look I could not find the source of the crying, so I called in reinforcements. Another coworker and cat lover, came to join the search and we quickly found two shivering little balls of fur. They were both tiny and extremely young little kittens that had appeared to be abandoned by their mother.
We couldn't leave them out there in the cold so we took them into the warehouse to warm them up. Thankfully the NSPCA is right around the corner from our office so our next step was to take them there to have them looked at. They were estimated between 3 and 4 weeks old. One kitten, a cream colored long hair, was feisty and did not take too well to being handled. He tried to take a finger with him when he was being inspected. The other a smaller looking torti with severely gummed eyes was glad for the rescue and went along with everything willingly. The NSPCA workers informed us that the kittens would do better being cared for in a home environment and suggested to us that we could foster the kittens and later adopt them.
Their foster program allows us to take them home and give them individual care, while the NSPCA covers their medical expenses, shots, as well as spaying and neutering. Once the animals are healthy and fully vaccinated, we as the foster parents, would be able to adopt the kittens at a reduced fee. Not a hard sell to two animal lovers.
We quickly agreed, filling out forms as the kittens were inspected and given medicine to start their healing process. We were also given a shot schedule, a date to have the kittens fixed, and some starter food and carrying boxes. They gave us a quick run through of proper kitten care and sent on our way.
Back at the office, the kittens were a hit. everyone wanted to see our little babies. The torti, my new kitten, was named lucky, because if it hadn't been for her powerful little voice, we would have never found her. The other kitten, the feisty little cream colored one was given the name Creamsicle.
But I said 3 kittens were saved...
A few hours after the discovery of our two little babies, another kitten was found. A beautiful little Grey girl. One of the service guys spotted her as he was heading out to his truck. She was a beauty and looked to be the healthiest of the bunch. A warehouse worker quickly scooped her up and we gave him the info about the NSPCA.
By the end of the day we had saved and found homes for 3 precious little baby kittens.
I had worried that my husband would be a bit upset at me for bringing home another pet since we had originally agreed that 2 was it. All it took was a few minutes of holding her and he melted. Ally was easily won over the instant I mentioned a kitten, and she is doing a wonderful job of being gentle and understands she can't see the baby kitten unless mommy or Nick is present.
For the time being, until Lucky has gotten over her eye infection, she is in isolation in her own private space in my walk in closet. Our other curious kitty's will have to wait to meet the new little ball of fur.
What a great way to start the Thanksgiving weekend, participating in the saving of three adorable baby kittens.