Woke up a few minutes ago to a scratching sound and it didn't take long for me to realize that Hollywood (or Harleywood, as Shaun likes to call him - due to his Harlequin testicles) had FINALLY POOPED for the first time since he's been here. He was trying desperately to cover it up and the last thing he needed was to get poop on his little feet or traumatize them more by scratching, so I jumped up real quick to clean up. I figured it was also a good time to medicate him, so we went ahead and did all that. This was the first time I'd really handled him without Shaun here.
He did the obligatory super cute and not at all scary "hiss hiss" at me, but I took out his soiled bedding and replaced it with something clean, then scratched his little head, scruffed him and picked him up, and proceeded with the meds.
Either he knows he can't fight or just doesn't care to because he never does. He's always really good, even though we hold him on his back a lot to have easy access to his feet. I went ahead and gave his painkiller, then started ointment-ing his feet. It was no problem to do it all by myself.
So I put him back in his cage and I always try to lay him on his side so as to not put any pressure on his feet. I know he moves around in there, but really not more than he has to. He is not playful like most kittens his age, understandably. 🙁
Well, I was pleasantly surprised to see that when I put him down, he stood up and took a step toward me. I think that's the first time I've actually seen him walk. I reached out to pet him, and he leaned into my hand. He looked curious and like he wanted to climb back out, but I didn't let him. I did pet him for a minute, then covered his cage up and left him alone so he would rest.
That just made my day. I know this baby has to be miserable and terrified, but I am seeing glimpses of a curious kitten feeling better and coming around - slowly but surely - and it just makes me so happy. ❤
