I’m totally caught up on all of my photoshoot sorting and editing. Whew! No more shoots are planned for the near future. As much as I love doing them, I’m not going to lie: I’m looking forward to the break! Here is a little sweetheart I photographed when I Texas recently. She was my very last shoot!
Flurry really felt fantastic today. Played lots of chase with him. I’d crawl after him while he “ran.” When I’d catch him, I’d blow raspberries on his soft tummy or squishy legs and he’d laugh the bestest laugh you ever did hear. He’s jabbering more now. Says “sit” when I tell Roobii to do the same. “Nah nah” when he doesn’t want me holding him down to change his diaper. “Dah” for dog and “Ma” for Mama and milk.
Speaking of Flurry (and Roobii), our 13 month old was walking out the door today. He was getting too far away for my comfort, so I said, “Flurry. Here.” Which is the command I was trained to give Roobii. (In my normal voice. Did you know, according to our trainer at least, you aren’t ever supposed to yell or raise your voice when giving a command to a dog, even if they aren’t listening?) I laughed at myself when I realized I was talking to Flurry like the dog. Even more once I remembered that I talk about him on my blog using the name of a fast food dessert.
Life is funny sometimes.
Garlic is also funny. If you let it sit too long, it will start to sprout. I typically cut these off and use the garlic (it’s still fine) as normal. But lately I’ve been using the scrapes (the green shoots), too. You can slice them up and sprinkle them on soups or baked potatoes. Also, if you’re so inclined, if your garlic starts to sprout, you can plant and water it so you’ll get even more garlic eventually!
Just a small tidbit of knowledge I thought maybe perhaps possibly one of you might like to know, if you already didn’t.
Because some of you asked when I mentioned it in my last post, the berry talk is the one we have almost each time we hike or walk in a weedy area. Typically, our kiddos like to collect things when we hike. “Remember, do we eat berries that we find on plants outside?” “No! Not unless Mama or Daddy tell us we can!” “Right. But what if they look like blueberries? Or you just want to taste one because it looks tasty?” “No! We still can’t, ‘cuz they might make us sick. Ask Mama and Daddy first!” “That’s right.”
Pulled a tick off of Roobii today. For some reason, that is way grosser than when I have to pull one off of one of my children. Not Me! Monday will be back again tomorrow. Pinky swear that I’ll post it early in the day this time! Mine has to do with warrants and me getting pulled over by the police. Fun times! Won’t want to miss that. Okay, maybe you will.
I may as well let you all know now, so the cat spay and neuter enthusiasts (not that being a cat spay and neuter enthusiast is bad!) can get over their disappointment sooner rather than later: our Kittens are not fixed. And we have no plans to fix them. I know, I know. But can I be honest? I’m looking forward to Poppy having her own kittens someday. They are great to have around. I love cats (now). They have free reign of the barns and farm; they love it. Good mousers they’ve always been. Having them at The Farm only makes that quality of theirs shine brighter. No more kittens for Kitty (she’s spayed), but I see more orange tabby cats in our farm’s (and our family’s) future. I can (almost) hardly wait!
Let’s see. What else? The door to the church we went to today was locked when we arrived. I knocked on it and when it opened, I had the silly idea to say, “Alms for the poor!?” while holding out my hand. I thought it was really funny. It was probably tasteless and the people who heard me probably thought I was weird. But I was okay with that and just walked in. Taco hotdish for dinner. Craving something chocolate right now. Have nothing. Will just go to bed.
Goodnight!
I knew you’d get plenty of opinions on this post!
I had two male cats that were neutered. BOTH of them sprayed anyway! It was very aggravating. Neutering doesn’t necessarily make them less territorial. Other cats would even come and spray around our doors because we had two males. I’ll have to admit, I was a little sad when they died but didn’t grieve long.
My mom had a female that was spayed and that crazy cat sprayed too! I saw her doing it many times. So females can be territorial too. Other cats would come and spray around my mom’s doors and garage door too because of the cat and I know she wasn’t in heat since she was fixed.
So, the long and the short of it is, spaying and neutering does not necessarily take care of spraying cats! This is from the voice of experience.
I see so many people commenting here “just fix the male”.
Fixing the female is important, too. An intact female, even if NEVER allowed to breed (good luck with that one) will still go into heat over and over again. This leads to a condition called PYOMETRA of the uterus. (Basically, a very nasty life threatening infection – pus in the uterus).
So, NOT fixing the females is almost as irresponsible as allowing her to breed.
You will be amazed at the number of cats that end up “wandering over” onto your farm over time, and in time, you will be pulling your hair out trying to control the population. Paying for veterinary care is going to cost you a bundle, ASSuming you’re planning on doing that. (And sadly, from everything I’ve read thus far, it doesn’t appear that you have that intention at all…and even if I’m mistaken, there’s no way in hell you’ll be able to afford veterinary care for the hundred or so cats that you’ll end up with in the span of a year or two.)
All of these “oh can’t wait to see kitten pictures” people really ought to take a look at pictures online of kittens (MILLIONS each year) that are euthanized in shelters. If everyone wanting a kitten or cat would just adopt one instead of allowing them to breed, it would clearly make a small dent in those numbers.
Another thing to think about besides the obvious (overpopulation, rabies) are diseases transmissible to humans by cats. Google TOXOPLASMOSIS and RINGWORM, for starters.
Jennifer knows I am staunchly against the things she has done with her trio of cats since adopting them, but this absolutely takes the cake. And I hope that at the very least, if she insists on not getting ALL of them spayed and neutered, that she makes sure they are completely up to date on all of their vaccinations, all the time. Rabies comes to mind… and with her kids loving those kittens like they do, it would be a shame if one of them caught rabies from another roaming cat or from a bite from a wild animal. It only takes ONE BITE! One bite from an infected animal and you can pretty much kiss those cats goodbye! And heaven help you if they become ill and bite one of your kids!
