Dusky's cousin, Moby

Last night Damy was called to trap and sterilise the cats at Sims Drive where Dusky was found; the neutering is being sponsored by Liyin who rescued Dusky. A total of 6 cats were trapped and will be released back to their territory when they return from sterilisation.

When they were trapping one female cat, her son followed behind and went along with his mommy into the trap.

So Moby aka Mommy's Boy is now with us at our foster home.

He is very tame, enjoys cuddles, and was obedient enough to let us shower and deflea him. He has just been dewormed, and we will be getting Revolution for all of the foster cats since he came to us with fleas. He seems to know Dusky, so we reckon they are cousins - Moby is slightly bigger, about 10-12 weeks old. He is a chubby boy and will definitely be a wonderful cat to have as a pet once we socialise him more and get him used to being indoors.

Dusky - rescued from a rubbish chute in Sims Drive

This is Dusky, an 8 week old tabby female kitten who just arrived at our foster home.

Dusky and her siblings were born in a drain, and her siblings have been washed away and drowned by the recent rain. The cat-feeder, an elderly uncle, tried to rescue them from being washed away in the rain, but the rain was too heavy and he had to watch them go in the rushing water. Dusky was the only one he could save, and she was staying inside the rubbish dumping area until volunteer Liyin brought her to us tonight.

Liyin and the cat-feeder uncle will be sterilising the stray cats in that area - which has had a high incidence of cat dumping recently because many households have moved out, leaving pet cats behind as strays. 

Dusky is healthy and very tame. She has already started to get along with the other kittens in the pen. We will be deworming her tomorrow and will write more about her when we get to know her and socialise her - then she will be ready to go to a new home!

we bought a new camera to take foster kitty pics!

Panda who is up for adoption

Panda snuggling into Cassie

Cassie is still on antibiotics for diarrhoea, and has already put on weight

Tipsy who is going to his new home this weekend

Helga

if something happens to us...

Andy and I have discussed before that if anything were to happen to us as a couple, Andy would take Scooter, Sayang and Slinky stay with me. Sounds like a solemn and sensitive topic to discuss, no?

But we as pet owners do have to think and plan about such things. If you have acquired a pet as part of a couple, have a talk with your other half about whose home the pet will be at if the unfortunate happens. This is to ensure the welfare of your pet. Break ups are hard for everyone, even your pets.

Pet cats now live for an average of 14-17 years, so it is fairly possible that your cat may outlive a relationship given the sociology of our current times. 

If there is a break up, your pet will go through an emotional phase of missing your ex as much as you do, so you will have to think about your pet's emotional health as well - spend more time with it, allow visits if the parting was amicable.

It is better to broach a sensitive topic like this when all is well in a family or relationship, then to deal with when it happens if it does. If your relationship is secure enough, talking about what happens to the pets if there is a break up will not damage your relationship, but strengthen it further. Remember, your pets are family too!

how to prevent pet cats from running away

A cat generally does not want to go where its own scent is not present. For strays, this means that cats park themselves where they are familiar, and will not usually cross into another stray cat's territory. Strays will 'time-share' their communal spaces. This is especially true for neutered cats, which is why sterilisation of strays makes managing their welfare much easier.

For house pets, cats do not usually incline themselves to leave where they have come to consider their territory, i.e. your home. Once a cat has become accustomed to indoor living under your roof, it is unlikely that the cat will want to return to becoming a stray, simply because the cat feels surrounded by its own scent at home, but not beyond the main door.

In order for a cat to feel safe and surrounded by its own scent at home, the cat leaves its scent by stropping (scratching at scratching posts) and rubbing against furniture or on carpets. Any object that is stropped or rubbed by a cat becomes said cat's property.

A cat that has just entered your home will need to surround the home with its scent in order for it to consider your home, its own home. This means providing your cat with cat-furniture to strop on, beds to sleep in, and not removing its scent through over-zealous cleaning. An adult that is neutered may not feel like staying indoors at first, wanting to return to its original stray territory, but eventually when your home smells like its own home, it will much prefer to stay in.

This is not true for un-neutered cats, which is why sterilisation is very important. The urge to find a mate will trump the safety of its own home. Most runaway pets are un-neutered.

While adjusting a pet to indoor living, it may sometimes, even often, get curious as to what lies beyond that main door.

To prevent accidental run-outs by your cat, you can try a few measures.

• If you have a gate, mesh the gate so your cat is unable to dash out through the gate. Otherwise, install a pet gate. 
• Place a spray bottle filled with water at the door, to spray at your cat every time it tries to run out.
• Throw a favourite toy towards the inside of the house when leaving, to distract the cat while you are opening and closing the door to go out. 
• If possible, keep your main doors and windows closed or at least meshed at all times. 

In any case, to make sure your cat is easily identifiable, micro-chip or collar-ID your cat, so that it can be returned to you when found.

Adopt - Panda

Panda (front) when he was 1 day old

Panda at 4 weeks old

Panda baby has had a long journey with us. He came to us rescued by Meng and Rina from Geylang Lor 3 when he was one day old with his brother Panther. Now he is 5 weeks old. He has gone through 2-hourly bottle feedings at the start, and is now fully weaned and litter trained.

