Hattie came in with 3 siblings and they were all very scared of humans, at 9 weeks of age. We split them into separate foster homes, so they would have one to one attention and maybe come out of themselves and begin to trust humans. Lucy fostered Hattie and Hattie flourished, as did all her siblings who were rehomed successfully!Hattie was rehomed to a family with 2 male cats: "Hi Lucy, do you remember a little kitten you fostered, a little white and black feral kitten you named Hattie? Well, we adopted Hattie on December 2nd last year and promised to get in touch to let you know how she settled in. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get in touch, I can't believe how time has flown! The good news is that Hattie has settled in brilliantly and has rapidly become a very much loved member of the family, not just with her human family but also her kitten "brothers", Charlie and Archie. Archie,the bigger and calmer of the two, took to her straight away. Charlie, the more skittish one, was more wary and there was a lot of hissing and spitting for the first couple of days but by the third day they were all playing together like old friends. We had something of a shock after only two weeks when first Archie and then Charlie began behaving in a rather unbrotherly way towards Hattie and it was clear she was in season! We rang Christabel to arrange to have the boys neutered and had to keep them apart from Hattie (unless supervised) till it could be done. Poor Hattie - she came into season twice more before she could be spayed and it really unsettled her. She kept "calling" and hiding under things and peed on my bed twice. Still, there was no harm done, duvets can be washed and I always keep spares. As soon as she was spayed she settled down to her old self. She really is the most lovable little kitten, she's grown quite a bit but she's still quite small, about half the size of Archie and two - thirds the size of Charlie. They are about four weeks older than Hattie but I think she'll always be petite, she's got a smaller head and paws and a shorter tail, and she's like a feather to pick up. She's very playful, never rough or aggressive although she can hold her own when play - fighting, very affectionate, she loves being stroked and tickled and doesn't mind being picked up, if she's not in the mood she just runs off. She's not a big eater but she likes dry food best and occasionally tuna. Her favourite toys are her catnip mouse and a golf ball she chases round the house, she loves going in the garden and always comes back when you call her. We are so glad that we were able to give her a home; you were right, she does love other cats and would have been miserable as an only cat, she spends a lot of her time curled up with one or both of the boys, even when she's awake. She has been vaccinated as well as spayed and I have seen Donna and Karen from ARC when I have been at the vets so they may have passed on news of Hattie. I am including some pictures so you can see how she is although she rarely stays still for long enough to have her picture taken! She is a truly wonderful little cat and you can rest assured she will always be loved and cared for, as my teenage son put it, she's well cool!" |