Happy Endings, we hope

One of the little freeloader cats that mugs us for food each day is this little three colored kitty we call "two dat." She has sibling called "who dat." Two Dat is the most playful, assertive kitten from that litter. She is the one that will boldly walk up to the fence, reach under, and snag Chester's toys from him. Despite all her boldness, she doesn't hold much with people/monkeys when they aren't dishing out food.

A few weeks ago, she showed up on our porch with an obviously injured leg. I was worried she found another trap like the one that landed Peg in our home. She wouldn't let us even get close enough to her to slide a plate of food her way.

But, she seemed to be recovering use of the leg/paw. I haven't yet seen the playfulness return, but there is progress.

Then, Friday afternoon, when I came home, I found her curled up with a new born kitten. The kitten was dead, but she was being protective of it. Later, the kitten disappeared along with Two Dat.

Two Dat showed back up on Saturday morning. And, Saturday afternoon, while repainting the front door, I kept hearing kitten cries. I found a little mini Two Dat in a bushy corner at the front of our house, right under a window. The little kitten cried and cried for its mother. I worried that my painting was keeping Two Dat from her kitten, so I packed it in, and went inside.

We spent the evening and night listening to the kitten cry from time to time. It was heart breaking. On one hand, we take our responsibilities for the living things around our home (except spiders and snakes) seriously. But, we also know that there isn't much you can do with a day old kitten. We were afraid that her inexperience, and the previously dead kitten, was going to cause Two Dat to abandon, and let die, this kitten.

The kitten isn't in the corner this morning, and Two Dat hasn't been around. We hope that she has moved the kitten to a more sheltered place, and is tending it. We should know in about 6 weeks, if it shows up at feeding time.