Jennifer, if there are several farms in your area, and it’s relatively rural, several shelters in areas like that WILL adopt out cats that they know are going to be barn cats because they’re useful in keeping the mouse and rodent population down! They also make sure the cats are neutered and spayed, have all of their shots and give you information on low-cost clinics where you can take the cats in order to keep them up to date on everything they need. Please please please consider adopting cats like this who still have a lot to offer a family like yours. Otherwise, make no mistake, they will meet the sharp end of a euthanasia needle, while you sit there and let your cats go unprotected and let them recklessly procreate. Other people are so careless with their pets…why be like that?
Poppy and Pippin are brother and sister why would you not spay and neuter them? If you want more cats rescue cats or kittens that are already spayed and neutered. Please educate yourself on letting Poppy and Pippin breed before you allow this to happen. One female cat could have 100 kittens durning her reproductive life!!!!!! It’s just being responsible and not adding to an already huge issue.
Are you going to plant garlic on your farm? (Or did you do that in your straw bales?) I heard recently that in the fall you just stick the clove in the ground with the brown part to the bottom and in the spring you will have garlic growing! Now, if only I didn’t live in an apartment so I could plant some garlic!
Also, I love that you use the word hotdish (and that some readers asked what it was-casserole, crockpot dish?)! Totally a Midwest thing! Made me smile.
I have been doing a lot of praying recently about my time management and being a good steward of my time. I have a 10 month old and have found myself too many afternoons “wasting” time online and giving him only part of my attention. As a stay at home mommy, there are times that I need to “socialize” with friends online – I need to read blogs, email friends, etc for my sanity. But, I’ve been spending too much of my baby’s awake time online, lately, and that needs to stop.
I read other blogs…Angie, Kelly Stamps, and had just recently started reading Sara Frankl’s blog (Gitzen girl), and they are a community of encouragement..faith…love… I have no doubt there are negative comments here and there, but 99% of the time, they are places filled with love…women wanting to make the world a better place….women banning together to figure out motherhood/life.
Jennifer, the “community” at your blog has turned into such a place of hatred – from BOTH sides. Many of the comments from people sharing a different opinion than you start with something along the lines of “I’ve have been reading your blog for years. I prayed so hard for Stellan and sent you money…..” – it’s as though they feel the need to justify to you and your readers why they should be allowed to post a differing opinion, and hope that their past loyalty will keep other readers from jumping all over them for “attacking” you. You have such a platform to do good with your blog, and yet you seem to not only allow the drama, but often, encourage it. And you have said before that you will stop allowing it and stop encouraging it, yet this place seems to have more of it now than ever.
Your blog used to be a real mommy blog – somewhere that women came together to ask questions about raising kids, tell funny stories about their days, encourage each other through the hard times and rejoice during the happy times. I don’t know what happened. Your “not me monday’s” used to have hundreds of link ups. Today you have less than 20. I hope that can be an eye opener to you to how many readers have been pushed away and maybe you’ll think about how you can “re-vamp” this blog to a place of love, kindness, encouragement.
By now allowing myself only a short amount of time online, I need that time spent online to be positive, encouraging, uplifting – I need it to help me in my quest to be a better person…a better wife, mommy, friend. I say all of this to let you know I will no longer be reading your blog. Yes, I could have just stopped reading, but I wanted to let you know, respectfully, why I was leaving. Maybe you’ll take what I said and think about it, maybe you won’t. It’s obviously your blog and it can be whatever you want it to be. All big blogs have haters, but I truly believe the authors of the blog have the power to determine what kind of community they will have – one of love or one of hate.
I’m sorry this is so long. I wish the best for you and God’s blessings on your family.
ha, that command to Flurry is too funny!
Garlic scapes are great! So glad to hear you use them. I made and froze garlic scape pesto this summer. You would love it. We had our first container with whole wheat pasta and parmasean cheese last week.
PLEASE neuter your pets! You do not want a brother and sister mating. If you want more cats, go to your local animal shelter and adopt some. Incidentally, shelters will not allow animals to be adopted that haven’t been “fixed” and ensure that they are before the animal leaves the shelter. That should tell you something.
Hi McMama,
I don’t know if you read your comments after a day or not but I was just thinking about the topic and it came to me! You already have chickens and your kids seem to love them, so why not breed chickens instead? My friend from college lived on a farm and raised, bred and showed chickens. It is a wonderful way to have babies that become functional and it provides a fun responsibility for your children, one that they can take pride in for all of their hard work. There are sooo many varieties. I have always wanted chickens but never really had the chance. I especially liked the looks of a breed called The Easter Egg Chicken (Ameraucanas). They lay different colored eggs and are said to have good tempers. Well it’s always something to think about. Have a good day and cheer up about that house, you will make it look beautiful.
I’m guessing you’re getting a start on chickens, but I just thought I’d say raising chickens as a small child was one of the few “big” things that taught me responsibility. As long as they get fed and watered every day, you really can’t mess up, but it teaches children so much.
I agree with fixing your boy kitty! On another note…….what is Taco Hotdish?????????
Obviously the decision on what to do with your cats, is yours, but I wish you would consider fixing them. If you want good farm cats or “mousers”, there are always stray cats that need good homes or even cats that are in loving homes, but people can’t keep them. My mother runs an animal rescue group so I have experience with this first hand. There are so many cats that need homes and many are great for farms.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the chart about have many “kittens” ONE unfixed cat can produce in a lifetime, but it’s amazing.
I love your photography, the way you’ve gone about making decisions for your family, your recipes. But this really bothers me.
Your tidbit about garlic – I usually call info like that “Little known and probably uninteresting facts.”
Laughed so hard when I read ‘Flurry Here.’ When our lab was a puppy, I worked at a day care center full time. I was exhausted getting ready for work one morning, and Molly (puppy) was chewing on something that was not a toy. I told her ‘to make good decisions.’ …then I poured myself a very LARGE cup of coffee!!
Hahah!!
can i just say that i’ve learned A LOT about cats today that i never knew??? we’ve always had dogs so i never had any clue about kitty inbreeding! lots of knowledgeable people here!
The thing that caught my eye was…your craving !
Does that mean alittle someone/ones are on the way?
TRUST US.
GET THE CATS FIXED.
