So, I posted a few weeks ago about my adult kitties both being diagnosed with feline leukemia. Which, naturally, made me a bit depressed and weepy. Then I got proactive and started looking stuff up online about it. In the midst of my research, I got a phone call at work from Felines Inc, one of the local no-kill cat shelters in the area. It was about something unrelated, but after the "work" part of the conversation was over, I just blurted out, "Do you happen to have any fe-leuk positive kitties for adoption?" She paused and said, no, they did not usually keep felv+ cats at the shelter since they were so difficult to adopt out and the disease was so contagious. BUT, she did have a foster mom who currently had two felv+ kittens for adoption.

Their mom was a semi-feral who'd been picked up and cared for until she had her kittens. Unbeknownst to the rescuers, she was felv+. She went to a cat sanctuary for felv+ ferals and two of the four kittens had already found homes. The remaining two, a brother and sister, were still looking and were currently living in a foster's bathroom to keep them separate from her felv- cat.

So, thinking that I was completely nuts, I asked for the foster mom's contact info. I was given her phone number and told that she was currently on vacation, but to call her in a week. I wrote the number down and banished it to my wallet. I have two felv+ cats whose current vet bill I have yet to pay. Felv+ cats do not live very long, even compared to FIV+ cats. Isn't going through the heartbreak of losing my two current babies going to be more than enough? Why set myself up for going through it any more times than necessary?

On the other hand, who else is going to adopt two little kittens who are pretty much guaranteed to succumb to cancer before they're five? They have to go together as they are inseparable. And my guys just LOVE kittens unlike most adult cats I know.

So, I caved and called the foster mom last week. She was absolutely delighted to hear from me since she was honestly starting to panic about every finding these kittens a home.

Long story (slightly) shorter, I have been approved to adopt them and she will be bringing them over to me on Thursday night. Felines Inc is even waiving their adoption fee because they are "special needs" kitties.

Three months old. Already spayed and neutered. Brown tabby domestic shorthairs currently named Garbanzo and Soya. I will likely be changing their names to something more fitting with my Lord of the Rings theme. (Gimli and Merry, maybe?)


Garbanzo - [link]
Soya - [link]

Now I am in the flurry of cleaning my place up and attempting to re-kitten-proof everything. My boss redid my bill for my babies today and I just found out that he's only charging me $50 for well over $200 worth of tests and vaccines. (I complain about it a lot, but I have a good job working for the vet.)

Getting excited for the new babies!

And... open to suggestions on what to name them. Remember! Lord of the Rings names! I've already used Frodo, Strider, Glorfindel, Eowyn, Legolas, Marigold, and Pippin. (Eowyn and Legolas being my current kitties... Frodo, Strider, and Glorfindel being my gf's kitties... Marigold and Pippin being former fosters in my care.)