May 26, 2010

Two?

Lazar Wolf: Two? What would I do with two?
Reb Tevye: The same as you do with one.
from Fiddler On The Roof
Some of you may remember when Catzee disappeared last August. She was my mouser with tortitude par excellence, and it was devastating to lose her. Of course Rascal is an excellent hunter as well, but considering his health problems, we realize that he may not be around as long as we would wish. We've been thinking about that.

As hard as it's been to consider replacing Catzee, we cannot imagine being catless once Rascal is gone. Nor do we want the unwanted rodent population to explode. A homestead needs a cat. So, yesterday we got....

... two.

We figured two would be better than one, mostly for Rascal's sake. A kitten is going to want to romp, and play, and ambush, and pounce. Better another kitten than Rascal. For everyone's sake!

These are a brother and sister from the same litter, about 7 weeks old. He's a gray tabby, she's a dilute torbie (having both tortoiseshell and tabby markings). In motion, it's hard to tell them apart, except the tip of her tail is white.

We haven't figured out names for them yet. We'll let their personalities reveal those to us. For now, they're doing really well, though Rascal isn't too happy about it. Ah well. Hopefully he'll get over it soon, because it's his job to teach them the ropes.

For more kitten pix, click here.

Two? text & photos copyright May 2010
by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

24 comments:

Renee Nefe said...

I thought that might be what was up when I read Rascal's blog. They sure are cute!

I hope they start earning their keep for you soon and they bring you lots of joy too.

I like Lazar & Reb for their names. ;o)
but I'm sure they'll show you what they should be named soon.

Mama Pea said...

Take lots of pictures in the next few weeks 'cause like all babies they'll grow to be adults too fast and you'll forget that they ever looked as they do now.

Our dog is 13 and we have only a couple of pictures of her as a puppy. What were we thinking??!

maggie said...

Ahhhhh! Cuteness overload!

Congratulations! I am sure you are enjoying these new additions to the homestead. I think it's in the cat rule book that Rascal has to be indignant and annoyed for a while, even in the face of unrelenting cuteness.

Oh gosh, Leigh, you just took me back to when we got Felix and his sister, Hatchi. Our two are identical, except Felix has just a blush of white under his chin and Hatchi has an actual white spot. And, in profile, their faces are slightly differently shaped.

Benita said...

I love kittens! Watching them play is far better than anything on the boob-tube and healthy because you laugh so much at them.

Theresa said...

Well, we've all seen the faces of evil and they are darn cute! ;)
I'm sure they will earn their names soon enough, just hoping the ones that stick can be written on a blog.
Of course you can have fun with pair names too.
Ann & Andy, Samson and Delila(sp) Earl & Lady Grey!

Nina said...

awwwwww... sweet little kitties... totally adorable and of course your right about needing two of them. Often older cats just don't want to play with the babies. This way they'll not get lonely or bored.

bspinner said...

ADORABLE!!!!! Kittens are the best!!

Julie said...

They look just like my little Sheba that I had in high school she was such a great cat!

Sooo Cute!

Leigh said...

Renee, unfortunately their cuteness is completely lost on Rascal. :)

Mama Pea, never fear, I'm a camera nut!

Maggie, what's funny is that (of course) Rascal acted the same way when we first got Catzee. He was a real pill. By the time he decided he wanted to be friends, she wouldn't have anything to do with him!

Benita, you are so right and they have been a lot of fun.

Theresa, they do have a look of mischief don't they!

Nina, they really stick together too, I'm glad of that. Together they aren't the least bit intimidated by Rascal's grump.

Barb & Julie, thanks!

Laura said...

I would love to get a couple of kittens, as my current cat is 10. However, he is a confirmed ONLY cat, and exhibits his displeasure on the most inopportune items (he gets pissed off, and my stuff gets pissed on). He's been fixed since he was 11 wks old, so I guess he needs to be the king of all he surveys.