Sometimes when I am calling the dog, and he’s not coming or listening (we have a well trained lab) I have to stop myself and think hmmm maybe he would come if I stop calling him by my sons name and call him by his own. Works every time
I hate when I am craving chocolate and there is none to be found. Was so excited to find mini eggs in a store the other day. Ahhh the berry talk. Now I get it 
Love the photo of this sweet girl and her silly bands!
I don’t know if you are aware of it but cats don’t necessarily care who they breed with..which means..well I’m sure you can figure it out. Growing up we had a farm and cats. It started out with a momma and a son cat…then kittens who were old enough to reproduce, etc. At one point my dad had to put down like 15 kittens (himself as they couldn’t afford a vet) becuase they were inbred and very sickly and weird. It was gutwrenching for us kids (and not easy on my dad) to lose all the kitties (we thought they took them to the vet though at the time). I understand having more kittens but please make sure that they aren’t reproducing with one another.
Love the farmhouse!
Good point!
We had a feral cat that had kitten in our garage, four kittens, all female. Could you imagine what we would have if we did not spay/neuter? We are now colony caretakers with the help of a great organization called Cats Anonymous, http://www.catsanonymous.org. They are a spray and release organiztion.
Be responsible; make sure you have the finances to care for them. They will multiply and multiply fast. If you want more cats, put food out and THEY will come! Be ready to care for them, they are orphans and need someone to love and care for them.
So, I’ll just let the other folks barrage you with opinions on your kitties since I really don’t have one. But I AM crazy about garlic!! I just read in one of my cooking magazines (because I LIKE to cook, not because I’m very good at it…) that sprouted garlic will make a dish taste bitter? Maybe that’s just to the foodies? Did you use it? Did you notice a difference?
http://tailshigh.org/home/wp-content/uploads/prolific_kitty1.jpg
My mother-in-law is a hug advocate for animals, she spends hours on the weekend cleaning cages at a shelter, and her sister is a foster mom for abandoned cats and dogs. They both own many animals that they have adopted from a shelter. They have both posted posters pleading with animal owners to do the right thing and spay and neuter. You may think you will be able to keep and watch all these babies grow, but it is impossible. Your neighbors down the road will become annoyed with the kittens that take up residence on their property and they will call someone to come get them and eventually they will be killed. I respect that you can have your own opinion on this subject, but since you are admittedly not an animal person, perhaps you don’t know the facts and statistics on animals not spayed or neutered. Please do some research and think before you leap! If you want more animals on the farm, adopt them! Or look for ads in the paper for those giving them away.
*huge
So if you neuter the male you STILL have 2 females having babies and with THOSE babies there are bound to be a few boys (more inbreeding) so you have even MORE cats. I think that anyone not willing to spay and neuter their pets should have to go to a shelter and watch them euthanize them:( My heart breaks as a true cat lover of the animal cruelty that goes on in the world…..and another thought let your cats roam to the next farm or home and they just may have a little concoction ready to feed them that will lead to their death, yes people do that for cats that come on their property and cause a rukus. cowKIDmom hit the nail on the head with cats! I hope your prepared to listen to them at night fighting and then perform kitty first aid from their wounds
Kitty is fixed so she would only have on female cake having babies!
If a cake has babies, would that be called muffins? : )
Oh my goodness I love typos! That is hilarious!!
“our Kittens are not fixed. And we have no plans to fix them.” ” I’m looking forward to Poppy having her own kittens someday.”
So you don’t mind overpopulating and allowing cats in shelter to be euthanized because no one will adopt them.
“but I see more orange tabby cats in our farm’s (and our family’s) future. I can (almost) hardly wait!”
So you won’t be sad when they get sick and turn up with leukemia, FIP, FIV because they were allowed to roam free and be exposed to stray / feral cats who will spread these viruses that there are no cures for.
Mckmama – at times I enjoy reading your blog, but I have to say you are being irresponsible. You need to educate yourself about pet ownership, become responsible and teach your kids the same. I can only hope your dog has been spayed so you can’t contribute to the overpopulation of dogs too.
Thank you (and everyone else who spoke up) for this post. A lot of thought needs to be put into adopting, loving and caring for animals, and I think a lot of people just don’t do the research or don’t care to “waste their time” thinking about such things.
Did you know that a tom cat will also kill the kittens so that he can breed the mother again? Tom cats are not nice cats. At the VERY least I’d get him fixed.
I have one dog, adopted from a rescue 3 years ago. My daughter is begging for a guinea pig. Because we are on a tight budget I said no. I love animals but as a pet owner I know that another pet is adding to the budget beyond just food. Emergency vet visits are bound to happen. Fixing your cats my be penny wise. As someone who tries to live under our budget adding another mouth to feed does not work. Just a statement, no underlying intentions.
Re cat spaying – not advice, just comments from personal perspective.
We have a gorgeous ginger boy cat (8 months old) that needs spaying – we’ve been putting it off and putting it off as I don’t want to do it to him. But we live in a town and I know how smelly and difficult Toms can get, so I will get round to it. Spraying in the house is horribly smelly.
Our last pair of kittens were boy and girl, and we spayed them because the boy was trying to mate with his sister. If I’d had the chance again I’d have spayed the boy and left the girl. (I have always wanted kittens.) In fact they themselves were the result of inbreeding and the boy was always a little -er – you could say inadequate – as cats go, really thick, rubbish at jumping, clumsy; always sickly (and we loved him to bits and cried buckets when he died aged 9 last year)
My mother had kittens that were inbred, and they had lots of problems – incontinence, small and runty, stupid….. I’d hate you to end up in that position.
But you got to decide for yourself!
I think a farm is the perfect place to bring up kids and cats – oh and dogs, hens and anything else that arrives (but can I make a plea for sheep?)
I hope you keep enjoying it all! Very envious.
well I knew you were going to get tons of controversial replies on this thread – and I dont normally comment although I am always reading – BUT
what I must say, and I’m by no means against your deciding to let your kitten have babies – that’s your decision so ya, grand
but please dont let them inbreed – cos they will. You really do need to neuter the tom, which isnt exactly complicated. Inbreeding causes SO many problems, I’ve seen them and they’re really not worth it! You won’t get nice cats that you want your kids to play with, or good mousers, etc. so the whole purpose of the “experiment” will be defeated
LW
I am so excited that you will be having more kittens in the future
I can’t wait to see pictures of all those tiny sweet baby kittens and I bet your kids are going to have so much fun with all the new cats!
