Sabrina says: You already know the story of the stray cat who brought her kittens Edgar, Ellen, and Poe into our lives. In May 2010, it was Ellen's turn to be a mother. We knew she was about to give birth at any moment, but as my father was home, we couldn't take her inside. It was a sunny afternoon when Ellen was standing at the veranda door, acting a bit odd, and when we went outside to check what was going on, we could hear the cries of newborn kittens. We searched every corner of our backyard but couldn't find them. I sneaked into my neighbour's backyard and soon enough found them between a pile of bricks, in an ant nest, still attached to the placenta. Now I know you're not supposed to move the kittens but it was one big mess, covered in ants. We took the risk and cleaned up the kittens a bit, moved them under our brick BBQ on a soft pillow. There they were, five gorgeous little kittens: two girls that were tortie/calico like their mother, and three boys that were all or nearly all white.

Ellen wasn't too pleased about us moving her nest. When she found out, she grabbed them by their necks and dragged them back to the place of birth. It was nice to see she didn't reject the kittens but kind of harsh as well: The road back was pretty tricky and Ellen was new to it. She accidentally dropped the first she took back, one of the girls, and it hit the side of a brick. We worriedly watched her take them back one by one, but there wasn't anything we could do. When she was ready to expose us to her kittens, we'd know. Leaving the veranda door open, hoping Ellen would want to move her nest there, we went back inside. Later that day, I went back to check on Ellen and sure enough there she was: the veranda couch with four of her kittens. We looked for the fifth one but unfortunately it didn't survive the fall. Ellen seemed very comfortable, and we left the door open just enough so she could squeeze herself in and outside.

I had a big fight with my dad that day. He wasn't really pleased with the fact that there were cats in his house. After agreeing I would move the kittens off the couch, into a box, make sure they wouldn't leave the veranda to explore other parts of the house, and eventually find them a home when they were big enough, everything seemed to be okay. I grabbed a box from the garage, put a pillow in it and some towels, moved the kittens once again, and hid the box behind a chair. Ellen was happy. But the next morning we found the other girl stone cold. It was sad. We buried both girls in our front yard between the roses, said our goodbyes, and covered the little graves with flowers.

The three little boys were growing up fast, one in particular. While the other two stayed in their box, the all-white one was a true scout. Even though his eyes were still closed, he was always on the run, driving Ellen crazy. She constantly had to get up and carry him back just so he could take off again. It was so cute! My boyfriend Michael and I talked about it and we decided to adopt him.

A few weeks later, the little ones still hadn't opened their eyes. There was still a lot of crust and I had a little alarm bell ringing in the back of my head. I had seen this before with Poe, so I was sure they were struggling with an upper-respiratory infection, and the vet confirmed my suspicion. Since nobody else wanted to do the nursing and I didn't want to take the kittens away from their mother, I moved in with my parents for two weeks so I could give them their antibiotics, feed them, wipe, and clean their eyes/noses, and apply special ointment three times a day.

Young and playful as they were, the boys managed to find their way outside very quickly. To make sure they wouldn't escape, I put some boxes on top of each other at the exit so Ellen could still jump on top of them but the kittens couldn't. Once a day, I let them play outside for a few hours under my supervision. I may sound rough, but there's always lots of little children playing behind our house and they could easily take them, just like what happened to Edgar. There's also some guy in our neighbourhood with two huge dogs. He doesn't like cats much and often lets his dogs loose on them. Also, a few houses down the road, there's a guy that's known for poisoning cats.

When the kittens were almost ready to leave the nest, I decided it was time to find them a home. I posted a message on Facebook and soon found out they were very popular. Since Michael and I had already claimed one of them, I could only give two of them away. It was a nice feeling knowing I could afford being picky about who I'd give them to. Someone with dogs? No! Someone who already had a zillion cats? No! Someone who'd keep them in the garage? No… I wanted them to be looked after, get a lot of attention, and be spoiled. Eventually a friend of mine who was about to move into her new apartment and absolutely loves cats made the cut. The date on which she could pick up her new kitten was set, but until then, I would take care of him.

Meanwhile, Ellen was being a good mother. She taught her boys how to climb trees, hunt for birds, and how to use the litterbox. One day though, I walked into the veranda, ready to let the kittens outside, when I noticed alot of blood and feathers everywhere. Ellen brought a bird inside, not quite dead, and before the bird surrendered to its fate, it managed to peck the eye of one of my boys. His left eye looked horrible! Back to nursing… cleaning the eye and rubbing ointment on the wound. I felt really sad and tried to talk my boyfriend into adopting that one instead of our little scout, but his heart was set. After talking it over, we decided to take both of them.

Eight weeks after birth, my friend picked up her kitten. She was ecstatic! She named the little guy Willy and spoils him to death with lots of attention, toys, treats, a pillow to sleep on at the end of her bed, and even a leash to walk him. I'm proud I found him such a good home. Later she got another kitten, a female, to keep him company. There won't be another nest though, Willy got neutered when the time was right.

