Just thought I would give a quick update on the cats since I scooped up the kittens and whirled them off to the vet for the works.

After having to take out a second mortgage to pay the vet bill, I returned the kittens back home yesterday.  The progress I had made with them over the last 2 1/2 months is now just a glimmer of my memory.  The babies are quite scared of me and will not allow me near them as they did prior to Thursday.  And their own mother is now rejecting them also. 

Casey, mama cat, probably is on the defense with them because the kittens now smell like the vet office and she does not recognize them.  However, the first night she was literally running them back into the woods any time they would attempt to come to the patio for food. 

Today I started closing Casey up on the screen porch so that I could try to get the kittens, Bo and Amber, to come eat.  I have had some mild success with that today.  I’m hoping this is all just temporary and that while it may never be completely like it was before, they can all learn to tolerate each other and trust me again.

So the poor kittens are dealing with a ‘mommy dearest’ and I’m dealing with a family divided.  Maybe it will all work out over the next few days.

This morning I tricked my cute little kittens into a pet carrier, quietly closed the door behind them, and then toted them to their first vet visit. 

They actually handled going in and even being locked inside the carrier surprisingly well.  It was when I decided it was time to go and I put them in motion that the fear set in, the claws came out, and my heart started to break.  I felt so very bad but it needs to be done.

They were silent for the entire drive, probably too scared to move.  As I arrived at the office and took the carrier out of the back seat I noticed their eyes were as big as nickels.  Poor things. 

So I dropped them off, not to the delight of the new receptionist who really wishes for patients to have an appointment.  However, I tried to explain to her that I had been bringing cats there for 20 years.  I continued to explain that these were strays and I was unsure I would be able to capture them at a specific time.  After a little convincing, the receptionist politely said ”alright, let me get the paperwork.” 

I provided my “John Hancock” on the sheet that allows the vet to do the works: spaying & neutering, deworming, shots and vaccines… and then I told them goodbye and left the office.  I feel like I’ve abandoned them, but at least they have each other – something familiar to possibly ease the fright. 

I got in my car and realized just how attached to those little furry creatures I am.  I felt like a mother dropping her children off at school for the first day.  I was filled with worry and guilt and I simply wanted to cry.  Wow – how quickly they have become a part of my world.

So I’m at home awaiting the call from the vet with the results of the Feline Leukemia test.  If that is negative we will proceed with everything else.  If all goes as planned I will pick them up tomorrow, pay the hefty vet bill, and hopefully have an uneventful reintroduction to the backyard and their mother.  (Casey – mama cat – doesn’t know it yet, but she’s next).  I am hoping that the only lasting effects from this event is that they come back healthier and reproductively challenged.  Maybe they will forgive me and this will be a trip they forget.