Larry and Mo update

Hey guys

The kittens turned six weeks old on Christmas Day and are coming along fine. Their ears and tails are fully formed and perked up, and they have that cute square silhouette that is so distinctive of young kittens. They really are the most adorable things...they keep me laughing all day.

Mo (the grey one) has grey eyes to match her coat, and Larry has sky blue eyes and a small patch of grey on the top of his head that resembles a Mohawk haircut. They really are a couple of characters; I didn't know how apt those names would be when I chose them

They can already jump over the gate that keeps them in their nest, jump off the sofa or my desk. I had to give up the battle to keep them off the computer desk because they climb right up my leg. If they're not locked in the closet I let them sleep on a little pallet next to the monitor where it's warm...it's a fair compromise

Here's a video of them playing in their nest made today. Sorry about the poor quality - I'm working on getting a real camera.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feralvr 

OMgosh - are they ever THE most precious babies..... I just cracked up at Mo playing in the beginning and Larry just peacefully watching. Then AMBUSH - Mo on top of Larry and that's all it took for Larry to start up. How very sweet. AWWWW They look so wonderful - you have done such a great job raising these babies It was wonderful to watch that video

LOL -  they can get to playing pretty rough. Sometimes when I have them in the closet I can hear some loud THUMPS coming from in there But when I go to check on them they stop and just look at me like "can we come out now, pleeeeeeeeease!?!" So that's why I put the web cam on the fence hoping to catch them. It's so hard to capture those moments.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LDG 

HAPPY SIX WEEK BIRTHDAY (and Merry Christmas LOL) !!!!!!
They are SO INCREDIBLY CUTE! You have done SO WELL with them - just look at them! That mohawk is just the cutest thing EVER, and with sky blue eyes to match?
Thank you SO MUCH for posting this, and for keeping us up on how they're doing!
BTW - how's it going with food and the litter box?
And you MUST give them kisses from me!!!!!! (Hopefully without getting clawed to death LOL).
Are you clipping those little claws yet?

They love the Little Friskies turkey shreds and beef pate I bought and don't make a mess at all eating anymore. I totally didn't think to buy dry food when I picked up a month's supply of everything last payday. They would certainly be eating it now. I'm giving them half a 5.5 oz can (1/4 can each) in the morning, 120 ml each of formula during they day, and then the other half of the can in the evening. I have one more can of KMR left, so I'm going to let them finish it off since it has so much their immune systems need.

They seem to be doing okay with the litter boxes. At first I just had one for them both, but then I noticed wet spots on the newspaper, and then on my desk and finally Larry peed on the sofa when I let them sleep with me overnight. I'm not exactly sure what is going on with him. But they now have their own litter boxes and I'm not letting them sleep with me overnight anymore until I can be sure that problem is solved. It could have been that Larry wasn't okay about jumping off the sofa and finding his way to the litter box at night. I'll have to keep my eye on him and wait for an opportunity to show him how to get back to the box when he has to go.

I did clip their claws last week but I'm not sure I did it right. I was afraid to take off too much, they need it again already. It's not too much of a problem just now. Sometimes they attack my ear when I'm asleep and I wake up with dried blood on my ear But I think they are learning to be more gentle with me. I'm pretty amazed at how much they trust me to do things like give them baths. They are so patient when I wipe their little mouths and faces with a wash cloth, or clean the sleep boogers out of their eyes.

I will definitely give them plenty of sugars just for you

Sleeping on their computer desk pallet:

It's weird when I look back. Those first few days after I took them in seemed to last forever - I just wanted them to survive and get weaned. Now the time seems to be flying by and every day brings something new. They keep me pretty busy, I don't have much of a chance to reflect too often. Like now, I just got home and they were hungry and crying for food. They are getting a little more independent day by day. But what they want besides food is just to sit on me or next to me. When I get up to go to the kitchen or something they wake up and watch my every move. You can see in that video when they heard a noise they stopped playing to check if it was me coming to get them out

I looked at their bottoms again today and referenced the graphic Ann and MA made to help sex kittens. I'm sure Mo is a female but still not 100% about Larry. I'll be taking them to the vet in a couple weeks and then I'll know for sure. I think even if Larry is a girl I'll keep the name

Hmmm, I just looked again and they look more hazel now. I have really bad light in this house in the winter except for about two hours in the late afternoon. It could be the difference between natural light and a bulb. Then again I think I read somewhere kittens eyes change colors for the first few months. But then Mo's eyes have always been very dark colored, so I dunno.

I bought them a bag of Meow Mix dry food today so they can free feed. They took right to it and both ate for a good five minutes. They consumed about a half a cup between them.

I think what I'll do is give them wet in the morning for breakfast and let them free feed throughout the day, and maybe give them more wet food in the evening. I need to figure out exactly how much to put out so they don't over eat and get all fat...I can't afford diabetic cats

It's a beautiful sunny day today with temps in the 60s F, so I put them out on my screened-in porch to soak up some sun, but they're not in to that yet - they still just want to be with Meowmy

And it's settled, little Mohawk kitty is named Larry regardless of sex These little furry bundles of love owe their survival as much to you guys here at TCS as to me - if you think we should keep the name Larry then so be it

I'll try to get a decent shot of Larry's bottom and post that with the sexing reference graphic so you guys can help me decide.

Thanks sweetie! I probably gave them too much dry food, but it's the first time they've been able to eat as much as they want and I needed a gauge to figure out how much they should eat versus how much they want to eat. What I do is feel their tummies to see if it's too taught and full too decide if they've eaten to much. I know it's not the most "scientific" way to manage the diet but they change from day to day. I'm still giving them KMR and maybe mix in some pumpkin if their poops don't look right. I'll get them to the vet soon and checked out.

Larry and his butt 

Sleepy babies

geeze, I'm so tired of these lousy pics I'm tempted to get all impulsive and buy a decent camera. but I can't, that money needs to be saved for their vet costs. i'll get one soon.

in the meantime here are couple pics for comparison's sake:

Mo at five days old

Mo at seven weeks old