As for the other two, after we kitty-proofed our apartment, they too got to explore their new home. The all-white one is named Sheldon after the silly guy in The Big Bang Theory, but we usually call him "Mon" cause he's a purr-monster. He's very graceful, independent, and usually outside enjoying the weather and hunting for birds. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up being the dominant cat in our neighbourhood when he's fully grown. He gets alot of respect from other cats and even dogs are scared of him because he shows no fear at all.

The other one we took in is named Rum. Because of the eye, he reminded me of a pirate, and when I think of pirates, I think of: "Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!" Eventually Rum's eye healed completely which was a big surprise. It had looked as if it was lost, but now all you can see is a little white dot in the middle of it. If you didn't know about his encounter with the bird, you'd never even notice it. Rum's confused about his identity, I swear he thinks he's a dog. He growls when Mon comes near his toy, loves rolling around on the doormat, chases his own tail, and plays fetch! He actually brings you the toy, drops it in your hand or lap, waits for you to throw it, chases it, and brings it back. He needs a lot of attention. No matter what you're doing, he'll find a way to get on your lap and demand attention. And when he doesn't get enough, he protests and gets behind the TV between the cables so we have to get up and get him out. Even though he's very clumsy, he's a great jumper. After six months, both kittens were neutered.

Ellen wasn't happy losing her kittens. She looked for them everywhere every single day for at least another week. Whenever we opened the door, she'd run inside, checking every corner while making sad sounds. She is now spayed but she ended up adopting a stray kitten who had lost his mother and treated it like her own.

All Photos Courtesy of and ©: Michael Stoop in the Netherlands
Michael is a software engineer but based on his Flickr photo sets we think he should be a professional photographer!

Ellen's Kittens [redux]  kitten
Comments and LOLs:
KC -
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KC
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This is a nice story but also sad. I think the first little girl didn't die because of the fall, but since her sister also died quickly, it probably means the girls had a problem, maybe organic. But there certainly seem to be some very unsavoury characters in that neighbourhood! I would never let my cats wander around outside.
KC -
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KC
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I meant to comment on this picture :-) Just too cute!
mma -
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mma
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the longest post I've seen but sure shows your love of kittens. I'm glad most of the sweet ones thrived thanks to your good care.
Natthecat -
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Natthecat
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I am speechless for once. I can't wait till Sabrina's Dad is old and incontinent and in a miserable nursing home covered with ants. Sorry, but I dislike him totally.
kibblegirl -
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kibblegirl
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I am with you, Netthecat, what a horrible old man! I am glad that the catties survived and found a good home.good
ln -
ln
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Sorry to say I agree about Sabrina's dad. I think people that don't like cats are just suspect. I also feel bad for Ellen since it sounds like she still lives the life of a feral outdoors. Can't you find someone to adopt her?
ILoveKittyCats -
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ILoveKittyCats
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I agree whole-heartedly with you Natthecat. He is a horrible man and a big meanie!! May he get bed sores to go with the ants crawling on him too!! Hahaha!
chloe ross -
My father was not a cat guy. Yet he had cats from the time I was a little girl. This man sounds like an ogre. The white babies are lovely. Suggest Ellen be neutered (and the boys) - there is a disconnect here somewhere and no more kittens might fix it. I suspect Dad is beyond repair.
judymack812 -
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judymack812
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I have very mixed feelings about this story. Ellen should have been spayed and not had a litter. Dad is not a nice person. None of the babies should have died. I hope there are no more stories from you like this. It is just too sad for words......
Pandora -
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Pandora
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GREAT work!
Nefenjo -
Nefenjo
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From the previous few days, we know that Ellen *was* spayed, but only after having this litter. All the feral cats in the neighborhood are now spayed/neutered (including Ellen's mother). I guess it took Sabrina and Michael a while to find/contact a TNR program in their area.

Unfortunately, even though I don't approve of the actions of Sabrina's father, I can't say that he deserves a horrible fate because of it. The other characters in the neighborhood seem worse than the father, who didn't suggest killing the kittens, he simply didn't want them in the house.
Smooch -
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Smooch
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Such a sad story with the two kittens dying. It's a shame her father wasn't a cat lover, but at least some of the kittens ended up with loving homes.
BirmanMama -
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BirmanMama
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So sad about the little girls, but really these feral kittens are very lucky to have Sabrina and Michael. Sabrina's dad isn't a pet guy but remember, he raised Sabrina! She's an angel; Michael and the kittens are lucky she is in their lives.
kittiesmama -
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i love pictures of mamas snuggling with their babies. but i am also glad no more babies for this particular area. at least Sabrina's father didn't throw them all out and let them live there until time for adoption. the Felix Project sounds like a wonderful organization.
kittiesmama -
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kittiesmama
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what beautiful handsome boys these are.



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