sas95, so they could keep each other company and be happier should we travel and have to leave them. Being pet-less at the time, if you want to make a change like that, that's the time to do it, so they can grow up together. Introducing a new cat to an existing cat is much harder.

They are precious! I love tuxedo cats especially! We have a three year old cat and couldn't keep up with her play demands. Indoor kitties get bored! We got her a kitten for Christmas and she's so much happier. I was surprised at how fast they grow, so take lots of baby photos (and post them!).

Thanks! I enjoy seeing someone else's cats.

Congratulations!!! They are SO adorable.

Sooo cute! Please post more pictures.

Oh Annie - words fail! Cute? Adorable? Your first time with two? You will be endlessly entertained, and they will be a great comfort to each other, not to mention perfect playmates. Kittens need to play-fight, and if a kitten is alone, it will turn its teeth and claws on you. Together they will get all that energy out and then come to you for cuddles and pets. And tuxedos and tabbies are my favorites, too.

Two suggestions: QVC sells the very best throw I've ever had; it is by far my cats' favorite (and we have many throws of all kinds). I can't make the link work, but go to QVC and search for the "super-soft mega 55" x 70" fluffie throw". They come two to a package, for a total of about $33. If you think you can use one for yourself, that's wrong, the kitties will pile on it even if you're under it. More likely, they'll walk off with it for themselves. Fold it out so that it has lots of room for two cats - on a sofa, chair, bed, wherever, and watch what happens. This throw also washes and dries like a dream. In a lifetime of owning cats and dogs, this one is my best find ever!

Second - cardboard boxes, if you haven't already discovered them. As you know, cats love small-ish containers, and in our house, deep boxes pushed together have given young cats a great time of leaping, jumping, hiding, and generally racing around.

You're a wise and experienced cat person, so I hope that my suggestions haven't offended you. They are just things that I discovered on my own.

Enjoy your furbabies!

Thanks for the tips sable. So glad you've enjoyed your own fur babies!

When I was a kid we had a kitten that would curl up inside a tissue box that was on top of a radiator. As she grew she still tried to get in it, even if it was just her front paws. Eventually, we replaced the tissue box with the cardboard base of a case of beer, lined with a towel. Many years later, after she died, I swear I could still hear the sound of her jumping down from the radiator.

One of my sisters is waiting for her new kitten to grow big enough to be released from foster care. I can't wait to meet him. I'm allergic so I can't have cats any more but I do enjoy a brief visit with them and hearing the funny stories of what they get up to.

Darling little kitties. The tabby is such a pretty silver & the tuxedo, too adorable for words. M&M, too cute.

They are adorable! Thanks for sharing pics. I cant' wait to hear what trouble (I mean fun) they get in to :)

Mine used to love the rip off tabs on paper sized envelopes too. Like from fed ex, ups or priority mail. Don't ask me why, but next to the milk tabs, those were their favorite toys.

One of ours likes crumpled up receipts. But they need to be fresh from the store. He's not into reusing them.

I've been giving them a balled up page out of the new yorker magazine and they love batting it around. GF says she has some old ping pong balls to contribute to the kitty cause.

There is something wonderful about getting up in the a.m. to purring in stereo....

OMGosh, they are so cute!! Having two is more expensive and a little more work, but IâÂÂve always felt bad for a solo animal in a household where people work and the animal is home alone.

WeâÂÂve always had dogs because we have allergies to cats in the household. Still one of our adult children is an animal lover who had a dog then ended up taking a single adult cat from a friend who couldnâÂÂt keep her any more. He was inexperienced and didnâÂÂt know anything, then walked in from work one day and found a litter of four kittens. lol Of course, he fell in love with all of them and wouldnâÂÂt give them up. Until he had to move and try finding a rental with a dog and five cats. So we took two of the cats while he was trying to find homes for them, despite the allergies. They ended up with us for six months because we wouldnâÂÂt split them up. Quite the experienceâ¦lol. I just loved having them. Your Mila reminds me of one of them. I still miss them, but they went to a great home of one of my husbandâÂÂs coworkers with small children that love them and a golden retriever who they get along fabulously with.

Your cats are lucky cats too, to have such a loving home!

Volunteeed for years at a cat rescue/shelter. Found most cats were quite entertained by this silly piece of spring steel wire with rolled cardboard at the end. Worth the $3.

Also fun is watching them chase after a laser pointer light. Great exercise to wear out energenic kittens and for those on the weight reduction program.

They're adorable! Is the tuxedo cat polydactyl? Many but not all are. Mine was. And a silver tabby -- delicious. I have a big brown tabby who prevailed upon me to adopt him as an adult but a silver tabby remains one of my elusive dreams. Our tux was as big as our tabby is now, about 17 lbs...but I'm not sure that works with all tuxes, so as you say the tabby might end up bigger than the tux...but then again our 6 lb. dilute tortie senior lady more than holds her own against the big lug, so size doesn't always matter in the cat world, it's what you're willing to do with it!

Thanks mdln, I'll have to check into it. Right now, they are having so much fun with the simplest of toys...the ping pong ball is a big hit (pun intended). And of course their favorite toy is each other.

Flyleft, Thanks. Mila is normal toed. She's a real pistol and loves being all over me, including climbing up my leg like I'm Mt Everest. Misty, not so much...she's still pretty shy, though she does start purring as soon as you touch her. But she's certainly not shy with Mila.

One benefit I never thought of was how much cleaner our house is now! The kitties kept flying under the sofa and I kept looking for them and yikes that needed cleaning. Then they were all over the bookcase....you know it's been awhile since I pulled everything off...and then I had to move the book case too, which upset the carpet which needed vacuuming underneath.....and so on.

