Monotony - Day 12

We're getting close to two weeks, and his eyes still haven't opened.  I keep looking and hoping, but no change yet.  I'll need to take him back to Linda (my go-to kitten guru) if his eyes don't open up in the next couple of days.  So here's top hoping that I get to see those blue eyes soon.  Fun fact: all kittens eyes are blue when they open; the color changes happen later.  Though in this case, if Phoenix ends up being siamese, the eyes will remain blue.  Guess we'll see.  And hopefully he sees soon.

Sleep-time Shenanigans

I've been sleeping better, so I'm thankful for that.  Since we got Phoenix, I've definitely been having some awkward, almost hallucinatory moments.  Being part way between sleep and being awake has lead to some interesting stories.  Most often, it was as simple as hearing my husband asking me for help with the kitten, and then realizing he wasn't even trying to feed the kitten.

My favorite story started when I had fallen asleep with my hand resting on Asher.  I had been having a dream about Phoenix.  He had opened his eyes, and he was moving about in the dream.  Around this time, I started waking up, and realized that my hand was holding onto Phoenix.  I panicked.  How had I put him in bed with me?  What if he approaches Asher and Asher attacks him?  I frantically tried to grab Phoenix, and he kept moving away from me.  I tried to grip a little more, and this time Phoenix pulled away rapidly.  It was after that last movement that I had come to completely.  I had been grabbing at Asher's leg thinking it was Phoenix 😅.  Thankfully Asher didn't hold this again me, and he took it as an opportunity to come sleep right on top of me instead.

Last night was by far the creepiest though.  I typically sleep with something covering my eyes, though it may shift or only partially cover them at times.  Again, in that part-awake and part-sleep moment, I ended up actually seeing Phoenix being held in front of my face.  Now, at the time, it didn't even register that he couldn't just float there, but I shot awake pretty quickly to figure out how he had gotten out of his container.

So I wonder what's next for me.  I've got through auditory, tactile, and visual "hallucinations".  What's next?  I suppose I only have smell and taste left 😂.

Grooming

The poop storm still hasn't ended.  And unfortunately this just leaves behind a mess everywhere.  If you've ever needed to clean up dried poop, then you'll also understand the challenge.  Phoenix was tinged yellow all around his back half and his legs.  The underside of his tail had also lost his fur (and this was expected).  We have ointment that we bought just for him in case he ends up with fecal scald (basically irritated skin from all the poop).  We haven't used the ointment yet, but I might consider putting some on if this doesn't slow down soon.

To help, I gave a mini-bath to Phoenix.  The kitten lady calls it a "butt bath".  I gave him a modified version of it.  I filled up a small container with some warm water, and in went his butt and legs.  I rubbed him down a bit and then dried him off quickly.  Then he got a quick brushing with the toothbrush I've been using.  We also have some baby shampoo on reserve, but I decided not to use it this time.  I suppose everything "new' makes me nervous.  But this seemed to work well enough, and Phoenix came out looking much better!  I'll likely do this more often, since it seemed to be better than trying to use toilet paper, paper towel, towels, or cotton balls.

Deliveries!

I've ordered a number of things for Phoenix in the last couple of days.  Things like pedialyte and syringes.  Over the last couple of days, I've had a number of things arrive.  I've also learned that I should double check my purchases and quantities when I'm tired. 😂  Without further ado, here are some of our kitten supplies!

Heartbeat Maker - we purchased a device that vibrates in a heartbeat pattern.  It's under the blanket in his container and it's been there for a few days.  It's supposed to help since he's an orphaned kitten.  The hope is to help generate some comfort since he has no mother or litter mates around him.

Heating Pad - we've had one of these for a while, but it's been on loan from Linda.  I've finally purchased our own so I can return the one we borrowed when we go back for another visit!

Cotton balls - clearly one of my tired purchases.  You may recall in a previous post that I said 300 more were on their way?  Make that 600.  Apparently I placed a double order and had no idea.  Thankfully cotton balls are versatile, so I suppose we'll be set for a while.  Though to be honest, with the way this guy poops, maybe we'll finish sooner than expected. 😆

Baby Bottles - yet another tired purchase.  Apparently I bought two sets and didn't realize until the second one arrived today.  We also have another two of these from before.  While we're still syringe feeding Phoenix, we plan to move to bottle feeding soon.  You actually have to cut the bottle nipples to the right size yourself.  So at least this way, we have a number of nipples to spare; if we mess up on the first few, we have plenty of backups. 😂 I was going to try bottle feeding today, but the bottle I had ended up running a bit too fast, so will need to try another nipple with a smaller hole.  For now, Phoenix is still on the syringe, and it's not too bad since he tends to eat only 6mL in one feeding at most.  That's just two syringe draws.  But as it gets higher, moving towards the bottle will definitely be easier to accommodate.

Photos and Videos

Post-meal sleepiness and whining.

He's been sleeping out from under his cow a lot more recently.  There's no heating pad under him at that spot.  While he still can't see or hear, he can sense temperature, so it's not unusual to see him move around from under the cow back to outside of the heated area.

Cannot get a great photo of him these days.  I also accidentally flashed the poor guy this time!  Definitely a bad Mom move.  Either way, while not a cute photo, you can see how round his tummy is.  That's what you get after a good feeding!  I sometimes call him Roly-Poly because of this.  He'll crawl around and sometimes tip over.  Can you blame him with that tummy?  Also, check out the little toe beans on the extended paw!

Another Day Down

Things have been pretty monotonous with Phoenix.  That's actually quite comforting and it helps us fall into a rhythm.  I could do with less poop, but for now he's not dehydrated and he still has an appetite.  It's also just something we expect at this point.

I can't give him a dewormer until he's 8oz.  He's almost 6oz now, but he has about another 90g to go to hit 8oz.  With a target of gaining 10g per day, that means we're still a week away.  Guess we'll see what happens here!  I have been a bit concerned with his weight gain, but I'm glad I keep track of his weight (and you can follow along here: Weight Chart), because the numbers show that he's been typically gaining his 10g per day.  He did have a bit of a lull a couple of days ago, but he seems back on track now.

Phoenix is also getting very close to his 2 week mark.  His eyes are still closed, and I'm hoping they open up soon.  If not, we might need to use a damp cloth (or cotton ball) on his eyes.  You don't force kittens eyes open, but if they don't open when they are supposed to, it could be because of an infection or something else that's keeping the eyes almost "glued" shut.  So we'll keep an eye on it, and hopefully we'll see his eyes soon!