How about some cute kittens from the nearest shelter? Spayed and neutered.
You need to visit the nearest shelter and see all the pictures of the cutest kittens waiting their turn to face death.
The only downside to not having the kittens fixed, is as several have mentioned…the inbreeding. Inbreeding is not a good idea. I have seen some harsh birth defects from inbreeding in cats. The scary thing about it is that the kittens could be born with birth defects that could and often times will, kill it early on. Kittens can be born with birth defects even when inbreeding is not present but its not as prevalent (My mama cat had a litter of 6 kittens before she was fixed, one of the kittens was born with cleft palate and cleft lip. Most cats that are born with this defect, rarely survive. The kitten managed to survive until about 2 weeks old, with round the clock tube feedings. But she did end up dying. She was fine one hour and the next she was gone.) in litters that are not inbred.
As others have said, they are YOUR kittens. Cats are adaptable creatures and most cats love the farm life. =)
I can’t say that I am surprised you aren’t going to spay/neuter your kittens. I would hope you’d reconsider after thinking about the probable incest that would occur among the cats/future kittens. Also, considering how quickly cats can multiply if none of them are spayed or neutered – I highly doubt you’d be getting all of the subsequent litters their proper vaccinations and yearly check ups from a veterinarian. While cats might be good “mousers”, mice carry many diseases that are not good for a cat to ingest and can be transferred to humans as well. You might want to check out this link that goes into more detail on that – http://cats.about.com/cs/zoonoticdiseases/a/catsandmice.htm .
Also, an outdoor life is highly unsafe for pets of any type. There are plenty of wild animals that can injure or kill “barn cats”. Why would you allow countless reproduction of cats so recklessly that aren’t even going to be cherished family pets, but rather an accessory on your farm? If you were to ever move again, where would those cats live? Would they be abandoned at the farm to live out their days eating mice as their main food source and fending for themselves? Shelters are overflowing right now and waiting lists to place animals are long. It makes me so sad for these animals, truly. If you “love” cats as much as you say you do – I cannot imagine that this is the life you’d condemn them to quite honestly. These are domesticated *pets*, not working animals w/some type of job to do….
Come on people, quit freaking out about the cats already! Haven’t you seen that Mckmama has already responded to some posts saying that she is now understanding a bit more about the benefits to having the cats fixed? She said she may reconsider her original plan. Seems she is open to all your suggestions and knowledge on the subject. Just breathe and relax, no need to get all upset.
I think you’re the one who needs to breath and relax, Trish. There are animal lovers who are kindly and respectfully offering advice. If you’re not an animal lover and don’t give a crap what happens to an animal, scroll past those comments.
You could also adopt a mama that is pregnant. The best of both worlds.
When I was little we had a bush with similar berries to the ones pictured in your last post. I was told that they were poisonous, and instructed not to eat them. Well, it made perfect sense to me that this was the same “fruit” that Adam and Eve ate. It made the Bible feel so real and close at hand. I was in awe as I pondered the significance of it all with my pre-school mind.
So sweet!!
Personally, they are your cats, and I don’t care what you do with them. But I will say this, just because I think it might be helpful info from somebody that has BTDT.
I will put a plug in for spaying and neutering. We live on a ranch. The best way that we can keep barn cats around our house is if they are fixed. Both males and females will wander ; males looking to mate and females looking for males when in heat. Here, wandering means eaten by coyotes, or owls or whatever… and not returning. Other tom cats will come to your house when your female is in heat. They will beat up on your male cat and get into horrible fights. Cats scream and howl and make terrible noises when they fight. And they leave bloody wounds.
Tom cats will spray everything. In the past we had toms that would climb in any open (window down a few inches even) vehicle and spray seats, they would spray all the saddle blankets, side of house, everywhere… Fixed cats also have the most stable personality; very loving. We have had the best of luck with getting both males and females fixed. They stay close to home and do not roam (and thus get killed) and we don’t get roaming males visiting and fighting with the other cats here. They live much much longer lives and the kids don’t have to loose their cats constantly. Inbreeding like stated can be serious; I have seen the results at another ranch. Stunted sickly cats and eventually they all died early. We now either get free outdoor kittens and get them fixed or get a kitten or two from a pound that are already fixed. Go for the lively, playful, short haried and dark ones, they really make the best mousers and the dark ones get caught less from predators.
Thank you soooo much for sharing!!! This was super helpful to me (and may be causing me to change my mind a bit!)
Your welcome. I thought you might find it helpful. We have 4 kids and after loosing their special kitties many times to wandering and dealing with mean toms coming in and constantly fighting even our fixed males (and we are a mile from a neighbor) we are strong believers in fixing our barn cats now. We have a 9 year old neutered male as one of our outside mousers and not many or any of our neighboring ranchers can say anything remotely close to that! They stick like glue to our place and are content with their lives. They also remain great mousers. They get free choice cat food and we never see mice… well, just gut piles on the lawn more frequently then I care to =).
But for the longevity of the cat and the happiness of the kids, it is definitely the way to go… for us anyhow.
good luck with your decision.
Oh, and I don’t think the inbreeding thing is normally a problem with the first generation in most cases. The problems I have seen (with cats) were when it went on beyond that point. Just like any animal. Livestock of many types are bred close on purpose often. It is called line breeding. It highlights certain points. Those points can be good and that is your goal when linebreeding… keeping genetics close… but you can also highlight the bad points and when you end up with that it is usually pretty bad what you get. So unless you are carefully and thoughfully breeding close on purpose, then it is best to avoid close breedings and avoid bad possibilities. Hope that made sense.
While I totally agree with cowKIDmom, there’s something I feel very important to say here. Each of us, as adults… young, old and in-between… take pride in the ability to express our thought’s and feelings, yes? While some of us may tend to hold back, some may be more open. Then, there’s the stronger personalities…who choose to throw caution to the wind…with raw, open communication. However, those of us whom choose the latter usually end up under some type of scrutiny, sooner…or later. Some of us may run and tuck our heads between our knees, at least for awhile….such as, um…me.
