YOU AREN'T GOING TO BELIEVE THIS, BUT...

Cat cuddler Audrey and her husband came to visit the kittens, specifically the grey and white girl who is going to their home in a few weeks.

"You've got four kittens," he said.

"No," I said, "three."

"You've got four," he insisted, peering at the blanket covered litter tray underneath an armchair.

I looked and this is what I found.

Which explains why Aoife (ee-fuh) the mother cat was so big with so much milk. She was pregnant and the none of the kittens were hers. I rang Carole to let her know and Susan arrived unexpectedly at the same time. I tried to formulate my thoughts while trying to take on board the advice I was getting. 

First, off, I had to separate the older kittens from Aoife and put them in a cage in the living room. It took about two seconds for them to squeeze through the bars and run frantically back to the conservatory.

Okay, I took Aoife and her new-born kitten (at most a couple of hours old) and put her and the kitten in the cage in the living room. Then back in the conservatory so the older three could still see her and partially covered the cage with a blanket.

At the moment Aoife is resting in her litter tray basket and presumably feeding her new baby. The kittens are wandering around the basket looking but not going in. There probably are more kittens inside her but all I can do is keep a quiet eye on her but leave her alone so that nature takes its course.

Expect at least one update on the situation tomorrow.