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The Jiro Palace renovations are finished, so Hazel and her kittens have been moved to their new digs. We just closed the door of their cat carrier – their safe cave – and air-lifted them across the room. Hazel was not thrilled about being moved, but she seemed to understand pretty quickly that it was an upgrade.

It was late evening by the time everything was finished, so we put in food and water – and cameras – and left them in peace for the night. The security cameras are so helpful! Next morning I could see that Hazel had come out of the carrier soon after I left. She tiptoed around at first, but seemed to like what she saw. She found the water and kibble up on the low shelf, she found the litter box, and also the wet food. Before midnight she had eaten, used the box, and been up on the shelf to drink. Throughout the night she would go in the carrier with the kittens, then come out and relax and stretch out on the floor for a few minutes before going back in. I think she likes it.

Her kittens sure do! Two of them came out of the carrier first thing in the morning and started to explore. Then a third one. It seems to be a good surface for them to walk – not too slippery. I think they’re walking better than Mouse’s kittens at the same age.

Our new tabby foster kitty is a mom! She had four kittens last evening, and they all seem to be doing well. With great consideration she had four kittens in four different colors – so easy to tell them apart! There’s a tabby, a calico, a black one, and a little light orange one.

Tabby mom is semi-feral, and feels very protective of her kittens. She’s living in a largish cat carrier inside a large dog cage, and that’s where the kittens were born – inside the carrier. Mom comes out to eat and drink and use the litter box, but she basically lives in her safe cave.

This setup was recommended to me for feral or semi-feral pregnant kitties. First, they feel safer when they have a cave to be in. Second, you can reach in the top to pet them if they allow it, so there’s a little outreach possible right away. Third, During the birthing, if mom runs into difficulties, she’s already in a carrier ready to go the vet. In an emergency, you don’t want to be trying to get a wildcat into a carrier.

Tabby mom didn’t have any difficulties. We missed the first one being born, checked on her in person in time for the second one – and then retired and watched the rest on the security camera we had set up. It’s not a great picture, so I can’t tell you the birth order, but she felt less stressed with us out of the room. And we could see she was calm, knew what to do, and things were going as they should.

Given how protective she feels, and not very trusting, it’s remarkable how tolerant she is. I open the top of the carrier and pet her head, or take photos – her response is to just freeze in place – but I can work with that.

On April 11 we got a new pregnant kitty who still doesn’t have a name. Last night she gave birth to four kittens of four different colors!

She is a rescue from a farm situation where the new owner was threatening to shoot the cats. She is not very trusting of humans, so we decided on the safest setup for a pregnant mama. We put her in a big dog crate, with a cat carrier as a safe spot within it. That way, if anything goes wrong, I wouldn’t need to somehow corral her if she needed to go to the vet – she’d already be in a carrier.

She spent some time quarantined in a different room, and yesterday morning we brought her into the big room where Mouse is, hoping they would get used to each other. I envisioned the kittens of both moms growing up together, if the moms got along. There were no fireworks when they met, so that plan might work.

We moved her just in time, because last evening she had her babies! She is a very stripy tabby cat, and one of her kittens is very like her – a mini-me. But one is calico, one is solid black, and one is pale orange with grey spots! I have had several litters with all black babies, so this is weird! I can tell them all apart from day one!

Once I knew the birthing was happening, I checked on her once, and then we watched only via the camera. When I want in, she just froze, so we just left her to it. We couldn’t see a lot of what was going on, but we could at least see that mom was very calm and seemed to know what to do. There were already the black kitten and the calico. I believe the light orange one came next and the tabby last.

Mom is semi-feral, but there seems to be absolutely no meanness in her. Since we got her, she has stayed mostly inside the carrier. She comes out to eat or drink, or use the litter box; at night she has prowled around some and tried to find a way out of the cage. I feel bad about keeping her confined, but it’s her best path to becoming adoptable, and the safest place for her babies to be born.

Whenever I went into the room she was inside the carrier – her safe place. But I have been able to reach in through the top of the carrier and pet her head. She has never bitten or scratched. She doesn’t seem to actively dislike it, and even showed slight signs of liking the feeling. She’s shedding, so it must feel good!

Early this afternoon I discovered that it’s still true. Even with babies I can still reach in and pet her. I managed to bring out each baby and weigh him or her, and then get them back in without upsetting her too much. I’m glad, because that’s important info to have, but otherwise I’m leaving her alone except for bringing food and water. It’s a fine balancing act: she has to get used to people, and learn that they are a (mostly) good thing, but I need to respect her instinct to hide and protect her little ones. She just has to put up with me from time to time – and her glare tells me what she thinks of that! I think she’ll be persuaded in time.

Her babies weighed in at 120 grams to 140 grams at < 24 hours old, which is pretty huge! They seem strong and are having no trouble nursing. And their distinctive coloring is pretty adorable!