It has been such a hectic weekend!
As you all know, We have been tem-purr-rarily banned from the Balcony, because of Intruder Kitty. Well, on Shabbat, Mummy decided (on the advice of the nice Lady V-e-t) to let Us start getting acquainted with the Invader. So She let Us come and say Hallo, one at a time. As you can imagine, Caspurr just sat and stared at him and didn't care much one way or the other, but I (Trixie) was much more cautious and kept my distance. After all - who knows what he might have? Fleas (though Mummy said that was already dealt with)? Ringworm (the v-e-t said our own immune systems are strong enough to resist it now, if the Intruder has it)? Lice (Mummy has seen no sign of it). Worms (very probably)?
After a furry, furry short meeting, We were again banished from the Balcony. Mummy went to have her Shabbat nap and in the early evening, went to check up on Intruder Kitty and found him unconscious!!! His eyes were closed, he hardly seemed to be breathing and Mummy could get no reaction from him.
In a panic, she called the v-e-t's Emergency Number but the v-e-t said that Mummy must remember they had discussed Fading Kitten Syndrome (Mummy says She has no such memory) and that the kitten had already received antibiotics (a low dosage) as a preventative measure (in case the fleas had transmitted a virus to the little kitty). The only thing Mummy could do, said the v-e-t (who Mummy thought sounded less sympathetic than She had expected) was to keep the kitty warm - and pray.
Mummy was terribly upset and she phoned Step-Grandma (you remember, kitties, that it was Step-Grandma who had talked Mummy into fostering Intruder Kitty in the first place), but she, too, was not all that sympathetic and told Mummy to remember that, when all's said and done, it was still "only a cat"!!!
So Mummy wrapped the little kitty in a thick towel and sat there, not even getting up to go to the bathroom, just cradling him in her arms like a baby and massaging his chest and tummy once in a while. And she prayed aloud to the Great Cat in the Sky not to let him die. And she said We should purr for Intruder Kitty also, so We did - because even though We didn't want to share Our Home with another kitty, that doesn't mean We wanted him to fly away to the Bridge.
After a couple of hours or so, the little kitty raised his head and struggled to turn over on his tummy. And Mummy realised that he would find it easier to breathe that way so She let him have his way. But the kitty still didn't open his eyes and his breathing was still very shallow.
So Mummy prayed harder than ever, and We came over to Mummy because We saw how upset She was, and We wanted to comfort her.
And then, kitties, after another half hour or so, Mummy put the little kitty, still wrapped up in the towel, down on the sofa, because She said She just had to go to the bathroom and She made US go back into her bedroom, because She was afraid to leave him and Us alone together (as if We couldn't be trusted!!!). And when She came out of the bathroom, She let Us back out of the bedroom and We came to look at poor little Intruder Kitty.
Then Mummy sat down on the sofa and picked up the little kitty in her arms and do you know what happened then, kitties?
The little kitty opened his eyes. And he tried to struggle out of Mummy's arms. So Mummy put him down on the sofa again and he struggled to his feet. And he began to try climbing up the cushion at the side of the sofa! And then he started miaowing furry loudly. Mummy couldn't think what he wanted at first, but then she thought maybe she'd offer him some food. (Caspurr says that was his idea - but that's because Food is always Caspurr's first thought in any situation. He's such a Greedy Kitty).
Anyway, Mummy offered the food (a mixture of dry kibbles, softened in water, and some special kitten diet moist food) to the little kitty and he wolfed it down as if he was starving! And then he went over to his water bowl and drank some water.
And then he went and slept for a bit and later, he woke up and ate some more, and when Mummy finally went to bed way past midnight, she thought the Crisis was over. And on Sunday morning (yesterday), Intruder Kitty acted like nothing had happened!!! But Mummy still can't feel easy in her mind, because She has been reading about FKS on the Internet and it seems it can strike kittens up to 9 weeks old, with no warning, even when they have previously seemed to be doing fine. (Intruder Kitty is 5 and a half weeks old). She says she won't feel safe for another few weeks yet.
The next day (yesterday), Mummy decided that Intruder Kitty was such a brave little fighter, that he deserved a hero's name, so she decided to call him after Samson in the Bible (Shimshon, in Hebrew - or Shimshi, for short).
So that seems to be it, kitties! We're stuck with him! If Mummy has given him a name, that means he's here for good. We don't want him to die, so We are just going to have to make the best of it.
And I (Trixie the Splendiferous) am going to have to make sure he knows his place and that I am the Alpha Cat around here!!!
