CRICKET
Our Hurricane Kitty

A shade tree we lost in front of our house

It was October 16, 1999, and we had just gone through Hurricane Irene. After the last major rain band went through, hubby & I decided to put on our boots and take a tour of the neighborhood. It was nighttime and dark outside. There was lots of flooding, wow. As we passed one neighbor's pickup, I heard a kitten crying. There are always many strays in our neighborhood so I assumed its mother would find it, but when on the way back we heard it again, we tried looking for it. Hubby zeroed in on the sound, and finally I saw it, right at our feet, crawling through the muddy mess on the shores of our neighbor's lawn - a tiny kitten. Its eyes weren't open yet, so I knew it was very young, we figured later that it was about a week old. I washed and dried it, and set it up in a warm nest. Thank goodness we had electricity, I was able to do some reading on a few sites on newborn kitten care. I couldn't get to any stores right away to get the proper formula, the streets were too flooded (there was someone with a canoe at the corner), so I just kept it warm, dry, and hydrated for the night. I received a lot of helpful advice from the wonderful folks on the now defunct Acmepet Cat's Window Bulletin Board. Thanks again, guys!

Cricket on that first night

This poor little sweety was wet, muddy, and covered with ants (I guess they were searching for higher ground). My family picked the ants off of me while I bathed the little furball. After being cleaned and dried, and after closer examination, I discovered I had a little boy kitty on my hands. I was certain he would not make it through the night, not after having been so chilled, and swallowing who knows how much water. What went through my mind was that at least he would not die cold and alone.

Cricket meets Jake, he's two weeks old now

This little guy is a fighter. He not only survived his ordeal, he is thriving! The waters had receded enough by the next day that we took a chance and went out looking for a store where we could buy some kitten milk replacer. It was a bit scary in some places, but we got the formula, a tiny nursing bottle, and a heating pad. We set the little guy up in an old 20 gallon fish tank for the time being. He is strong and active, and nurses like a little piglet.

Cricket at three weeks. Isn't he cute?

We decided to name him Cricket. We were trying to think of boy names that would also be hurricane related, but weren't having much success agreeing on anything. One of the kids suggested "Sludge", because he had been covered in mud. We laughed about that, and remembered how he had been covered with ants also. That reminded us of when my son was a little boy, and how he called all insects "crickets". All of a sudden we looked at each other and said, "That's it! Cricket!"

Cricket at four weeks

Cricket is a lot more mobile and playful now. He enjoys laying on his back in the palm of my hand and playing with my fingers. He's making little dashes, and batting at the dogs noses when they come up to sniff him. He suddenly dashed at the camera when I took this picture, that's why it's out of focus. As you can see, his ears are now at the top of his head and lengthening.

Cricket at five weeks

There he is, back on that sofa. This time he held still long enough for me to get a better shot of him.

Cricket eating his first solid meal

Cricket just gets sweeter every day. I was having trouble getting him interested in moistened dry cat food, but the folks on the Acmepet Cat's Window Bulletin Board came to my rescue again. It was suggested I try canned kitten food, moistened with formula, to tempt him to eat. It worked like a charm, he gobbled it right up!

Cricket at 6 weeks

Cricket went to the vet for his first shots. The vet, Dr. Glenn Kalick at Brookside Animal Hospital in Coral Springs, FL, found that he had hookworms, so Cricket got treated for that too. Dr. Kalick was the official vet for Dalmatian Rescue of South Florida. I first met him when we adopted our youngest Dalmatian, Brooke. Two thumbs up for Dr. Kalick!

Cricket at 3 months

Cricket is getting to be a big boy now. He is a very confident, self-assured young man, master of all he surveys. When we hand out treats for the dogs, he is right there with them, waiting for his. When we go to bed at night, he sleeps in the bed with us. If I go to the bedroom or bathroom and accidentally lock him out, he stands outside and demands entrance. Then he looks at me, as if wondering how I could possibly have left him out! Can you tell that hubby and I adore this little guy?

Some more pictures of Cricket

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