The Face of Evil

PEPPER AT 4 WEEKS

PEPPER PRESENT DAY

You know it's a trap, don't you?  All those adorable purring kittens you see in the photos on the internet and in Hallmark cards.  Even when you go to the shelter volunteers go to great lengths to keep their cages clean and poop-free so you have no idea how much waste can be created by something so tiny and innocent-looking.  The photo above is our most recent rescue, Pepper.  We fostered her this past summer after a group of others had just gone back.  She was a singleton--no siblings.  Her sister had died the night before due to some kind of genetic defect and they didn't know whether Pepper would make it very long.  They told me not to hold out any hope or get too attached.  The first night I brought her home I just held her in a blanket for hours and watched her sleep.  She was no larger than a hamster.  I fell in love. The trap was sprung.

But just prior to Pepper we'd had fostered four other kitties and I'd never known how much work it was to care for so many little babies at once.  They were 4 weeks when we took them and 8 weeks when they went back to the shelter for adoption.  It was so difficult to say goodbye, but I'm happy to say they were all adopted.  The trick, however, is that no matter how tiny they are--the quantity of substances they produce is remarkable and even more amazing is how much square footage you need to devote to isolating the sheer stench of these little rascals.

They look so sweet and engaging when you see them, making such tiny mewing sounds that you can't imagine going home without one.  And then you're alone with it.  On the first visit to the litterbox you are in shock by what happens there and almost inevitably your kitten will step in what just happened and then run away because it just lost half its body weight, therefore smearing this offense all over the carpet and furniture while prancing wildly about with deranged eyes.  If you were smart enough to adopt TWO cats, they will be so frisky and delightful when they fight for the box and use it together and occasionally they will completely miss.  Kittens have immature digestive systems until they are around 6 months so you may be fortunate enough to the quiet but deadly kitten fart and there is nothing quite so pungent that makes you want to fling Baby Boots off your chest than when this happens so you can check for skid marks.

I haven't mentioned the cost or hassles of veterinary care, especially in the beginning when you need to have parasite and worming exams and treatments as well as rabies and other various vaccines.   These trips will be so exciting when you pluck Fifi out of her crate and her sweet little sabers for toenails dig into your forearms and bits of skin.  If you are smart you will invest in something called "Soft Paws" which we use at the shelter and they are little claw caps which you can get in colors too, they glue right over kitty's claws and last up to 4-6 weeks and save you from these DNA scrapings and ruined furniture.  Not to mention it looks really cute.

Soft Paws

Still interested in having a cat?  Well you SHOULD be...Did you think I was trying to talk you out of it?  Sorry, didn't mean to come off that way. I need to be realistic, however.  They aren't cheap and I have lots of friends who mistakenly believe that cats are maintenance-free.  I think the distinction we need to establish is that cats are INDEPENDENT but not easy.  They want your attention constantly.  They are so very social that once you have one you won't understand how anyone could have ever accused them of being unfriendly.  If they are, there is probably a good HUMAN reason for it.  Someone in their past antagonized them or gave them a reason to be mistrustful.  They do expect us to treat them royally after their evolution for 4,000 years of partnering with humans to do some of our dirty work hunting and cleaning up our rodent and pest population and making the Egyptian tombs way more fascinating.  Aside from the Middle Ages when cats were associated with witchcraft and evil, for the most part, cats have enjoyed a benign existence with us, so when I call my kitten the "face of evil" I am being entirely facetious. 

The trap is that all baby animals look that way so that we will forget the responsibility of ownership, and the bottom line is that once you've spent at least a couple weeks with your adopted cutie-pie, it will have worked its furry magic into your heart with its purring and kneading and you might even be able to forgive the stink because of the photos you start to share on Facebook and videos on YouTube with other crazy cat people.  So don't feel too bad about falling for the trap, we all relate.  Now please go get your camera and take a picture of your little foofoo.

PS.  If you click below you will see our "knock off" video of Pepper imitating the kitten tickle.  I think all kittens do this.  Never gets old.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE KITTEN TICKLE