How We Met Bobby Boop Chapter 1
Uncategorized July 29th, 2010
The following is a journal my wife kept when we first met our number four cat Bobby Boop. You can find out more at our blog Cat Behaviour Maven
On Friday morning, October 27, 2000, I thought I heard a bird in the backyard; sound was
a bit odd, but we do get wonderful and strange sounding birds. Also heard the bird for the short time that we were home Saturday. Woke up very early Sunday morning, fed the cats, cleaned their box, made a pot of coffee and brought in the newspaper. Read the funnies and a terrific article in one of the magazines. Bird still there, odd I thought, so clad in my nightgown and light jacket, I went into the backyard to find the bird. Thought it might be injured and was not sure what or how I would care for it, but anyway, tracked the noise to the pool equipment area and climbed around in there (not easy) and found, on top of a pile of wet leaves, a kitten.
By then Ira woke up. He said the mother cat would be around for the creature, so we put it in a box and tried to keep it warm and out of the drizzle. Four hours later Ira decided that even if the mother did return, what chance did the creature have outside. Besides, we think creature had been there for several days (I am sure Mom was around). Ira went to the pet store and bought kitten formula and bottles. The kitten now lives in a large box in our bathroom where it is warm. While Ira was at the pet store I downloaded instructions on the care of orphaned kittens. Have not seen Mom, whoever she may be.
I took the creature to the vet on Monday, October 30. He is about 10 to 14 days old and has a bit of a cold. Doctor did not want to give him mediation, but creature sneezed one time too many, so we have amoxicillan - 3 drops every 12 hours. Creature goes back in 2 weeks. In the meantime, I mix up kitty formula, bottle feed it, burp it and potty it. All the while, of course, mindful that it could have feline leukemia. (Feline leukemia is similar to Aids in humans. It is highly contagious to cats and there is no cure.)
Our three cats did not get their feline leukemia booster shots this year because the current thinking on the subject is that the boosters could cause skin cancer. Not often, but with indoor cats, why chance it. So after I brought the creature home I loaded our 3 cats in carriers and took them for their boosters since the Doctor said it would be a very good idea to get this done ASAP.
Anyway, creature’s name is Bobby Boop. He still has several challenges ahead of him. He
has to survive the trauma of kittenhood, he has to get over the cold and hopefully he will test clean for feline leukemia. Please say a prayer for him. He cannot be tested until he is at least 6 weeks old.
For the next month I have to keep him isolated and use plenty of disinfectant, etc. We pray for Bobby Boop. Oh yes, he is not exactly black, but almost black and you can see tiger stripes of gold-orange down his back and just a touch of white under his chin.
We are going to Las Vegas from December 1 to 5 and I have to find a home for him for those 5 days. He cannot be boarded because he has not had shots, etc. and he needs special care because he is so young. He will be old enough to be tested for feline leukemia when we return; we hope he will test clean so we can add this creature to our family. He weighed 8 ounces when I found him.
Learn more about Bobby Boop and his siblings at Cat Behaviour Maven