That’s machine oil all over the two-week old kitten’s body.
He was so cold when I touched it that I thought “dead for an hour at least.” And then I picked him up and he yelled at me.
I figure his mother, a feral, couldn’t pick him up what with the oil on him. Must have tasted evil.
There was another, healthier, bigger kitten right there, who’d apparently fallen out of a shelf the (not very sensible) mother had put him in, and I grabbed him her. “Your brother needs a heating pad, and you’re the lucky winner.”
Three baths, and some homemade kitten glop, and a session with the blowdryer, and a couple of ruined towels later, they’re snoozing on a low heating pad.
(This, incidentally, is not a good idea for newborns: they can’t move around, and they get burned, and don’t try this at home. These guys are able to roll, and the healthier one is actually tottering around unpredictably. Besides, it’s a high-tech heating pad I bought to sleep on when my back goes out, and it’d be hard to burn yourself on it if you tried. Still, as soon as the little guy was warm, into the box they went.)
More photos here.
On topics other than kitten rescue: I’ll be living in Nipton from July through September, looks like, in an artist’s residence type house, a fifteen-minute drive from my campsite at Cima Dome.

oh, the poor babes. i don’t even want to ask about the machine oil.
yeah, I’m not sure either, except that Mom had moved them into a neighbor’s outdoor cabinet which smelled pretty oily.
omfg, wuzza wuzza wuzza. i seem to’ve lost my mind. good catch, rescuing the wee ones before it was too late.
good on you.
and congratulations on nipton. rock on.
oooooh, extra snorfles from me! They look like little long-hairs maybe?
And I’m happy to hear about the summer’s lodging - always great to have a place to land, especially in familiar territory.
I am so happy you found a place to live!!
I know those kitties are in good hands now, hope they continue to do well. Do they have names yet?
After Cheney died last September, I contacted the rescue person who originally put us together with him, and she told us she is now doing cat rescue, because there is such a large feral population in our area. I went onto her website several months ago, and there we saw Esmeralda, who became our cat, in late January. She had been found abandoned in an apartment, with a neglected eye infection. She is now blind in one eye as a result. It took Kate six months to build up enough trust in her to even begin to find an adoptive home, and who knows how much veterinary care. We are so happy to have her with us. She is a great cat.
Nipton is absolutely stunning!!
Kittens!
Kittens!
Kittens!
*emits squee*
Kittens!
I hope your kitten fostering goes well. At that age, it’s not a sure thing by any means. good luck!
Carolyn H.
lucky, lucky kitties..
You could hang the heating pad over the side of the box so they could get warm if they need to. When Silver & Sapphire were babies, we hung a heating pad on the side of the cage they were in and they slept near it. We had already lost their sister when she got too cold. Their Mama had left her behind when she moved them from a neighbor’s shed to a spot under our porch steps.
You drive way, way too fast, man.
I wish I lived at Nipton (though ask me again in August)
You drive way, way too fast, man.
Not in the thing he’s going to be driving, Sven.
Add my swoons at the sight of ALL felines, and particularly teeny, vulnerable ones. I rescued an abandoned (or misplaced) kitten once that didn’t make it. It was heartbreaking; I tried everything.
They are ADORABLE! Nice work, Chris.
And I’m sure you’ll get some kind of plenary indulgence for that. (ducks)
Glad to hear you won’t be homeless. Sounds like a great setup.
well? how are they doing today? they are so young—do you need to bottle-feed them?
i’m a hopeless sap about foster kittens.
p.s.—glad you have a place to go.
ohhhhh!!
Thistle just happened to have an existing vet appointment this morning, so the kiddens piggybacked on the rabbit.
They’re fine, they’re fed, they’re in the adoption pipeline.
I suppose it’s to be expected that comments on a coated kitten would be so pussy laminous.