Hello everyone! I’ve been lurking MPSIMS and IMHO for quite a while, but it’s finally time to come out of hiding. You can thank a particular kitten for that… and, so I don’t get roasted over my very first post, here’s a clicky for ya:
http://s59.photobucket.com/albums/g286/sdmbporridj/cats/
(Is there some cooler way to share those?)
Anyway, this kitten comes with a bit of a story. You see, I’m currently on the hunt for a job, and today I flew out, interviewed, and flew home. My fiancee was generous enough to drive me to the airport before work, and drive me back home after, since the hours ended up about right for that. As we were heading home, we were discussing my impression of the company, how her day went, etc., and I noticed a wad of paper or something flutter across the road. Didn’t pay it too much attention… until I glanced again, of course.
:eek: That’s no wad of paper, that’s a kitten! :eek: :eek: :eek:
“Oh, man! Uhh… umm… uhh… turn around!” sez I, since we’re northbound and the little fluffball was last seen scaredy-crawling right in front of an oblivious SUV in the southbound left-turn lane. (What would you say when you’re thinking “There’s no way we’re going to get there before kitten pancakes!”?)
She (my fiancee, remember?) got the car turned around while I explained what was going on, and we headed back toward that intersection. We had a red light, so there were several cars in front of us in the fabled Left Turn Lane of Certain Doom. I didn’t see a cat, and I think She (we’ll go with that for now) was starting to think I was nuts. We agreed on a rendezvous plan, I hopped out, and walked up the grass median toward the intersection.
Hey look! A little grey fluffball huddled up in the mud caught in the mouth of the storm drain, shaking and staring at the big black SUV that must have straddled the little thing at one point.
::YOINK::
Of course, little needle claws flew in all directions, but at least we were safe from traffic. I just may have saved a kitten today. 
Hopping back into the car, practical concerns come to mind. This is a truly widdul kitten! Did I just steal kitten from mommy? I didn’t see any other cats around, and there’s not too much residential property in that immediate area… so maybe even if I did, it was still the right thing to do? 
My instinct was that a vet visit should be our first stop, but by the time we made it back to familiar territory, all the local vets were closed. Some discussion and a visit to the local pet store solved some of the issues, but we’re still left with some questions.
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve (hopefully) seen some cute kitten pics and maybe even enjoyed the story about how we cane into contact with said kitten. This is where I turn the tables and ask to hear from you! 
I know several people on this board have been in the “kitten rescue” situation before, and I’d like some input on what we’re doing right / wrong / whatever. We will also be visiting a vet ASAP, but I’d be interested to hear from Dopers too. Some of the trouble we’re having is related to the fact that we have no idea what this cat’s age is, other than “young”.
First, I suppose a slightly more detailed description of the cat is in order. Some of these items are somewhat vague, since we’re on sort of “tentatively friendly” terms at the moment. Things seem to be going better after a few feedings, though, so maybe it’ll work out. Anyway, here’s the info so far:
[ul]
[li]Mixture of mostly short fluffy hair and some longer, less fluffy hair.[/li][li]Some teeth, but not sure how many or if they’re “adult teeth” (how to tell?)[/li][li]Icy blue eyes.[/li][li]Refuses both dry and wet kitten food.[/li][li]Greedily gobbles kitten “milk replacement”.[/li][li]Doesn’t seem to understand litterboxes yet.[/li][li]Cries when bladder is full, then “oops”. (See above)[/li][li]Cries when hungry - about every 2 hours. (Been hungry for a while maybe?)[/li][li]A “cry” sounds very much like a small bird, though that has improved somewhat (less raspy) after a few feedings.[/li][/ul]
Most of my questions revolve around things like: should we be trying to start litter box training yet? Is formula the right thing to be feeding this little thing, or did we just pick a brand of food that isn’t worthy, despite the apparent extreme hunger? Anything else I should be aware of here? I’m fairly competent with cats, but have never dealt with kittens this young.
Ok, so, uhh… I think that’s it for now. Heck, that’s probably way more info than you wanted for now! Anyway, any info or advice that might help his little meeper stay (or get?) healthy would be very much welcomed 
