There have been various critters in my life, some with 2 legs some with 4, a few with wings and others with gills.  From a few ounces up to a few hundred pounds.  At this point however we have 1 dog, a 9 month old puppy made up of Jack Russell, Boston terrier, and Chihuahua named Zygo.



We got the name from Zygomatic, a bone high on your cheek.  Was able to get him from a friend at work and he has been the best dog.

   Then there are the two cats, Shroom and Truffle.  Shroom is a 9 yr old matriarch, and Truffle is a 6yr old princess.  They are both your basic medium haired tabby cats.

We got them both from the local shelter and as you can see, they both look like mushrooms.  Some people feel I have a more questionable side to there names, but really it is because of their markings.

   Last but not least, well okay he is the smallest, is Gizmo.  He is a common rat that is about a yr old.  He is the last of 4 rats we did have, but the others have met different ends to their little lives.  All these different furry characters make our lives very interesting at times.  But nothing like the 3 additions we acquired 2 days ago.

   See, I have the Indianapolis Animal Care and Control on my facebook page since thats where we got our cats.  And from time to time they put requests out there for volunteers to help doing different things.  One time, my wife Annie and I, transported a injured goose from the southside of Indy to the northside to a avian rescue.

   Other times they need foster homes for animals too young to be adopted out and too small to stay in the shelter over night.  And we have discussed whether or not we have the time to foster, and the will power to have cute babies come visit and then have to be turned back over to the shelter.  Well, finally the need outweighed the concerns.  The IACC placed a request on Facebook for fosters to care for ten 1week old puppies and three 1 week old kittens.  Annie and I decided that since I took a week off from work we would have more time to devote to the babies.  So I emailed the shelter and said we could take a couple of the little ones, didn't matter kitten or puppy.
   Apparently, the kittens were in more peril because they didn't have a mama.  So as I sit here writing this on one of my sewing tables(another story), they are cuddled up in a box beside the computer with their bellies full.

   They are so little, their eyes are still shut, but they still have well developed lungs and let us know when they are in need of attention.  When you take them out to feed them, they start rooting around and bobbing their little heads.  One of my daughters said it looks like they are 'doing the dougie' as they dance around the table while Annie and I try to get a bottle settled in their mouth.  Once they are attached they get down to work and fill their bellies with the kitten formula.

They are so much fun to work with, almost like human babies.  After each feeding, I have to burp them and then rub their backsides with a warm wet cloth to get them to potty.  Never had that problem with the kids, after eating and burping, they filled the diaper all on their own.  Not sure how long we are going to keep the little guys, but Annie has a favorite and I am thinking it will join the herd here at the Wortman Domain....