Here Kitty, Kitty!

Oh, yeah. Cute as a button. Who can resist a soft, fluffy kitten? Meet Lily who now belongs to Baby Monkey. Regular readers to this blog know that Baby Monkey was dealt an emotional blow when Clancey, his 20-year-old cat, died just before Thanksgiving. I thought Baby would be in mourning for quite some time, but about two weeks after his beloved pet's passing he asked me, "When can we get another cat?"
"Don't you think it's a bit soon? Has it been a respectful amount of time?" I asked my youngest son.
"Mom, it's a cat, you know. It' s not like replacing a person." He had a point. Besides, I am alone in the house during the day, and believe it or not, I get a little lonely without even a cat to talk to. (Kong will attest to the fact that I like to talk.)
So about a week ago, Baby Monkey and I found this little cutie at a cat shelter. She was found under a porch with her siblings, alone and frightened, no mother to be found. I feel we've done a good deed by rescuing her and providing her with a "Forever Home", as the shelter likes to say. Baby Monkey is completely taken with her. She is gradually getting used to her new environment, and it's his responsibility to feed her, clean her litter box and generally take care of her. He's even set up housekeeping in the back room downstairs, sleeping on the sofa bed to make sure that she wants for nothing in the middle of the night. His devotion is actually quite sweet. He reminds me of Coco the Gorilla who was famous for learning sign language and being able to communicate with her scientist/trainer. Coco was given a kitten at one point. It was amazing to see such a large creature be so tender and loving with her tiny pet. It's the same with Baby Monkey. He has enormous hands and stands 6 feet tall on size 13 shoes. But he's very gentle and considerate of his little kitten's fragility. For example, Baby Monkey is careful to set Lily in a safe place before he picks up a broom handle and chases the Monkey Prince through the house. There must be hope for him.