MckMama girl…I ADORE your raw courage and open communication! Yes, I most certainly consider you to be gifted with a very strong personality and by golly, THAT’S a good thing! Why in the holy-moly shouldn’t you be able and allowed, to ‘say it how it is?’ With Pippin and Poppy, your thought’s and feelings are perfectly, well intended. Anyone who doesn’t ‘get it’ about the need and desire of barn-cats, isn’t all too familiar with farm life. By sharing your very own words about this, it has allowed others to share, just as cowKIDmom has…and look at the results of this! She was HELPFUL and you thanked her! ALL the things she mentioned are 100% valid concerns and the way she approached the subject is the way others, a-hem… should take note of.
So…now this is off my own chest, oddly enough, as this topic coincides with kitty news in my own home…again…we have five day old kittens. Remember Miss Peabody? She had four littles on the 20th, three survived. Our own vet suggested we let her have a second litter, due her severe depression after losing half of the first littler. Fortunately, the kittens already have forever homes, when they are old enough to be re-homed. Miss P has already and once again returned to her happy self. My hubby and I are keeping this ‘news’ quiet, because we know what peoples responses would be. But ya know what? It’s OUR business! Just as what goes on in yours and everyone elses lives, is yours and their business. Bottom line…THANK YOU for your raw courage…THANK YOU for your openness and honesty! I’ll truly understand should you choose to not post all of this…more importantly, I just wanted to share my thought’s and feelings with ya!
Or, you could end up with the problem we had… when the outdoor “farm cats” disappear shortly after spending the money to get them “fixed”. So frustrating. (We have a lot of coyotes in our area…)
My only advice re the cats…which is totally unsolicited lol…is if they are bro and SIS get one of them fixed. I had a bro SIS pair of kittens and they had kittens before I could get them fixed and they all died bc they had severe cleft palates and couldn’t eat either from.their momma, a dropped, or a bottle. It was very very sad. However……I do love having a litter of kittens who are not inbred. Lol
Everything cowkidmom said is quite true though!
I agree…we had very similar experiences with our cats growing up – didn’t live on a ranch, but out in the country. We experienced almost everything she described. I would just take ‘free kittens to good home’ whenever you run across something like that.
our cat had 9 kittens twice a year…that makes for a lot of cats…..it didnt take long and we got her fixed….
This has been my experience as well. I agree on all points!! I know you need cats but I can tell you not ‘fixed’ kitties – wander and sometimes… never return! It does seem ‘barn cats’ are either scarce or plentiful – we visited friends that have one tom and he .. ahem… had fathered several litters… they had 2 day old kits, 2 week old kits and one prego mommy! – Said friend says – cats are either plentiful or NONE! They sure are great to have around – Good Luck whatever you do:) !! Also can’t wait for the online photography class!
Wow- Excellent points. And you get to help cut down on the unwanted cat population. Cool! Also, I didn’t even think about the darker colored ones having a better chance against predators. We have a black cat that comes around our place and we’ll sometimes catch him eating out of the food bowl we leave outside but he is so elusive. We have an orange cat too that comes around. but he is harder to miss. He is also louder and more persistent about begging for treats too.
He obviously belongs to someone and he comes for the attention just as much as the treats I think.
Well said cowKIDmom! I was about to comment on the inbreeding making for sickly cats due to the repetition in genetics, but your post says it all!
Wow this was so helpful to me. Explains a lot! Thank you.
That’s good info. She’s right about the fights when a female is in heat. Then, they develop abscesses from the unseen bite wounds which must be drained by a vet. Spay and neuter!
Totally agree!! There’s nothing like being jerked awake in the middle of the night like a huge cat fight-they make the worst yowling noises and it can stand your hair on end!! My parents adoped a wild cat and the urge to roam was already strong in him, even though they did fix him eventually. He’s been to the vet several times for animal bites–both coyote and other cats. Again, it’s TOTALLY YOUR CALL, but keep in mind that once the roaming (and spraying) behavior begins, it is hard to change their ways, even if you do get them fixed later. A male cat will often continue to spray if he’s older when fixed, just because he’s already had that release of hormones and learned that pattern. If you’re going to do it, do it before the unwanted behavior begins.
It was so programmed into them that it just slipped out without them really realizing. It’s become this family joke–anytime you do something a little bit naughty, we all say “bad dog” and laugh! 
On a funny note, my parents had dogs for 9 years before they had kids. When we were growing up, I often heard “bad dog” when I did something wrong!
Yes, I agree… getting them fixed young is really key. If you wait too long the bad habits will form. Males cats spraying in the house is not fun at all! They will spray on everything and it is way way worse then cleaning up a doggie puddle on the floor… because it isn’t going to be on the floor and you won’t see it until you smell it. That is why it is also key in getting them as young kittens also so you can mold them… and fix them early on.
And yes, as ali @ an ordinary mom said… get them fixed and sometimes they will still wander. BUT from just our experience, you have a much much better chance of keeping them alive and home and healthy when they are fixed. Our local pound will fix cats for very reasonable rates. Most cities also have programs for reduced or free clinics. So while we have lost a few of the fixed ones to predators because they got a little too far from the security of our house/shop/out buildings, we have lost many, many, many of the non-fixed ones that were roaming for other reasons. And now with them all fixed, we do not have visiting males and those horrible middle of the night cat fights!
This isn’t the inbreeding story I had referred to, but another similar thing…
One of our neighbors moved in about 10 years ago. They had mice, rats and snakes at their new place. They got 10 kittens from another neighbor and just let them go… and breed. It was horrible to watch over the years. Year by year the cats got smaller, skinnier and less healthy. We had them roaming to our place many times. Nasty mean Toms that were constantly here. They had baby cats having litters and abandoning them because they were too young to know what to do with them. Mommas with newborns and older kittens that hadn’t weaned… you can guess how that one would turn out and who would get the milk. There were half starved sickly cats all over. Twice they crawled up into vehicles and then ended up on the county road and at our house; little kittens! They fed their cats cat food, so that wasn’t the issue. Slowely … little by little they all died, until last year they had to go get a couple of cats, because there weren’t any of the others left! Prior to seeing this my husband was not very on board with spending the money to fix barn cats. Now, he tells everybody else to fix theirs!
