New Kitty

A lot has been going on in the last few months! A new career turn for me (writing is going very well, I have several regular online writing jobs) and a move coming up on October 1. We're moving back to London, since we were unable to find a suitable place in a good neighbourhood, within our price range, that would take the dog. And now we have a kitten, too.

I've spoken with several people who said that another dog or cat would make a big difference in Harley's separation anxiety. One guy I met at the dog park said his german shepherd would chew through doors when she was left alone! After they got her a cat, she calmed right down and now can be left alone without incident. Amazing.

So since we have a solid move-in date, we decided to get a kitten for Harley. Ok, for me too. I really miss Birdie, and I know she's in a great home... but now that we have a dog who won't EAT a cat, I really wanted another one. So I started searching Kijiji for a free kitten. A few days later, I found a listing for a litter that was born June 10. There were 5 kittens, and two of them were white with a grey mohawk and black noses. I emailed the lady and asked if the female white one was still available, and told her a bit about myself and my family. She responded and said she would love to give me the last girl kitty.

Yesterday I made arrangements to borrow a cat carrier. The same friend who lent me that also gave me a small litter box! Thanks Stephie! That cut down on a lot of cost, and let me spend a little more on quality kitten food (Blue Buffalo brand: no by-products, no wheat/soy/corn, no artificial flavours). I also got some Swheat Scoop litter.

Swheat Scoop is made from wheat and other grains. It is completely renewable, biodegradeable, flushable (supposedly), clumping, and chemical-free. I love the fact that it has no clay or other mined products. I've read a lot about clay litter, and how it can cause illness and death in cats and kittens. I got the small bag to try it out.

I met the lady and her daughter in the pet store parking lot. The lady was carrying the kitten in her arms. My first thought was, "man, she's fuzzy!" She has longer wispy hairs all over her body. She's not a long-haired cat, but she'd definitely not a short hair! Her eyes are a weird yellow-brown colour and the black mark on her nose is so cute...she is pure white, except for the streak of grey on her forehead.
She's still very small, being only 10 weeks. I haven't weighed her yet but she's definitely under three pounds. She's got a lot of attitude in that little body! She has already told Harley to back off a few times. He needs to learn to respect her space. She's not afraid to spit and use her claws!

In any case, I'll post back in a while with a review on the litter. Hopefully it works well for her, because I really don't want to use clay litter. I'm actually toying with the idea of training her to use the toilet...