The Tumultuous Triad Enjoy a Grooming Session
We started fostering kittens to find a companion for our twenty-year-old cat, Laya, who was depressed due to the recent loss of her sister. This was how Scamper, Pixel, and Blue came to live in our office.
Little Blue Hides Behind a Book called Ambient Findability
The Tumultuous Triad, a variety pack of kittens who most likely came from three different mothers (or perhaps one mother and three different fathers), arrived in a semi-feral state. Scamper was a tortoiseshell with a checkerboard chin, Pixel was a gray tabby, and Blue was a Russian Blue.
Scamper Falls Asleep on the Bookshelf
Unfortunately, Laya didn’t like this kitten triad, most likely because they were older (on the verge of adolescence), which made her feel territorial (we later found her some younger companions that she liked).
Pixel Looks Wary
When we first brought Scamper, Pixel, and Blue home, Pixel and Blue were quite terrified, whereas Scamper was one of the most friendly, sociable kittens I’d ever seen. Pixel and Blue soon came around, but during the first few days, Blue tended to go limp when held and Pixel would often go to ground.
Blue and Pixel Cuddle Together
One day I thought I’d lost Pixel. I tore the room apart, utterly bewildered given the lack of apparent hiding places. I eventually found her hanging like a bat inside a motorcycle jacket, which shows how resourceful cats can be when they want to disappear.
Blue Shows Her Tongue
The Triad were quite rowdy. On their first night in the office, they made so much noise that a neighbour came over to complain about the wild party we’d held. When we explained that it was actually the kittens who had been partying, he ended up adopting Blue. Unfortunately, the adoption didn’t work out. The neighbour’s resident cat took against Blue, so he asked us to take her back.
Scamper Sees an Exciting Moth
By the time Blue returned to us, her foster sisters had been adopted by a friend of ours and we had five new little foster kittens plus our elderly cat, making seven in total. Blue was aware that she’d been rejected and was very depressed, spending her days lying in a flattened pose on an office chair, head down and ears drooping.
Pixel Shows off Her New Tattoo
Blue still wasn’t fully socialized. She was still as gentle and sweet as she always had been, but more timid than ever.
Pixel Poses
Blue eventually started coming out of her shell and began playing with the five little foster kittens we had taken on in the interim. Unfortunately, she had no idea that she’d become such a large, strong cat.
Blue still thought of herself as a small kitten, no different from the others, but when she pounced on them, they became scared and hissed at her, turning their tiny tails into bottle brushes.
Scamper Looks Uncharacteristically Serious
Rejected again, Blue sunk further into depression. One of the little fosters, Kaya, had very good social skills and a lot of empathy. She spent some time each day snuggled up to Blue, trying to cheer her up.
Pixel Relaxes After a Long, Hard Day of Relaxing
Unfortunately, two of the boys in Kaya’s litter, feeling that it was their duty to protect the others from this large cat who could potentially squash them, became more assertive in their attempts to run her off. We eventually had to set her up with a litter box and food in the master bathroom, not an ideal situation.
No Longer Blue, She Has Since Been Renamed Pip
Luckily, a friend took an interest in Blue and decided to adopt her shortly after she was moved to her little bathroom bachelor suite.
She brought Blue home to meet her cat Squeak, a large, good-natured black male. There were some minor spats initially but she worked with them closely and soon had things running smoothly. The two cats seem to get along well now, and Blue has since been renamed Pip as part of the Pip and Squeak duo. She has become a very loving and affectionate girl in her happy new home and grew up to be a real stunner with a gorgeous, lush blue-gray coat and a lean, muscular body.
For more foster kitten profiles, see the main Foster Kitten Photo Diary page. Visit the main Cats page for information about cat psychology, behavior, communication, training, feeding, and pregnant cat and kitten care.
Scamper Shows off Her Beautiful Tortie Markings