Ginger the garden witch
@mkkraemer
I write disability policy (& sometimes fiction), grow flowers, foster kittens, read and swear a lot. Gen X American prone to opining on politics and social, economic, & environmental justice. AuDHD. Witch. she/her, married to XO. Fuck ICE
Plugging these two books for anyone interested… and you SHOULD be interested.
The kittens that were trapped at my house area adjusting to their new circumstances. They are currently staying with another foster. The adults have all been released following neuter surgery. The momma of this pair was under a year old and weighed just 5 lbs.
My foster kitten Cheesy Gordita Crunch stands ready to defend democracy. But HE’LL do the biting!
I work nearby and thought about walking over on my lunch hour to see if they’d let me in wearing my frog hat, but I decided it was too hot.
Native purple passionflower (Passiflora incarnata). I traded a bunch of goldenrod for a couple starts of this vine about a month ago and was very surprised to see it blooming already. 🌱
Momma, Butch and Sundance are all at the vet today for the N part of the TNR but we’ll keep the cameras rolling to see if they have any other friends we might have missed.
Last night traps were set and a volunteer from the rescue did a stakeout and they caught Butch & Sundance down at the neighbors (It’s like they knew not to eat in the same place two nights in a row).
So trail cams were deployed to make sure there were no other babies and to monitor who was visiting traps. In addition to the neighborhood fox, there was a pair of black cats who showed up and hung out together for awhile acting like they owned the place. The fox…
The next night they got her brother. He is definitely spicier, but he also had an engorged tick on his peen so there was that.
The next night, they came back up hoping for the kittens, but only one of them would cooperate. They caught the little girl. She is adorable and in good shape.
The plan was to try to get the kittens under a drop trap at the same time and get them first so they could start getting vetted and socialized. Then we’d TNR the adults. That was the plan, but then momma went under the drop trap and they caught her - not wanting to miss the opportunity.
I adore Harley and when other cats started competing for the food I put out, I put out more food to keep up with the demand. We knew from occasional glimpses that there were multiple black cats around - I even accidentally trapped one while trying to recover a foster who got outside over the winter
Must of you who’ve been around my socials for bit know that I’ve been caretaking a community cat in coordination with a neighbor for a couple years now. Harley is my garden kitty and has the telltale tipped ear of a feral cat who has been TNRd (trap/neuter/return).
Happy Father’s Day to all the Dad’s out there. Here is a picture of Snax posing with the helmet that XO 3-D printed and and hand painted for him and then didn’t make him wear because he’s the best cat dad ever.
I really missed an opportunity to name these boys “Cat” and “Copy Cat” or… as my son-in-law suggested “Right Twix” and “Left Twix”
Once again, I find myself singing the Itchy and Scratchy main title theme to my foster kittens. They fight and bite They fight and bite and fight Bite, bite, bite Fight, fight, fight After having just fostered a solo kitten, I’m grateful they can work out there aggression on each other.
Cheesy Gordita Crunch will sit calmly on my lap after meds as long as there is a blanket to shelter under.
Chulupa Supreme… I can’t do this with Gordy. He is still very shy so aside from medication administration and daily weight checks, we are doing exclusively consent based handling to build trust. That said, they are pretty much carbon copies.
The new kittens have names. Cheesy Gordita crunch and Chulupa Supreme. Gordy and Chewy for short.
She is in my yard now and seems to be making a day of it. I love the pile of leaves on her back for camouflage!
Happy turtle return day to those who celebrate! Every year this big ol’ snapping turtle hauls herself out of pond and climbs up the hill, across the road and up another hill to dig out a next under my neighbor’s hydrangea.
My daughter just sent me a pic of the first newborn outfit she bought for her son (who is due on September) and I wanna know why newborns get pockets and women do not.