When he's gone (hopefully not soon), I'll look at getting a couple more, but in the meantime, I'm envious!!

charlotte said...

They are just so cute! We have one cat and the kids want some more - so those pictures might just make me change my mind!

Sara said...

Oh, they are too cute! I love cats - and dogs - but, I have a special place for cats. They remind me of my Wanderer - she's been gone a while now - but, I still miss her and think of her.

Flower said...

Kittens are so much fun and having the two may help them to settle in. We are down to one cat...hmmmm? There are several strays that wander through each day...they do "kill" while hanging out in the barn!
Have fun with your new babies!!
The names will come.

katrien said...

Amie (4) tells anyone who wants to hear: "*First* we get chickens, *then* we get a kitten, because otherwise the cat would want to eat the chicks!"
I'd better not show her these pictures, or she'll want the kittens right away!

Sharon said...

Adorable - smart to get the pair. I'm jealous because I'd love to have a second kitty, but then that would be two house cats for a litterbox since coyotes eat yard cats. Don't want to feed no stinkin' coyotes.

Woolly Bits said...

that picture reminds me of a saying I heard a while ago: they were designed to be cute, otherwise they'd be suffering seriously for all the mischief they cause:)) I suppose that's true of all babies....

Geodyne said...

They're absolutely gorgeous, Leigh!

And I think you're right: far better to play with each other than torment poor Rascal!

Robin said...

Oh, baby kittens!! They are so incredibly cute. Last time I talked about getting a kitten Lee told me no because of all the strays that show up here. Then Jack showed up a couple of days later. Jack wasn't as young as your kittens though.

When I was a teenager a stray showed up at my parents house with kittens in tow. It was so much fun watching all the little ones grow and play and pounce and just act crazy.

Kathy said...

What blessed little beings to grace your lives. Of course, one can never have too many cats...just ask L'il Rascal and his brudder. :)
And good for you, too. You are not replacing Catzee, Leigh. No one can ever do that. But you are allowing space in your heat for more love.

Good onya, mate!

Woody said...

Kit and Cat

Tina T-P said...

Oh, yes, they are very very cute! & I agree with getting two - Have fun with them. T.

P.S. How about Ricky & Lucy?

Annie said...

So cute! And those very blue eyes! (a different kind than the ones I've got at the moment...)

Leigh said...

Laura, Rascal is 10 too, and also thinks he should be an only cat. Fortunately, he doesn't go to such lengths to prove it!

Charlotte, can one ever have too many cats??? :)

Sara, some animals just get a special place in our hearts. I was amazed myself, at how long I grieved for Catzee. Better to think of the happy times though.

Flower, so nice to have volunteer hunters around your place. We might have had some too, but Rascal chased them all off. He's not particularly happy about a kitten invasion, but this morning he almost tolerated them.

Katrien, smart little girl! Of course, a new kitten probably wouldn't be any bigger than the chicks. I can tell you that Rascal definitely leaves the grown up chickens alone.

Sharon, yes, coyotes would be a definite deterrent to having outside cats. You just continue to keep Charlie indoors and safe.

Bettina, so true. If kittens weren't cute, no one would want them! Then mice would rule the world. :)

Geodyne, thanks! Unfortunately, poor Rascal seems to think that their very presence is a torment!

Kathy, in my head I know that, but all this time I've held out hope that she'd still turn up. I think it took Dan longer than me. I was afraid if we waited until Rascal crossed the Rainbow Bridge, we'd never be motivated to get some. Too much critter control needed around the place for that.

Woody, I suggested Sissy and Bubba, but Dan wouldn't go for that one. :)

Tina, thanks! I had a long haired white cat once named Lucy. She was kinda mean though. She was a looker, just not very friendly.

Annie, I think those eyes will change one of these days, to their permanent color. They sure do look cute with their baby eyes though.

Margreet said...

Lovely addition to your household! They really look adorable. But I can see that they might get into a lot of mischief too :-)