A stray cat found help from a kind neighbor just in time so her kittens wouldn't be born outside.
A tabby cat had been wandering around a barn near Lake Chelan, Washington, for a while. She was believed to be abandoned and no one came to claim her. A kind neighbor stepped in to help and started giving her food. When she noticed that the cat's belly was getting bigger, she realized that there were babies coming.
She reached out to the community, hoping to find a rescue that would be able to help before the birth of the kittens. Ashley Morrison, an animal rescuer based in Seattle, Washington, offered to take the expectant cat mom.
"She had no microchip, and no one was looking for her. She was a little skittish when I first met her," Ashley shared with Love Meow.
Ashley placed the cat in a quiet area to help her decompress. Slowly but surely, the torbie warmed up to her human and started to accept pets and head scratches.
Once the kitty moved into her very own cat room, she went right to watching birds out the window. The sweet torbie loved her new abode and was especially fond of her feline entertainment system. They named her Birdie because of her penchant for Bird TV.
In just a few days, Birdie came out of her shell and just wanted to play. She was enthralled by the assortment of toys Ashley had laid out for her, and was so pleased with the all-you-can-eat food arrangement and multiple nestling places.
Two weeks later, Ashley woke up to the cutest surprise in the cat room. "Birdie had her babies overnight. I had put a basket with blankets in the bathroom in case. She felt more comfortable in a quieter darker space, and sure enough, that's where I found them that morning," Ashley shared.
Mama Birdie gave birth to a litter of five healthy kittens (Finch, Hawk, Raven, Robin, and Dove), all with voracious appetites.
For the first week, they clung to their mom around the clock, alternating between eating and sleeping. Birdie kept them well fed and groomed, showering them with unconditional love.
A week after birth, the kittens almost doubled in size. Their eyes hadn't opened yet, but the little sassy bundles of fur had figured out how to hiss, showing off their mighty, feisty cattitude.
Baby Hawk and Dove quickly mastered the art of tiny hisses. Kittens that age can't see or hear, so they use hissing as a defense mechanism.
Raven the little panther kitty is the leader of the clowder. He was the first to catch a glance at this world at eight days old. When both of his eyes were wide open, his siblings were still playing catchup with theirs.
"Kittens start to open their eyes around six days old, but it can take up to two weeks," Ashley added.
Watch this adorable little family in this cute video:
"Birdie came from living in a barn, so her instincts are to protect herself. Creating a space where she feels like she can see her one entrance makes her feel secure," Ashley shared with Love Meow.
"She doesn't like when the window blinds are too open, but she loves leaving her babies in her nest in the bathroom while she goes to eat and stretch out."
Birdie has really blossomed being in a home environment. Whenever she takes a break from mommy duties, she hops over to the heap of toys and swims in them like a kitten would.
"She's a great mama, but so young. She would have been just as happy to stay a kitten herself with no babies. I'll be so happy for her when her mama role is done and she will get to find a forever home indoors where she can play and be loved on."
Thanks to the kind neighbor and a network of rescuers, the cat mom and her babies will have a great future ahead of them. The kittens still have a lot of growing to do and feline skills to learn from their mama.
Robin has gotten one eye completely open and is working on waking up the other one.
At two weeks old today, Hawk finally cracked open his eyes to see for the first time.
Those little floppy ears will perk up when the kittens' hearing begins to develop.
Mama Birdie loves when Ashley comes in to kitten-sit, so she can comfortably step away and play to her heart's content.
The family of six is thriving in foster care and loving their new life as indoor cats.
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Related story: Stray Cat Brought Her Kittens to Family's Yard So Their Lives Could Be Turned Around