How 9 Kittens Changed My Family​

I thought my mom was crazy when she told me we had nine kittens living in our backyard. Downtown Ottawa is not known for its feral cat population, and my yard borders the main street which is not the ideal place for a furry family. However, with some pleading from my mother, I went out to investigate.

Meeting the Hooligans

They were walking fur balls, far from mangey street cats. After seeing how adorable they were, I took up the mammoth task of catching nine apprehensive and well-clawed fur babies.

At this point, I needed help, so my sister and I spent the beginning of our summer armed with tuna and determination. We familiarized ourselves with their hiding spots and managed to catch two. There I was, completely overwhelmed, holding two terrified, flea infested kittens. My mom (who never thought we'd take on the cause) was adamant they go to the humane society as quickly as possible. We all agreed that it was the best option and my dad and I made a quick trip to drop them off. On our way back my sister called and told us she had caught another one.

My Maternal Instincts

Creamsicle was bright orange with a huge personality. He was continually making a fool of himself, and he was more lively than his other two siblings. We decided to keep him and see if a family friend might want a kitten. Sure enough, they did, and it broke my heart to let him go. A week passed, and we caught five more. Each baby was a small victory, and to my surprise, I started getting attached. I was officially a kitten mother. I stayed up late, cleaned litter boxes, named them all, and discovered their full range of personalities. Our living room was transformed into a kitten haven, and my entire family began taking shifts on kitten care. No one bickered or complained, we nursed each other's cat scratches and doused everything in god-awful flea spray. Even my dog took one for the team and put up with them even though they followed her everywhere.

Forever Homes

Eventually, we adopted them all out. A few went to a small cat rescue, and the rest went to family friends. It was the closest thing I've experienced to motherhood, and I had "kittenlag" for the next week. It broke my heart to say goodbye, but my sister is deathly allergic and could only put up with constant sneezing for so long. My mom misses them though, so after we have some time to ourselves, another fuzzy family isn't out of the picture. There's still one kitten in the backyard who's managed to get away. Today my mom called me and let me know she caught him. I'm ready to be a mom again.