I really do believe that you can’t beat a fixed farm/ranch/barn cat. And now I will stop babbling.
you and i have different opinions about the cats. =)
i’m sure you’ve already got frontline or something on Roobii. ticks are gross.
weird about the locked church door. was it the back entrance or something?
taco hotdish? like casserole or something in the crockpot?
I don’t know how it works with cats on farms, maybe nature can take care of itself, but coincidentally earlier today I saw this photo of an in-bread cat. I swear it’s funny and not gross or cruel: http://izkyoot.tumblr.com/post/9303012155/in-bread-cat If you’re not comfortable clicking a strange link, just google “in-bread cat” but make sure you spell it the way I did.
Haaahahaa!!
laughing my socks off!
I think it’s perfectly fine for you to not spay/neuter your kitties. That means we’ll get more baby pics.
However, it mayyy be a good idea for you to neuter one of them in order to prevent inbreeding.
Something I noticed was that it can greatly affect the temperament of the babies. My grandparents lived on a farm for most of their lives and their farm cats all bred with each other. Well, since then my grandparents have moved into the city because they’re too old to farm. They brought one of their newborn farm kittens with them when they moved… she was inbred like most of their cats were and is possibly the meanest and most bipolar cat I’ve ever met. Not family-friendly at all, despite the fact that she has been raised in a loving home (not even as an outdoors cat) since birth.
Just a thought… it’d be awful to have such mean cats. But ultimately, the decision is up to you and I admire you so much for standing up so calmly and kindly against the people who are so rude to you. I can tell you love your animals and want what is best for them and that’s what matters. Good luck with whatever you decide. I can’t wait to see pictures of future litters.
I cannot believe how rude you people are! Here’s a thought: why don’t all of you women complaining go get fixed and adopt a baby who needs a home?! Why is everyone pro-creating when there are thousands of babies without a home?! Riddle me that!
How do you figure she is being irresponsible by not having her kittens fixed? This is outrageous! She plans on taking full responsibility of any kittens born! The problem occurs when you have irresponsible people who don’t fix their cats and then dump them on the side of the road…
She is not acting irresponsibly. ugh. I can’t believe how distasteful some of you people are!
AGREE 100%!!!!!!!!!!
Melissa,
I don’t think the adoption of a child is an appropriate comparison to the discussion here. Please see the reply above from cowKIDmom, she says it best. Intact cats are a problem further than their immediate surroundings.
Our gorgeous Burmese boy, Leo was an indoor/outdoor cat, he was desexed and rarely ventured beyond our property, however several blocks away there was an intact Tom who used to roam and attack any male cat he saw as “competition”, desexed or not.
Our poor Leo suffered badly from bites that abscessed. Not only did he suffer, it involved a vet visit, often an overnight stay with IV antibiotics – that cost a minimum of $250/visit. After the third time we realised what was causing the abscesses and Leo became an indoor cat, which he really detests. Thankfully now we have an outdoor run for our two boys so they now get to spend time outside in the sunshine, on grass & have a shady tree to climb and sit in. Most importantly they are safe.
We were able to trap the Tom (legally) that attacked him using a trap provided by the local council & take him to a no-kill shelter where he was desexed and eventually sent to live on a rural property as he was too feral for becoming a pet.
While I personally do not agree with letting pets remain intact there is far more at stake than being responsible for the offspring. As the above reader mentioned, undesexed cats attract others from quite a distance, including feral cats. They spray everywhere (and the stench lasts a long time) & attack any cat viewed as competition as well as your chickens and other farm animals.
There is also the issue of overpopulation. Two cats & their offspring can produce 2-3 litters/year, averaging 1-8 kittens per litter. Over 7 years (assuming all animals survive) this can result in **420,000 offspring. I understand the true figure is much lower but even half that number is still a great many animals.
*Source – Wikipedia.
There is also the (for some) delicate moral issue of explaining to children where the cats came from and that sibling cats are now parents. Not an issue I would care to have had to explain to my children when they were young.
Cats are a wonderful addition to any family (big kitty lover here) but should you desire many please consider adopting a desexed animal from a shelter that would otherwise be put down.
Just a thought but she would not be able to take responsibility for any kittens she may not know about. For example if Pippin is not neutered and decides to wander to a neighboring farm (or even just finds a stray female) and impregnates another female cat. ..
So irresponsible. Get your kitties spayed and neutered. I’ve worked in an animal shelter and witnessed dozens of poor innocent pets euthanized DAILY. It’s heartbreaking and won’t stop until people start being responsible and spay/neuter their pets and stop breeding!!! Adopt from your local animal shelter and save a life!!!!
Does the shelter you worked at all cats to be adopted out and used as mousing barn cats? Another commenter or two mentioned that we may not be able to adopt a waiting cat if we plan to have it be an outside cat.
This is very true. All shelters are different and most of the time it is a case by case situation. If your pets are well taken care of, spayed/neutered, vaccinated, etc. then yes I wouldnt see an issue but as I said all shelters/rescue groups have their own policies. Best of luck with your kitties and thank you for listening to all of our views on this.
By the way I know my first comment came off as rude and that’s not my intention. Just take this issue to heart and sometimes come off as rude! ;-/
I’ve always backed you up on whatever you have done with your family and kids..because it’s your life and it fits you! But, I would really like to throw my hat in the ring with everyone else begging you to fix the kittens. The male right now and maybe let the female have one or two litters and then fix her and then start adopting some older cats and older kittens from the shelter. That would be great! I just hate seeing a lot of cats and these poor mom cats that are so worn down from litter after litter with that look on their face like..”Is this ever going to end???!” After a couple of litters, she should be happy to raise them and then get on with life as being a good barn cat with no worries of being pregnant again..lol!
