Welcome

Welcome to my little piece of blogosphere

I decided to create this blog as a means to tell stories of my little charges that I foster. I am only a newbie to the whole fostering deal and began the adventure last year.

I brought my first litter of kittens home on the 31-10-2011 and there started the small flood of adorable kittens that I got to love long enough for them to get on their feet. I prepared them as best I could for their own journey and finding their forever home.

Fostering would never have come up had it not been for the hard death of the family 13 year old cat. I grew up with him as did my siblings. We thought the farm bred independent cat was the most normal feline in the world.
Tabby was a tabby cat that was on his own schedule for most of his life but his most unique habit we only found out after he'd passed was his near inability to meow. He would sit at the door if he wanted out or in, he would purr and stay in your arms until you decided to put him down, he was very tolerant of us kids.
It was only when his health began failing that he meowed. He had a stroke of some sort a month before he passed and gradually went downhill from there. Tabby passed away 18-6-2009

Tabby snoozing

Not long after his passing the silence in the house - more so since there was no cat to let in or out or feed rather than noise as Tabby was quiet - drove me insane and I signed up to volunteer at the local animal shelter. I learnt about fostering but at the time volunteers weren't allowed to foster animals. I got to know several different personalities in cats and kept an eye out for a possible new addition to the family.

Right before Christmas we picked up our new kittens. Plural, I had managed to talk the family around to adopting two instead of one.
Missy and Rosco were an 'oops' litter from a friend of the family and Dad had been wanting a silver tabby cat like another family member already had. Missy was kids choice the odd one of the bunch being a golden tan tabby with unusual swirl like markings on her coat. She got named on the drive home already showing her confident mischievous nature. Rosco took at least three days before we found a name that suited him.

Interesting markings on Missy as a kitten

It was absolutely amazing having two kittens. Rosco was the noisy one and had a howling Siamese like meow. Missy was into everything she shouldn't be into. Before they were spayed and neutered we took them out on harness to get them used to the great outdoors. Missy and Rosco were best buds, slept together, played together and were thick as thieves.
When Rosco was 7 months old and not long after they were going outside unsupervised he was hit by a car and killed instantly. Pure luck saved Missy and made her a wiser cat.

Rosco & Missy snuggling together

I was shattered. Rosco despite being Dads' choice was more my cat than Missy. He would hang out with me and cuddle on our laps. He was gorgeous long and sleek and his howling meow had only become more pronounced. I hurt worse for his sudden death than I had for Tabby knowing that Tabby had lived out a long life whereas Rosco had only just begun his.

I continued volunteering at the animal shelter and found a cute little kitten - silver tabby - that was a bit shy. My parents mentioned since I had a job if I took care of it then I could buy him. Unfortunately this timid little guy got horribly sick and he was never available for adoption. R.I.P little Spike.

On the First of January (2011) I met Leo. It was love at first sight. Since Rosco I became attracted to silver tabby cats finding them unique and beautiful so it fit perfectly that not only was Leo rubbing against my fingers through the cage bars but he was a gorgeous color too. Before he even reached his 8 days of quarantine - to make sure he wasn't suffering any illness' - I'd tagged him as adopted and visited him whenever my hours permitted me to.

First meeting at Animal Shelter

I brought Leo home on the 8-1-2011 and he's been with us ever since. The personality in different cats never ceases to amaze me. Leo was very cuddly as a kitten and couldn't properly meow.
I taught him to sit before his food was put down in front of him. Through his first year he did have some 'teenage' moments and was less affectionate. Only recently he's begun sleeping on laps or jumping up for pats. His purr is very quiet and he rarely purrs so it makes a person feel special when he does.

Leo snoozing on my mother's lap

Leo is not the best balanced cat. He is however near human. When he wants something he will reach up and tap you with his paw. He chirps, trills, hums and when that doesn't get the desired attention he meows.
 I decided early on that I couldn't handle the idea of him too being hit by a car and therefore made him indoor only unless he's out on his harness. I chose this for two reasons. One I'd be terrified he would never return and two when things scare him he goes into blind panic.

During Leo's first year the shelter regulations changed to allow volunteers to foster kittens. So I began when kitten season started that spring and have continued to this year. I wanted somewhere to show the stories of them. Here I am, beginning a blog....