Oh they are just so cute - I love all the pictures!!

Annie, I just now saw this topic after it was mentioned in mine, but congratulations!! I bet it feels good to have a kitty back in your life.

I highly recommend a toy I bought for Raven when she showed up in February. I got it at Walmart. It's like a little fishing pole with feathers on the end and it makes a quiet noise when being played with.

I stuck the pole in a loop handled drawer in the LR, and the cat was able to play with it without me being there. I always knew where she was at when I heard the noise. :)

Adorable kittens. I love the milk mustache.

mdln, I saw that photo first without reading your post and thought it was something for an assassin. lol

And the fun has already begun...the gifts that keep on giving...Misty has conjunctivitis and ear mites so now I'm treating her for that. Mila has been having diarrhea issues after eating some litter, thank you very much, and if it doesn't clear up, off to the vet she goes. I can see our vet is going to be very happy having me as a customer!

I'll just suggest...raw diet, colloidal silver when necessary cleans up pretty much every kind of infection. If you could get it *in* Misty's eye, it would clear up fast. Doesn't hurt any more than water.

Feeding kittens bovine colostrum, believe it or not, is also really helpful in cleaning up little digestive systems. Just google it!

Thanks flyleft, we've got her covered....

Annie, a colleague also got two shelter kittens and has dealt with the same issues. It will get better!

Our kitten's diarrhea issues developed when we changed his food. He came to us from foster care on a raw diet, but it wasn't something I wanted to continue. The vet told us he didn't need kitten food, so we transitioned him to the same canned food Gracie was eating, all grain-free brands, and he has had soft poops ever since. He even farts! I've had cats my entire life and never knew they fart. A vet tech works at our local pet store and he said to try Wellness kitten food, and it worked. So in case it's just a food change catching up to her, try the kitten formula. The higher protein supposedly is the key.

Great, annie--just a suggestion. On a completely different topic, I *love* looking at little kitten eyes : )

And may flowers, WOW for that foster care mom! That's dedication. We do raw food because it's less expensive than the kinds of foods you're feeding, i.e. grain-free, no vegetables like carrots or sweet potatoes for cats. I'm so impressed by that foster care--*never* heard of one feeding raw.

It's a small organization of foster families. We got both our cats from them.

It's so hard to find canned food without veggies and fruit and carrageenan. Gracie the older kitty wouldn't eat the raw food or we might have continued it. It's locally made and comes frozen. It was also the most expensive option, though none of it is cheap. We're paying about $160 a month for canned food!

They are adorable.

My boys are always begging for a cat. Looking at your sweeties mat tempt me.

Unless they're sleeping, it's so hard to get them to pose together...one or the other is always moving. So I finally got this only to find it's a tad blurry. But I'll post it anyway. Such cute little girls!

Hm, may...I'm going to ask DH to rough-estimate how much we spend on food (including supplements we add to it) each month for three cats...really curious now.

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This post was edited by jstell2008 on Fri, Sep 26, 14 at 20:38

What cuties, Mila and Misty! I'm so excited for you, you will have your hands full with these 2 little ones. Love that you got 2 of them together. Please post lots of pics of their mischievous kitty antics!

Thanks emerald....you'll be chasing your own mischievous one soon as well!

I am sorry you are dealing with the medical issues but they are so cute! It will all be worth it.

Latest pic of my girls...they just love to be together, awake or asleep. This shot just gives me paws!

OMG - that is SOOOO cute.

Great pic. Adorable!

Love that photo!!

What a wonderful photo!

kitty feetsies!

oh my. that pic of their little kitty feet just made me smile - so cute. I want another cat. My DH refuses to permit it after my Oliver passed last year.

He hates cats and tolerated Oliver for 18 years, so I'm trying to wear him down, but so far he's pretty adamant....

But if I found a stray he may not have a choice....

hmm, not sure I could have tolerated anybody who "hates cats" for 18 years. no offense!

Thanks, everyone. I just don't think it's possible to look at kittens and not smile.
:)

What a wonderful photo of happy, sleepy paws ..... and pals!!!! :)

Many thanks for sharing Annie -- just LOVE these photos!!! :)

What a cute photo of your cuddly kitties!

Thanks, everyone. They are cute...but of course I'm biased!

Thanks mdln for the cat dancer recommendation...they LOVE it. They play with it for hours nonstop and it wasn't expensive. Much appreciated.

So cute! I am glad you are enjoying them. It is hard having no pets in the house. I can't believe we have none for the first time in about 14-15 years. I am not sure I am ready again yet though.

Annie, This picture is just precious. Would you be willing to share info on your cat tree. There are so many choices its mind boggling and my three really need to have one...Thanks.

Sure arjay! I bought our kitty condo from overstock and am very pleased with it. It was reasonably priced, very easy to assemble and once I attached the bobbles to it, the girls took to it immediately. They love it and use it all the time. Unlike a lot of them this is not covered in carpet, but in fleece which is great as it doesn't rip out or shred like carpet does and it's much softer.

Annie, Thank you so much for taking the time to post a picture. I just ordered one from Overstock and can't wait. Kinda like Christmas in August. One of our three requires constant stimulation and I think this will really help. I have truly enjoyed the pictures of your girls. They are precious!

NP, hope your kitties enjoy it. I find, with the rope covered legs, it seems to spare our furniture the worst of the clawing...

Also the bobbles got ripped off right away, so I hand stitched them onto 1/4" elastic and that seems to do the trick...the girls just love them.