I hope you didn’t take offense to this, because I really mean none! I don’t think you are irresponsible or stupid or crazy, maybe just a little misinformed and now that you have some new information, you will do what’s right for the kitties..I know it!
)
Good ideas!! Thanks.
Also…there are going to be random stray cats and dog that will wander onto your farm and will more than likely find a home with you if you like them! LOL! My uncles have a lot of barn cats and it only took one looking for a home!
If I lived on a farm….I too would be inclined to have more kittens and all kinds of other animals. So, you will get no negative feedback from me
But, I do recommend fixing your male. The whole inbreeding thingy and the fact that he may become aggressive as his Tomcat ways overtake him. Your female may find herself “knocked” up by a tomcat the next farm over, which will work in your favor for more lovable kitties:) These are just thoughts for you to ponder….you do what you are comfortable with.
Please know that I don’t meant for this to come across as rude. I’m just curious. I know you don’t vaccinate your kids, but do your pets get shots? Some animal diseases (feline lukemia and rabies, especially) are extremely contagious, and it wouldn’t take any time at all for it to spread to all of the kitties in your barn. I read that kitties in multiple cat homes are at an increased risk for feline leukemia, which can kill. I know that would be devastating for your family.
Huge proponent of vaccines for pets!
Wonderful
Thanks for answering!
I can’t believe how irresponsible you are being. The shelters in my area have a wait list of over a YEAR before they can take new cats. Could you maybe think about the cats and not yourself? I’ve always backed you up (silently) with your decisions, b/c they don’t affect me, but this affects innocent animals. Go adopt and fix your kittens. Jeez.
I guess I disagree that this decision will affect innocent animals. The more cats we get, the more we like them. I wouldn’t be surprised if we rescue a couple from a shelter, too! The more the merrier.
To an extent, of course.
Not spaying not only can contribute to cat overpopulation (and death by car, other animal, etc), but it can also lead to reproductive cancers in both male and female cats.
Ahh, really? I hadn’t heard about that (cancer in cats because they aren’t allowed to have babies?). The things you learn!
Of course, you do get more ovarian cancer and testicular cancer when they are not sterilized since everything is still there. One of the big ones is mammary cancer, even if they go through a few heat cycles. As a vet, I have seen one dog and one cat in the last two weeks with inoperable mammary cancer after only going through a couple of heat cycles before getting spayed. Just wanted to give you a little more information, though of course it is up to you! =)
I have heard this argument Katie, but isn’t that like saying women are more likely to have ovarian cancer if they don’t have a hysterectomy? Of course a male cat is less likely to have reproductive cancer if he doesn’t have his balls (ha!) but is that a good enough reason to neuter them? Should all women have hysterectomies to avoid the risk of ovarian cancer? Not saying I don’t agree with getting your pets fixed, but that always annoys me when I hear that argument.
As a matter of fact it is more common in domestic pets to develop reproductive cancers if not (specifically) neutered. I was skeptical because I was more concerned about our male mini schnauzer undergoing anesthesia. Our veterinarian who is very pro natural remedy (e.g. same dog takes zinc for epilepsy) really pressed us to do it and wouldn’t you know, precancerous growth in scrotum. Yes it is anecdotal but let me encourage you to research it on your own. Also, keep in mind that an unaltered male isn’t just going to impregnate the cats you want to have kittens. There are many other cats out there that will likely be “serviced” by your tom. All I’m saying is please consider altering the male at the very least. Its not like he can choose abstinence.
Equating animals to humans is an error. Morally, ethically, and physically.
I’m sorry but I don’t think everything is that cut and dry. I wasn’t equating, I was comparing. In this situation I think it is fair for a slight hypothetical comparison to be made. We all have the right to our own opinions
. I happen to have 4 pets, all of whom have been spayed or neutered for many reasons (with, obviously, the cancer situation not being one of them). My dog may develop bone cancer in his hind leg, so should I remove it just in case? He doesn’t really need it..
besides the reproductive cancers, they are also at a high risk for mammary cancer – and spay/neuter doesn’t remove any mammary glands. I can give you percentages etc if you want, but I’m not going to attack or flame or anything like that, my goal is just to give the facts and let MckMama (and others) make educated choices. This is a cause that’s near and dear to me.
No. Female cats who are not spayed AND not bred still go into heat. Going into heat over and over causes a condition called PYOMETRA of the uterus. Google it. It can lead to death.
Not spaying a female, EVEN IF you can prevent her from ever breeding…is almost as irresponsible as letting her breed.
While I have no disrespect at all for your decision, I do have an idea: Neuter the boy so he won’t go get some OTHER cat pregnant, since you have no control over whether or not those kittens end up in a shelter. That way, you are potentially protecting other people’s female cats from losing their kittens, AND you lose the risk of inbreeding. Just a thought!
That’s a great thought Kelli!
wow! I cannot believe how ignorant a person can be about spaying and neutering. There was a case up here where a woman had 96 cats in her home. Do you want to know why? She adopted a pregnant stray and never spayed and neutered any of her cats. 1 cat led to 96 within 3 years. Just because you want to witness the miracle of birth is not enough of a reason to not spay and neuter. I will also hazard to guess you will have your own strays show up in your barn, so why make more?
You will need to probally get a few more cats. My daughter lives on a farm and she loses cats to the wild animals that are around. But if she is low on outside cats the mouse population grows. Good idea barn cats, but I bet yours will be tamier than my daughters with your children.
Interesting about the garlic, I always throw it away. I now won’t.
Pssst…scapes, garlic scapes. That is all
You have to have thought of inbreeding! I agree with what someone else said, get thm fixed, and adopt some kittens!!
Oops did not mean to reply to garlic post!!!
God bless you Tammy. I never had garlic scapes until two years ago. AH-MAH-ZING in the kitchen. Major nommage!
Just curious…how are you going to prevent your 2 kittens inbreeding?
Umm…not my business what you do with your kittens, but isn’t there a boy and a girl kitty? I’m just guessing nature won’t stop them from doing what comes naturally in the wild! Seems a bit gross to let sibbling animals do that. But, maybe they are the same sex??
