Tugboat was one of my foster kittens,  and I just received an update and photo from her new home. Just before she was adopted, we found out that Tugboat was actually a girl,  making it a priority to give her a new name.  The Adoptions staff at the Sonoma Humane Society had a sense of humor,  and listed her on the reports as "Tugboatress."  Fortunately her new owners named her Samantha.  Very nice name,  I like it.
   You can see in the photo she had grown quite  bit and it looks like her green eyes have gotten a more intense color.  I am tickled to see a photo and to know she is in a wonderful home.
Ann

    Today was a great day for me.  This was the first time I was involved in the adoption process for my foster kittens.  The usual process is they go out on the Adoption floor and then they are gone... which for kittens is usually very fast. It hasn't been too satisfying of closure after the couple of months of being their "mom."
    Tugboat & Marina found homes because of referrals of some of our Sonoma Humane Society Board members (thank you!). Each of the families got to meet the kitten's in my home before they were old enough for the adoption.
    Today was the big day when I met the families at the shelter so they could finish the paperwork, and take their new family member home.  Rather than being sad to see the kitten's go,  this was a warm and wonderful experience. Thank you, thank you and have a good life kitties!
Ann

   Once in a while these 8 week old kittens hold still!  Today they decided to try something new,  all 3 of them in the kitten hammock at one time.  Made for an adorable photo that I will keep for a long time.  From left it is Tugboat, Daryl, and Marina.
   Tomorrow Marina and Tugboat have their spay surgery, and if all goes as planned, they go to their new forever homes Saturday afternoon.  Daryl will have his surgery next week, but isn't placed with a family yet.  I am not worried,  he is as cute as a button and someone will fall for his big green eyes.

Today little Daryl joins us. He is a litter mate of my two foster kittens and needed someone to hang out with for the next week or so. They seemed to all accept this new arrangement,  even if they hadn't been together since a few days old, so all is good.
    All the of them will be going in for surgery to be sterilized in the next week or so,  and then on to their forever homes. 
    I think Daryl is going to be a really special kitty for his new owners.  Like many bottle fed babies,  he is super friendly.  He also has a VERY loud purr for such a little guy and uses it often.  What a sweetie!

Just posting a few cute photos of Marina when she was a tiny baby. i hasn't started this blog when I took these photos,  so wanted to share.
Ann

Life is full of surprises!  We all thought Tugboat was a boy, but today was vaccines, tests, and exams since he (she) is 7 weeks old.  Well, the exam we did when younger obviously tricked everyone, because they came back with the news that Tugboat is a girl!
This is not the first time this has happened to me with bottle-fed kittens.  Believe me, I leave it to the experts because their private parts are so little when they are really young, that I can't tell at all. Obviously it can be tough for even the expert to tell sometimes. 
So, Ms.Tugboat already has a new home next week after the spay procedure, so I am going to let her new family decide a girl name (or not). I will always think of her as Tugboat, or Tug for short.  So now, lets see if I can remember to refer to her and a "she."

Tugboat is a super cute kitten.  Did I already say that?  Anyway, he and his sister, Marina, have been the easiest bottle-fed kittens I have had so far.  They are healthy, happy, and pure love and joy.  Tugboat is funny because he has a very "Siamese" meow.  His mom was a Siamese, and he may be all black fur, but he has a big meow for such a little guy.  His eyes have just changed to his permanent color of green, and they are very striking.
When do I hear his meow?  Whenever he wants food, out of his crate, picked up and cuddled, etc.  I guess he thinks I am his mom, and since I have been caring for him since I week old, I guess I kinda am.

I started my foster adventure with Marina when she was only 1 week old.  This is my best photo of her, I call it her "OMG" photo.  Such blue eyes!  As you can imagine, kittens are constantly on the move, so I was delighted to get this special photo.
  Marina has been such an easy kitten, she eats well, has perfect behavior in her cat box habits, and is a real sweet girl.  Well, except when she gets excited and wants to play.  Then she is having fun in the little kitten clumsy way.  Very cute  and fun to watch.  At 4 weeks old, she does still take lots of naps, however, which is good for this foster parent...

This is a video of one of my foster kittens, and she is only 1 week old here!  Her eyes won't open for a another few days, but already she is a good little eater.  By the way, I was pleased to even get this video.  It can be a challenge to feed a kitten and hold a camera!