Baby kitties, again

Twelve days ago Riley saw two tiny kittens under a bush on our patio. They hung out there for a couple of days until we realized there was no momma coming around to feed them. We caught them quite easily because they were nearly dead and very lethargic. We could feel their spines and rib cages. We thought one that had little orange markings on its gray fur was a boy and the solid gray one was a girl. We fed them milk and put them in a cat carrier. Amy and I took them to our offices, trading off every few hours so they weren't such a distraction. We did this for a couple of days. I named the girl Millie and my kids in the newsroom, who loved having baby kitties there, named the other Jimi (Amy's spelling). We fed them cream and wet cat food to add some weight to their bony little frames.

Riley looked at them again a few days later and discovered the boy was a girl and the girl was a boy. It makes sense since the girl has calico markings (all calicos are females) and is smaller and the boy is bigger. They have now doubled in size and are frisky, fun, playful, loving kitties. They jump at each other sideways, wrestle and bite each other. They curl up on our laps or shoulders. They chase yarn and climb where they shouldn't. They are very cute. But we're not keeping them. They are ready for good homes so we will start looking.

These are not the first cats we've rescued at this house. The first fall we were here 11 years ago Amy found an abandoned kitten in our front bushes. She caught it and we had Pika for several years. She was the mother to our current cat Guida. She ran off for three years, came back for about a year, then left for good.

Last year our neighbors abandoned a mother and four kittens. By the time we were able to catch them the kittens were quite large and very wild. We found homes for all of them. Zuzu lives with Parkers in Colorado, the rest went to freecycle responders who have barns and needed mousers.

Chunie was another story. She came from the pit of hell, adopted herself to our house, bit us, swatted at us, ate our food and sometimes let someone touch her head. She was a rickety, patchwork mess of a cat. She gave birth to our current cat Stella, a sweet cat who shows her mother's temperament once in a while. Stella used to be meaner but getting hit twice by cars has left her nicer than the time before.

Notch was another cat we adopted. When we bought the house he was already living here. He was a bit of a mess too but he had the sweetest personality. He lived here for nearly 10 years, keeping watch on the east side of our house. He's probably also Guida and Stella's father. Kristi Parker took the last pictures of Notch, none of us knowing he would go to cat heaven shortly thereafter. Thanks Kristi!

I don't know why pathetic, needy cats end up here. I guess we are the Nelson Cat Sanctuary. I think cats, especially kittens, are some of God's loveliest creatures and someday we'll understand better the relationships we are blessed to have with them. Maybe we'll even understand Chunie.