two or three

A couple weeks ago we went to our neighbors for an outdoor dinner & fire. They had barn kitties looking for homes, so we agreed to take two. They said they tried to socialize the kittens, but they were very scared and scattered everywhere humans weren't. Hard to pick out what you can't see. Even the mama cats ran and hid. I caught a glimpse of a cute black kitty with white tipped paws and whiskers.

Imagine my surprise when the next day Brad said we should get "two or three". Shocker! This from the guy who doesn't like cats, and has put up with mine since day one. He thinks three will increase our odds of having a couple stick around.

When we went to pick them up they corralled the 8 week old kittens, or tried to. They still hid, but were easier to find. First one grabbed was a light grey cutie, which has since turned into a love bug. He is social, funny, loves to be held and purrs the entire time. He will crawl up on your lap if you ignore him.

The next one to come home with us was the black kitty with white paws that I wanted. It is small and very scared. I am still not sure of it's gender, think it's a female. This kitty is also playful and very fast. It has recently started purring when held, but unlike it's grey sibling would rather not be picked up.

Then came the third cat. Brad's cat. I told him if he wanted three, he had to pick it out!! I only wanted two. That poor third kitty was hissing and clawing, trying to escape when it got caught by it's tail :( and then by it's back leg. Dangling. Brad felt sorry for it, and promptly spoke up saying we will take that one too. Our neighbors are very kind people, I absolutely know it wasn't grabbed that way on purpose. It was just a wild crazy one. Still is.

We (mostly me) work with our kittens every day, multiple times. However my patience is wearing thin with Brad's untrusting cat. After days of gentling, I tried to kindly pick it up and the silly thing went bananas. Not that I blame it after it's past experience while being picked up. HIS CAT is going to take some serious time and patience. She (I think it's a she?) is coming around at a snails pace. There are some cats you just can't hold, and I think this may be one of them. Although Brad picked her up yesterday for the first time, and she didn't go crazy. Now he is a cat whisperer too {roll eyes} !!

My family have all warned me not to get close to these kittens. I am well aware the risk of loss with barn cats is profoundly higher. I still plan to get them fixed, feed them and give them basic vet care. I don't want sick cats hanging around, multiplying. We have not named them yet, everybody asks. I have a few ideas, but they are not all PC lol.

They live in one of the stalls for now, with tall cardboard blocking the slats. I put all kinds of fun cat loving things inside for their entertainment, most of which we had. I only bought one toy, and a soft pillow type bed on sale for $11. The little busy bodies use everything. They are a hoot to play with, chasing the dressage whip around.

The light grey kitty is sooo very sweet. I am considering finding him an inside home, or he may just be a well loved barn cat. 

Brad's cat is hiding under the far box, right flap

If you hang around long enough, all three come out to play

For now I am free feeding the kittens a high protein grain free dry kitten food. They also get a small can of shared wet kitten food most days as a treat, for less stress petting. I have high hopes that they will all survive, and stick around the barn. Time will tell.