Left to Right – Peanut, Mia, Zeuss, and Rolz

Week 8 with the kittens was a pivotal time for all of us – exciting, but bittersweet at the same time. By now, each kitten was emerging with a distinct personality and we could actually tell who was who (sort of). They had gone to the vet for the first time to get their shots and a health check-up and it was confirmed that we did indeed have two males and two females as we had suspected. All of them had permanent names now– Rolz was our big boy who was named after his tendency to roll on his back, combined with the clever usage of the letter “z.” Peanut was the runt (at the time) of the litter and so that’s why she got that name. Mia was the other female and was such an exquisite looking creature, that we felt the name gave her perfect justice – very feminine and exotic sounding. The last kitten, who was a male, was already claimed by Dan’s daughter Crystal and her then boyfriend, Sean. They both lived in Boston and fell in love with him via email pictures we would send them and planned on adopting him. Before even meeting him in person, they chose the name “Zeuss,” feeling it was the perfect name to keep the legacy of the letter “Z” and the character of a strong and powerful personality that originated from Greek mythology. 

So, the issue was this – when Crystal and Sean came for the Easter holiday and were finally going to be taking Zeuss back home to Boston with them, we did not know how Zoey would react. Zoey was so devoted to her kittens at this point and had a very strong grip as to the number of kittens she had – she absolutely knew how to count to four. Knowing one of them would be leaving soon was very difficult for all of us, especially Crystal and I, despite knowing Zeuss was going to such a great home, would still very much be part of our family, and would be so well loved. We were very concerned how Zoey would react to one of her kittens being missing and it was also so heartbreaking watching Zeuss play, interact, and nap with his siblings for the last time, unbeknownst to him. Crystal and I would constantly break into tears, watching Zeuss with the others, and were not handling the situation too well!

The day they were to leave, we took lots of pictures of the whole feline family together and prepared a carrier for Zeuss filled with his favorite toys. We also took a t-shirt of Crystal’s and had Zoey nap on it a bit, so that it could go in the carrier with Zeuss when he boarded the plane and then he would still have the comforting scent of his Mama with him. We (i.e., Crystal and I) were completely on edge over the whole situation and our tearful goodbye was completely over the top! Here we were crying like nuts, despite knowing Zeuss would be staying in the family, so to speak, and would be so well loved and cared for!

So, Zeuss was put into his little mesh carrier, not knowing his whole life was about to change forevermore to board a plane heading to Boston. He would now be a  an only-child cat living thousands of miles away. No more brother and sisters to play and snuggle with. No more Mama to nurse on. No more Florida lizards and birds to look at out the window. We got  text messages throughout the night that Zeuss was peacefully napping and not even a bit scared about being in the car, then on an airplane. When they arrived home, Zeuss spent the night with them in bed, tucked between them happy as a clam. What can I say? Zeuss is by far, the most well adjusted, happy, fearless, intelligent, and interesting cat I know. He is currently a featured blogger on this site and his stories never fail to make me smile or laugh.

As far as Zoey, well, much to my surprise, she handled his departure very well, doing what Zoey does best, the opposite of what ever we think. Turns out, Zoey was getting tired of four kittens with very sharp claws and teeth following her day and night to try to nurse on her. In her mind, they were completely weaned and it was time they all packed up like Zeuss and left the roost! So, for us left back in Florida, we were about to embark on a whole new phase with Zoey and her little ones…. Stay tuned!