Too Many Kittens!!

Being responsible for the kitty portion of this blog is a big responsibility!  I have been working so hard!  I have to use my ears to hear what's happening in this place and then I have to learn new things!  I think maybe I'm too old for this job!  But I've been studying and today I'm going to tell you some of the things I've learned about kittens!  But before I do I promised I would show you where I live.  So here you go.  This is it.

One of my people friends, Vickie, the one who carries her big camera around all the time, called this my Queendom!  Isn't that cool?!  I'm not a queen!  But Adam was a king, so . . . .  Queen Smokey?  Hmmmm.

Okay now to kittens.  I've been hearing my people talk about "too many kittens."  Well, I didn't understand what they meant because we don't have kittens at StreetCats.  Not really little ones.  So I just kept listening until I figured out that outside of StreetCats there are too many kittens who never find a nice place to live.  That is so sad!!  So I started doing some reading to see what we need to know in order to help.

First, I'll tell you a story about how cats came to be.  This is a Hebrew story and is about when all the animals were on the ark with Noah.  Well, when he loaded up there were no little cats, only big ones like lions and tigers.  But the rats on the ark weren't being nice.  They were making baby rats really fast and they were eating up the food on the ark!  So . . . God made a lion sneeze and out flew a cat!  I'm pretty sure not everyone believes this Hebrew legend, but I don't doubt it.  I mean look at me!  Don't I look a little like a lion??

Well, however kittens got here, there are for sure a lot of them!  I read that there are 500 million domestic cats in the world!  Wow, sort of puts my life in perspective!!  But there are also a lot of cats who aren't domesticated.  They're wild!!  I read that there are 60 million in the US alone!!  The people call them feral cats.  And here's something else that is absolutely shocking!  Not everyone loves cats in the way my StreetCats people do!  Maybe they love them in a different way, because in Asia, 4 million cats are eaten every year . . . by people!  I have learned that there is such a thing as learning too much!  I could have gone the rest of my life without knowing that and it would have been just fine!  I also could have gone without learning the mean things people have done to cats . . . because they are afraid of us!!  Really?!  Afraid of us???  I'm not even going to tell you any of the things that have been done!  You don't need to hear it!  I'll just say I'm even more thankful now for the people at StreetCats who take care of me!!

I'm going to stop writing now.  Next time I write I'll tell you what StreetCats is doing about the too many kittens problem.  Let me leave you with just a little more info.  A cat can have up to nine kittens at one time!  And they might not look alike because they can have different dads.  Shocking!  I read the largest litter ever recorded was 19 babies!  The oldest cat to have kittens was 30 years old.  In her life she had 218 kittens!  I bet she was tired!  Now here is a math problem for you.  How many kittens might a pair of cats be responsible for producing?  No matter what answer you come up with, it's a heck of a lot!

Meet - Kiki!

Kiki is a short haired Tortie.  Tortie, if you haven’t heard the term before now, is short for tortoise.  "Torties" have colors that resemble those of some turtles’ shells.   Her birthday is approximately 10/04.  She is front declawed.

She’s doing fine at StreetCats with other cats around, but reports are that she does not do well with children.  We don’t know how she would react to dogs. She does, however, react well to people!

She loves to be combed and brushed.  She is affectionate, too.  One of her most distinctive traits is that she likes to be vocal.  We get lots of “talk” from her.  It’s as if we can carry on conversations with her, except for the fact that we have no idea what she is saying, of course. 

Having a home, at StreetCats, awaiting adoption is not her first time around.  She was adopted from StreetCats in 9/13.  Unfortunately she has been returned to us.  Her owner was an elderly woman that could no longer take care of her.  StreetCats cats are all indoor cats, and Kiki, was accustomed to living in an apartment.  

As I said, she was returned.  Our philosophy is that once a cat becomes a StreetCat he or she will always be a StreetCats cat.  As in this case, the owner could no longer keep her and returning her to us was the best thing for her.  We will continue to love her and take care of her until she finds the right owner.  Often it seems that the cats choose the people rather than the people choosing the cat.

She is healthy!  She has been to the vet and thoroughly checked out.  She has had all of the tests and vaccinations needed and has been given a clean bill of health!  She has been spayed, and microchipped, too!  When the new owner comes along we will update it with the new owner’s contact information.  The chip is invaluable in helping lost pets be returned to their owners!  Also, her first year’s registration fee is paid by StreetCats!

If you are interested in meeting Kiki, feel free to come by StreetCats at 6520 E. 60th St, in Tulsa, 10:30 - 5:00 Tuesday though Saturday, or call our message line, 918-298-0104, with any questions that you may have.  We would love to show you around and introduce you to Kiki and I’m sure that she would love to meet you, too!

Really???

I have no idea how this happened or what I'm doing.  I knew that King Adam got adopted because he quit coming to visit me.  But now all of a sudden I'm supposed to write a blog?  What's a blog??  And what am I supposed to write about?  Well, as I often do, I turned to my best friend, Linda.  Here is a picture of her and me.   Oh, and of my own personal brush!  I love to be brushed!

So Linda told me to just start by telling you a little bit about myself.  This is so embarrassing!  You don't want to hear about me!  Oh well, here I go.  My name is Smokey.  A vague memory tells me that's not the only name I've had.  I'm about 11 years old.  That's pretty old, but there are cats a whole lot older, so let's say I'm middle aged.  I don't remember being a kitten, I don't remember if I ever had baby cats of my own.  I don't remember how many homes I've had, but I'm a StreetCats cat now, and that's forever!  I know I don't have claws on my front paws, but I sure don't know why.  People say I'm pretty.  Do you think so?

People say a lot about my color.  They call it blue.  Sometimes people look at me and say, "Oh, a Russian Blue!"  Then another person will say that I'm a Chartreux or a Korat.  Well, at least that last one rhymes with what I am.  A cat!
Now here is one thing I certainly do not understand.  They talk a lot about my beautiful fur and then they shave it off!  What's with that?!  Maybe they're jealous because they don't have blue fur.  Which do you like better, fur or no fur?

Now I'm going to tell you two more things and then I'm going to go.  First, I like to stay up high.  I have my own home at StreetCats . .  on top of the cages.  I have a house there, potty boxes, my food, everything a cat could need.  Sometimes the other cats visit me, but it is my home!  Maybe I'll show you later.  Second, I am not available for adoption.  They say I have "health problems". Honestly I don't know what that's about.  I feel great!!
Whew!  I'm so glad that's over!  I hope Linda thinks I did okay!  It actually wasn't too bad.  And I have an idea about something else to tell you!  So maybe I'll talk to you soon!