Recently a good samaritan brought a stray cat to us that she wanted to have spayed and vaccinated before re-releasing her back into the wild. Catch and release programs are very successful in helping with population control of feral cat colonies and sometimes generous people are willing to contribute to these causes privately, as was the case here.
When this cat was brought to us she was very timid, but did not show any aggression. With a gentle hand and soft voice we were able to coax her out of her crate and examine her, this is when we discovered that she was pregnant. She was almost ready to give birth! At this point we contacted Animal Adoptions of Flamborough to see if they had room to foster this “soon to be” mom. The family who brought this cat to us was very grateful to know that she and her kittens would be well cared for and made a generous donation to help with their care. We immediately named her “Ivory” and spent the next several days cleaning her up and gaining her trust. Sherry, one of our client care reps, offered to take the first “kitten watch” shift and took Ivory home over the Easter long weekend as we anticipated the kittens to arrive any day. Ivory however was not yet ready!
Ivory stayed at Clappison Animal Hospital as we eagerly awaited her litter to arrive. She was given a large kennel in a private room where she could be comfortable; she was also given a nesting box where she could go when she was ready to deliver. On the afternoon of April 23rd Ivory went into labour, she was very tolerant of our curious staff members checking in on her, and has loved the increase in her feedings and attention. Ivory has proved to be a wonderful mom to her six bundles of joy!
It is incredibly rare that Ivory had not one, not two, but four solid white babies! We see many cats come through our doors on a daily basis, but only a few are solid white. Her other little ones are vibrant brown tabbies. Due to their fragile state we have refrained from handling them just yet, but mom has been getting lots of love anytime she needs a break from her little rascals. It won’t be long before this little family can be fully examined, dewormed, vaccinated and become available to find their forever homes; until then, they will go to live with one the amazing foster families that helps Animal Adoptions of Flamborough!
