New kitten Cookie and new Mom Tootsie pose for a picture on the day the kitten was born.

It’s been more than a long time since I’ve posted anything to Rancho Chase. Life has been hectic and time has been short.

I got a surprise call at work last Friday from my daughter who breathlessly shrieked “Daddy! Tootsie had a kitten!” about three times before I understood her. Even after I did I had to get confirmation from my wife that the news was real.

Sure enough our youngest black cat is now a Mother.

We adopted Tootsie (the new Mom) at 5 weeks of age from neighbors who rescued her from the side of the road after seeing her thrown from a car and crossing 2 lanes of traffic to safety.

The kitten is black, orange, and white, and our vet has advised that the chance of it being a female are about 99.9%. Alison has named the kitten “Cookie” and declared there’s no way anyone else can adopt it.

Tootsie first surprised us by being in the family way without our knowledge and now amazes us with her mothering skills and constant devotion to her baby. Prior to the kitten’s arrival Tootsie has always been aloof and wary, which we’ve been told may be due to not being with her Mother long enough to learn social skills.