Mini the cat

Before shifting into this flat a couple of months ago we were living in one a storey house in the interiors of Barasat.  That was a very quiet area and completely residential with local pop-and-mom shops.  Most of the houses in the area had no main door – just a collapsible gate that needed to be kept locked at all times.  But the gate could not keep out little furry animals, especially, cats; they could comfortably squeeze through the gaps in the bars.  Mini, (I named her after she made it clear it was her home), seemed to have been a regular resident of the house as the neighbours said.  That she would decide to give birth to 3 teeny-weeny kittens on top of the rice bag came as a shocker, which soon turned into an adventure for me and my grown-up sons.  The first day she meowed and growled (as much as cats can growl) and the neighbours advised us to stay away from the kittens if we did not wish to be scratched in the eyes. 

We couldn’t let the situation be as it is, so as soon as Mini left her babies for a few minutes we swiftly transferred the furry balls into a big plastic tub, padding it up with newspapers and rags at the bottom.  And we had to throw away the rice – nearly 5 kilos of it.  I did not have the heart to throw the kittens far away from the house, as strongly advised by experienced neighbours and so kept the tub close to my bedroom in a warm corner (winter time).  I frantically surfed all information on ‘how to care for newborn kittens’ and learnt they must not be separated from their mother for the first 6 weeks (same as with pups).