Hope in Newborns: The Tuckers’ journey with Seth and Kendra
-Helen Morrison and the Tuckers
On Oct. 31, 2023, we received an email from the Mitzvah Fund in Montpelier. They had two 3-4 week old kittens, a boy and a girl, whose mother refused to feed or tend to them. Did we have a foster who could bottle feed them, take proper mama cat care of them? Indeed, we did. The Tucker Family. They had never tended to tiny kittens before…kittens who would need special formula bottle feeding every 2-3 hours, who would need their little privates wiped, simulating a mama cat’s licking to bring on bathroom behavior. But the Tuckers were diligent and fast learners and so conscientious. Now Kendra, a little tabby girl, and Seth, a little long haired tuxedo, are 3 months old, and absolutely precious and ready for their forever home together.
Here is the Tuckers’ account of their journey….
In early November when we were asked if we could foster a pair of 3-4 week old kittens we knew a big adventure was ahead. But we welcomed the challenge with open arms and hearts. These two were the last survivors of a litter of four. The owner of the mother cat surrendered them stating that the mother wasn't producing milk. So that's how they ended up needing a foster home and we took them in. They say it takes a village to raise a child and kittens are no exception.
-Helen Morrison and the Tuckers
On Oct. 31, 2023, we received an email from the Mitzvah Fund in Montpelier. They had two 3-4 week old kittens, a boy and a girl, whose mother refused to feed or tend to them. Did we have a foster who could bottle feed them, take proper mama cat care of them? Indeed, we did. The Tucker Family. They had never tended to tiny kittens before…kittens who would need special formula bottle feeding every 2-3 hours, who would need their little privates wiped, simulating a mama cat’s licking to bring on bathroom behavior. But the Tuckers were diligent and fast learners and so conscientious. Now Kendra, a little tabby girl, and Seth, a little long haired tuxedo, are 3 months old, and absolutely precious and ready for their forever home together.
Here is the Tuckers’ account of their journey….
In early November when we were asked if we could foster a pair of 3-4 week old kittens we knew a big adventure was ahead. But we welcomed the challenge with open arms and hearts. These two were the last survivors of a litter of four. The owner of the mother cat surrendered them stating that the mother wasn't producing milk. So that's how they ended up needing a foster home and we took them in. They say it takes a village to raise a child and kittens are no exception.
Seth
The training and supplies we received from our veterinary contact, Deb Glottmann, as well as the Kingdom Animal Shelter community and the Kitten Lady YouTube videos we were told to watch helped us along this unfamiliar journey. The first few weeks with bottle feedings and bowel stimulation every three hours around the clock involved all five of the humans in our home. Some of us got more responsibilities than others as the kittens quickly adopted our 19 year old daughter, Salem as their momma cat. So we took to wearing her hoodie sweatshirt to try and smell like her when she wasn't available for a feeding.
Kendra
I must say I was taken by surprise at how our boys handled helping with the bowel stimulation process without complaints. They aren't shy about expressing their opinions on the smells involved in cleaning out litter boxes and wet cat food feedings. So I really didn't know if they would be willing to assist with the bathroom needs. When it came time to decide on names for a boy and girl pair the whole family as well as coworkers weighed in. Our love of superheroes, fairy tales, nursery rhymes, mythology and fantasy book characters all influenced suggestions we voted on. And finally we landed on Seth and Kendra, a brother and sister pair from our family's favorite fantasy book series, Fablehaven, by Brandon Mull. Seth is a black and white fluffy boy. And his sister, Kendra is a gray tabby with some white on her chest, feet and the tip of her tail.
They are both Hemingway cats with extra nails to trim on the front paws. They use their extra special front paws like hands with opposable thumbs when grabbing objects and playing with their toys. It's truly impressive to see how they can grasp a ball and throw it rather than just batting things around the house. These kittens have grown up healthy and strong with good eating and litter box habits. They are both social and playful as well as very loving which makes them ready to snuggle up on anyone's lap or roll over for belly rubs. Seth loves to talk and Kendra likes to start wrestling matches with her brother. We couldn't be more proud of how they have thrived despite a challenging start to their lives.