While I’m not going to lie and say that I’m shocked, I do advocate spaying and neutering because I’ve seen firsthand the fullness of shelters, I also know that barn kitties are the best things on the farm for little ones to watch and play with. With that said, I do hope you’ll consider neutering the male (because, believe me, a tom cat will still be able to find your female!) because inbreeding is not fun in cats. At the farms around here there are numerous diseases and disabilities that the barn cats have due to terrible inbreeding. Male cats are awfully cheap to get fixed as well. Besides, if your male is unfixed he will start to wonder soon and will come back with battle wounds…if he comes back at all.
Oh that is SO good to know, Elizabeth! Thank you so much for sharing.
I have witnessed very sick cats due to inbreeding on farms. Bad vision, ect…at least think about getting the boy fixed. That would help that problem!!
Good to know, thanks!
I hope that you’ll also get the kittens vaccinated, at least the rabies vaccination. Being barn kitties, they will probably have fun catching bats, and there is no way you want your cats exposed to rabies. It is a fatal disease which can be transfered to humans. The rest of the vaccinations will protect your cats (distemper is a very common, and mostly fatal disease) but the rabies vaccination will protect your family. Around here I can bring the cats in for just their rabies shots, which are about $12.
Oh yes! Vaccines all around, without a doubt!
+ some shelters offer free vacinations 3 to 4 times a year so it would be a good thing to see if that is available.
I wish you would spay them. What about all the animals in shelters? Why not give some of them a home? They are put to death everyday becasue they do not have homes.
Why we wouldn’t just give the kittens to a home? Because they’d just live on our farm and have a grand old time chasing mice and being cats and have a great life!
This won’t affect the animals, sadly, put to death in shelters.
I think what Candace is asking is why you would add to the pet population rather than adopting kittens in shelters if you wish to more cats. My guess is because you enjoyed the whole birthing/kitten raising experience, although I do understand her argument too.
I know around here that the shelters won’t adopt to people who plan to keep their animals outside (like our outside/garage dog, or your barn kitties) so the pat answer of ADOPT might not actually even apply, unless you intend to lie on the application, which we weren’t willing to do.
From experience (and I can’t remember if the kittens are boy/girl or what) but…they will mate, regardless of the fact they are siblings (you probably are aware of that) and if you want to get the spay/neuter enthusiasts enraged, then let them in-breed. Honestly though, that would be quite irresponsible. I understand not fixing the female, but the last thing you want is in-breds.
I should explain my statement about not fixing the female~ I guess in your case, I don’t fully understand or agree because your kids have already had the experience of raising kittens ,which I think is a fun thing for kids to experience…once. But, to continually allow them to reproduce, yes, that is irresponsible, and no- I’m not a spay/neuter enthusiast- just someone with sense.
Well, I think I have sense, too. We just have different angles on the whole cat thing.
WOW. Just wow. Do you know how many bazillions of UNWANTED cats and kittens there are?? To NOT get them fixed is so wrong. So completely irresponsible. WOW. I sure hope you will change your mind. I would say I hope you are joking, but that is not likely and not even close to funny.
so glad Flurry is on the mend!
Love it!! What a beautiful girl…I’m sort of partial though.
And we love garlic, but ours never sprouts….hmmmmm….
You have to wait a really (really) long time. But it will!
And yes, I knew you’d think she was gorgeous.
i love cats also and have always had a houseful – why not adopt kittens from shelters – and spay and neuter yours – instead of knowing that cats are being euthanized because of overpopulation – you could help in that department – many organizations offer free spaying and neutering – i could hook you up with an organization if you wanted
I agree with Wendy!
Also, inbreeding can be a big problem in cats just as in other species. Just something to think about.
Interesting about the garlic shoots. I’m going to try that!
I actually thought about inbreeding recently. Does that happen a lot of farms, then? With barn cats and such? There are other cats around too, we’ve noticed. What happens when littermates breed? I guess I don’t want that happening. Hmm. Something to think about!
oh dont act stupid, your not.. You are just being snarky now Mckmamma. Who cares what the farm down the road is doing, why dont you make the change, spay your kitties.. Go adopt.. If you just want great mousers get with a rescue and take their ferals.. Do something good for a change in stead of adding to the over population of animals aready
yes, and when you witness “the act”…it’s quite shocking~ and the thought that the kittens might come out with two heads…that’s shocking too
They can inbreed, and sometimes they don’t survive past birth long, or can’t walk right. Maybe just neutering Poppin, at least!
Sorry, typo. Pippin. I have baby brain….
Just get the male fixed. That way you still get kitties and don’t have to worry about inbreeding.
I personally have one male cat who isn’t fixed and 4 itty bitty 3 month old kittens (2 males and 2 females). I plan on getting all 4 fixed but the males first because I would like to have one set of kittens before getting the females fixed. Or maybe not. We will see in a few more months.
But I do find it funny that everyone is harping on you. Geez, you don’t get a break, huh?
Yes, I’m seeing that just fixing our male will probably be the best way to go! Thanks for the help, guys.
Just needed to add…most mama cats will have at least two litters a year, typically having more kittens with each litter (typical is 4 to 5 kittens). Kittens can become mature as early as four months…which means that you could have as many as 30 cats within a year! Just something to think about!
Well, she *could* have 30 cats in a year, or she could also know that farm accidents happen and a chunk of those 30 will lose their lives by climbing up in the fan of their truck engine, eating poison somewhere in a barn, or being taken away by coyotes.
Also, around here, absolutely no shelter will let someone adopt a cat if they are exclusively outdoor farm cats.
That being said, it’s a good idea to neuter your male because he will start to wander and get in fights. :/ And one day he will find a much more attractive home and stay there.
The kittens in a shelter go the fastest…………….I think the next time I get a cat (we live in the country so I need one to keep the house mice free)…………I’m going to go in the shelter and ask which adult cat has been there the longest.
I have two adult cats now too that we got as kittens. But I am thinking that the next time we adopt we will go for that older cat that has been sitting there a long time. Our animal services has a special name for those animals that have been waiting – I believe it is called the Lonely Hearts Club and I think they even offer a discount on the adoption fees for those animals.