Panda was smaller and weaker than his brother, and probably would not have survived if he remained a stray kitten. His leather areas behind his hind-legs kept getting abrasions, and one of his abrasions became an abscess when he was 4 weeks old. He also started getting diarrhoea. He was put on antibiotics and medication, and his abscess and diarrhoea have healed. He then went through a bout of constipation - we put him on antacids, and he is now pooing nicely. He still remains small in size, so his daily feedings have been fortified with supplements - colostrum, acidophilus, lysine and vitamins.

Panda at 5 weeks old

Panda is a really sweet boy who purrs when we cuddle him, and he is really easy-going, getting along well with every cat he meets, and he loves to explore. He is bicoloured white with black in cap-and-saddle pattern with a mid-length tail.

Panda will need a special owner who is willing to care for a young kitten that is generally weaker than most. To visit and adopt Panda, do see the right side bar for contact details and adoption information.

Tipsy, rescued by 11-year-old Shaivi from The Waterside condo

Shaivi and her sister found Tipsy, alone by himself without a mother, near their house in Tanjong Rhu. They brought him home and wanted to keep him, and their Dad, Vin, went about researching - the family was moving to Vietnam for a couple of years by the end of August. It turns out that airlines do not permit the carriage of cats below 6 months of age. So Tipsy, while everyone wanted him to be a part of the family, had to stay in Singapore.

When they first rescued Tipsy, Vin brought him to the vet for a checkup. There, Vin shared with Dr Dawn Chong that Tipsy needed to be rehomed, and asked Dr Chong for advice. Dr Chong recommended Love Kuching to Vin, and he contacted us.

Last night, Vin and Shaivi came to our foster home with Tipsy, and Tipsy is now Panda's pen-mate, getting along really well together.

Tipsy in our kitten pen

Tipsy is 5 weeks old, and has the breed characteristics of a Chocolate Tonkinese - with chocolate colourpoints and chocolate-tabby markings. Tonkinese are crosses between Siamese and Burmese pedigrees. He has white ankle socks, and is stocky in size.

His Chocolate colourpoints

Tipsy is a really greedy, active cat that gets along well with kittens his age. He is very independent, does not like to share very much, and tends to be the dominant in personality, true to his lineage. He loves to climb, play roughhouse, and explore.

Tipsy loves to climb onto high places, like our hammock

Tipsy is healthy, dewormed and currently on a diet of Natural Balance and Solid Gold Indigo Moon. To arrange to visit and adopt Tipsy, please see right side-bar for adoption information and contact details.

new feature for adopters on lovekuchingproject.org

Adopters! Update us and all our cat-loving readers on your adopted pet cat from us!

You can now post pictures, vet check updates, stories about your adopted cat  on our main website!

To do this, go to www.lovekuchingproject.org. Click on Adopters Updates. Then click on Adopters: How to Register and Update. Follow the registration steps and you can post kitty pictures and stories straightaway, any time!

We welcome all adopters who have adopted from us before to register and update on our website! Be the first!

Addendum 18 Aug 2010:
Adopters who have signed up on our lovekuchingproject.org adopters' updates feature - the permission to post has been rectified- update now!

ASPCA Complete Cat Care Manual by Dr Andrew Etney

If you only have space for one cat care book in your library, this book is it.

We bought ours at Borders, and it costs less than $30. It is a comprehensive guide in so many ways - detailed information with pictures on feline diseases, even the rare ones. First aid protocols when dealing with emergencies, like how to perform CPR, how to lay the cat in recovery position, how to take its pulse. It is also chockful of humane advice, like how one should never purchase a cat from a pet shop, but instead adopt from a shelter or through friends, or buy from a reputed, humane pedigree breeder. Or that in the light of the cat overpopulation epidemic, breeding your cat is very much discouraged. It has great step-by-step advice on how to integrate a new cat into your household, how to train your cat, and the different personality types cats fall into.

A great find, a great buy. A definite must-have cat care reference in your library.

Adopt - Kitty and Belle

A blog reader, Philemon, wrote to us about the stories of Kitty and Belle, two rescued kitties in need of a new home.

Belle is an abandoned calico cat, now 7 months old. She was dumped in the void deck of a block in Tampines St 22 when she was a kitten at 4 months old, and was then sterilised when she was 6 months old. Unfortunately, Belle suffered a leg injury that got infected, and had to receive veterinary attention and foster care, which Philemon and a friendly neighbour have been providing. Her wound has since healed, but Belle would have problems adjusting to being a stray cat again, seeing as she was formally a house kitten that was abandoned, and now with the trauma of a previous leg injury.

Belle is an affectionate cat who loves humans, and would make a great pet cat. She is currently being boarded at Philemon's neighbour's house and her wound has healed. Belle is in need of a good home. To arrange a visit to adopt Belle, contact Philemon at 90223363.

Kitty is an adorable 5 week old kitten that was found orphaned and alone when she was 4 weeks old at a void deck also in Tampines St 22. She is a healthy and playful bicoloured white with red tabby female kitten -

Kitty is currently being fostered together with Belle. To adopt Kitty, contact Philemon directly at 90223363.