I'm in LOVE!

Thursday night DTTF and Sash went shopping together for my birthday present.  When they were coming out of the mall, this adorable gray-striped kitten with huge ears was begging them for food.  They went to Wal-Mart and picked up a couple of cans of cat food and went back to the mall.  They tried for over an hour to catch him to no avail, so they left the cans of food for him with the plan that we would all go together on Friday night to catch him. 

So, on Friday night, I packed up the cat carrier, some towels, and a couple of small containers of wet food, and we went to try to catch him.  He was definitely interested in us but was very skittish.  The kitten was very drawn to Tree Faerie, even chasing the stroller from a safe distance away.  We tried for almost two hours and came close a couple of times, but again we went home without the kitten. 

On Saturday evening, we were in the area again, so we decided to stop and try one more time.  We were walking around where he'd been seen the previous two nights.  We couldn't hear him or anything, but I kept getting the strong urge to go down the stairs that led to another area of the parking lot.  As soon as I got to the bottom, I could hear him.  I was carrying Tree Faerie, and we followed the sound of the kitty's voice while Tree Faerie kept saying, "Here, kitty-kitty," or at least what could easily be translated into such.  I looked in the bushes and couldn't see him, but I could hear him as his cries became more persistent.  DTTF was between the bushes and the outside wall of the mall, and Sash was up the hill a little ways looking in the bushes.  I started walking around the outside of the bushes towards Sash, where I thought the mews were coming from, but before I got to her I realized they were still coming from the area of the bushes. 

Since I was pretty certain he hadn't been in the bushes, I looked up.  There he was, clinging to a tree branch!  DTTF headed toward the tree, which made the kitten only climb higher.  When DTTF started climbing the tree, the kitten stopped and clung on for dear life.  DTTF reached up with his long, beautiful arms (I love my husband's arms) and plucked the kitty off the tree.  Since Sash was closer, taller, and had free hands, he handed the kitten down to her.  We walked back to the car and put the kitten in the carrier.  The poor thing was scared!

Once we got him home, we put Storm, my first rescue kitty whom I bottle fed from a week old, upstairs in the bedroom.  We opened the carrier and the itty bitty kitten tentatively ventured out, and when he was sure no one was going to snatch him up, he promptly darted for the futon..  He mewed and explored, and oddly hated being left alone.   When I was getting Tree Faerie ready for bed, he followed us to the office and explored a bit.  I went ahead and put water some of the canned cat food in the extra food and water dish we have and let him follow me to the kitchen.  He seemed more interested in exploring rather than eating, so I went ahead and took Tree Faerie upstairs and put her to bed.

When I came back downstairs, DTTF and Sash were outside hanging out.  The kitten, who we were calling Sprite at the time, followed me from the living room to the kitchen, where I'd gone to get a glass of water.  Still skittish, he darted into the office when I came out of the kitchen, so I went and sat in the office floor.  He came up to investigate me, and I reached out and petted him briefly before Storm hissed at him and he skittered off.  I grabbed my water and went outside, letting him be for a bit.

A little while later I came back inside and sat down in front of the kitchen, near the office door.  He came up to investigate me again, and this time I picked him up and petted him until he was purring loudly and begging for more.  I set him down in front of his food, and he started gulping it down.  Letting him eat in peace, I went back outside elated.

Now, I am not the "cat person" of the family.  That would be DTTF.  Cats that hate humans love DTTF for some reason, even though he does absolutely nothing to ask for their attention.  Even Storm, who I bottle fed from a week old and played "mommy" to only loves on me when she's desperate, hungry, or sick.  She drools on DTTF and demands his attention regularly.  So, being the first one to receive affectionate contact from this kitten is a huge deal for me!  I think DTTF was actually a little disappointed that it was me instead of him, but logically, I was the only one who didn't handle him when he was being "rescued," or in his mind snatched from his tree and stuck in a dark carrier in a dark box that moved and made noise (the car).

The more I watched, petted, and loved on this kitten, the more I became convinced that Rascal was a more suiting name for him.  Sprite is a cute name, but Rascal seems to really fit.

Needless to say, by the time 24 hours had passed, Rascal had made himself quite at home.  He loved on me yesterday whenever he wasn't napping, and began to accept love from everyone else, too.  He is still drawn to Tree Faerie and will chase her as she runs through the house.  He even lets her kick at him, which I am trying stop.  I crocheted him a toy with jingles and fringe stuffed with batting and catnip, and he plays with it alone or with someone. 

We may not get to keep Rascal, especially since I agreed that we would find him a good home if DTTF doesn't want to keep him, but I'm really enjoying the time I have with him now.  He is absolutely adorable!  DTTF figures him to be about 4 or 5 weeks old, although I think he's a little older, about 6 or 7 weeks old.  He's tiny, but he has good coordination, especially since he's been eating well.

I'm in love with this kitty!  He has a lot of spunk and a lot of love.  When he looks up at me with those big blue eyes, my heart just melts.  The stripes coming off his eyes are strikingly beautiful.  Now that he is getting lots of love and petting, even his fur is healthier, and we've only had him since Saturday.  It's amazing to see how much he's blossomed in such a short amount of time.  I will always feel good knowing that we gave him the opportunity to have a safe, loving, and healthy life, no matter where he goes from here.

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