First and most importantly, I NEED SUGGESTIONS. We’re going with Spanish names for Isabella’s kittens (because Spanish is one of the Romance languages, and Valentine’s Day is coming up. Uh. It made sense when I thought of it. Just go with it, okay?) and ordinarily I’d call the litter as a whole Los Gatitos (Spanish for “the kittens,” see?) HOWEVER, back in 2010 I had a small litter of kittens that were born on or around Cinco de Mayo, so I gave ’em Spanish names.
SO.
Someone give me a better name for them, please. If I have two litters going by Los Gatitos, I am going to get confused. Because I am easily confused. Suggestions?
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COURTESY POST: A bonded pair in Fayetteville, TN is looking for a home!
Gabby (female dilute torti-tabby) and Cheeto (male orange tabby). They are a bonded pair. Both are fixed and up to date on shots, according to previous owner. I do not have any vet records though. They are both around 2 years old. They get along okay with other cats and also small/medium dogs with proper introductions. They came from a home that had a small dog. Please contact Ashley, if you would be interested in giving these two a home together. 931 993 0546 or ryokara (at) gmail.com
Please share!
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You had said something recently about fosters that you seriously considered keeping over the last year, if that would’ve been feasible. Totally get and respect you there. But I wondered, if conditions had been right, who were the biggest contenders for being kept?
Jacques and Francois were thisclose to becoming permanent residents. In fact, the morning I was delivering them to their new home, I had them in the car, drove about half a mile down the road, turned around and came home, discussed it with Fred (who was okay with keeping them), and then ultimately decided to do what was best for them. I don’t regret letting them go at all, but the actual act of deciding that they wouldn’t be staying with us was really hard.
The others who nearly made it to permanent resident status were Almanzo (mostly because we couldn’t stand the idea of him at Petsmart alone), Amelie (she had such a rough start, I really got attached), Antoine (such a little character), and Josephine and Gabrielle (I hated thinking of them sitting at Petsmart.) With all of them, once they had adoptions and I knew they were going to great homes, I was perfectly fine with letting them go. (The only reason I wasn’t tempted to keep Charles and Caroline and/or Margeaux and Katriane is because someone whose name sounds like Smarchie had a distinct disliking for the first two, and Alice was TERRIFIED of the second two, though they never once gave her any reason to be scared.)
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The thought of a hard of deer fleeing down your street from Fred make me snicker
He said that they were mostly just walking fast, but when he coughed, they started running! (Even typing that makes me laugh out loud.)
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A herd of deer running? Who sees that in their ‘hood? Are you close to a park or preserve?
We’re near the end of a cul de sac, at the foot of a mountain. There are a LOT of deer (and other wildlife) here!
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I am amazed your catnip comes back at all.
So am I! That pot of catnip came from Crooked Acres. I wish I could remember where I got the initial plant, whether I grew it from seed or bought a plant somewhere, because it is the hardiest catnip I’ve ever had. Year after year, it keeps coming back!
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I know it’s all relative, but your “cold and dreary” comments make me snicker
Through all of December, I was like “I am so ready for the cold weather!” and “When is it going to get cold?” and “I grew up in Maine! I like the cold!” and then we get 5 days where the temperature drops below freezing at night, and I’m suddenly all “WHERE IS SPRING.”
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What kind of vet doesn’t know that even the mellowest cats can lose their @*%( at the vet?
In the vet’s defense, Archie was SO happy and kneading and purring and just the most laid-back boy that I don’t think they expected him to go from 0 to 60 in an instant when they tried to restrain him. (Fred and I always say if I were a cat, I’d be Archie, because THAT IS SO ME.)(The 0 to 60 in an instant, not the restraining part… though I probably wouldn’t like that, either.) It’s hard, when your cat is purring and rolling around and head-butting the vet tech, for them to understand how very much that boy doesn’t like being restrained!
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People have asked how many kittens Isabella might have, and I have no idea. I always suggest to our mamas that 4 is a great number – easy to handle and a round number so, in theory at least, they could be adopted in pairs. Our mamas never ever listen to me, though, so I haven’t a clue how many kittens we’ll end up with.
As far as what colors she might have, all I can tell you is that we did have a floofy black mama kitty back in 2013, Catherine (Kate).
She had five kittens, who looked like this.
Two tuxies (Buttercup and Charming), one all-black (Jareth), brown tabby (Aslan), and silver and white tabby (Leia). Their woefully incomplete page is here, and you can see all the pictures of them in this album over at Flickr.
So in summation: no idea how many, no idea what they’ll look like. I can’t wait to find out, though, that’s for sure!
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Isabella is doing well. She seems to think of this as her safe space.
(When Margeaux was pregnant, that was her favorite place to hang out, but those beds weren’t there.)
When I walk in, she wakes up and gives me a suspicious look.
I put that cat tree there to make it easier for her to get down. I don’t like the idea of her jumping from there to the floor (though it doesn’t bother HER.)
“Awesome, lady, thanks!”
As soon as I sit down on the couch…
Snugglebug.
SO sweet.
Oh, those floofy paws.
Should she have the kittens over the weekend, I’ll post on social media, and here as well. I’ll be surprised if she makes it through the weekend without having them, given the activity level of those kittens, but the longer she waits, I think the better it is for her. She can gain a little much-needed weight and relax into the routine of being here.
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Speaking of love bugs, here’s Frankie in my lap being, y’know, a lap cat.
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Previously
2019: Caroline keeping an eye on Charles from up high.
2018: “TRYING TO SLEEP.”
2017: That girl never knew a stranger.
2016: No entry.
2015: I get the feeling I interrupted an important discussion.
2014: After a smooth start wherein they seemed to accept him with no problems, Maria and Mariette have decided that they don’t like Dennis.
2013: Tandem “not impressed” expressions, with bonus tongue from Kennebec.
2012: Check out the fearsome claws.
2011: EVERYone loves Loony Jake.
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry.
2008: Stinkerbelle gets tired of the camera action, and moves across the bed, next to Skittles.
2007: I always feel awful leaving cats at Petsmart.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
How about Jose, Maria, Fernanda, Carla, Carlos, Carlita, Carlotta, Carletta, Dulcinea, Juan, Juanito, Luna and Juanita?
Pilar! I always thought that was a pretty Spanish name.
Since we’re headed into Valentine’s month, why not star crossed lovers names?
Romeo and Juliet, Cleopatra and Anthony,Lancelot and Guenivere, Tristan and Isolde…
Maybe it’s just me, but having lovers’ names for siblings just seems wrong, lol 😀
If you have Isabella, then Ferdinand should be one of the names. Isabella is adorable, btw ☺️
We actually had a Ferdinand! (I had the bad habit of calling him Fernando, though. 🙂 )
Can you hear the drums Fernando?
In the twilight, Fernando?
And if I could do the same again…
I’m going to have that stuck in my head! Do you know, until I realized much, much later that there was a lyric about the Rio Grande in there, I thought that song was about the Spanish civil war, partisans defending the republic, Catalan civilians fleeing over the mountains… I felt quite silly when I twigged. IMO, my take on it is cooler.
You mean it wasn’t?!? Next you’ll be saying “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” was written in 1969 by a Canadian!
What about switching to Italian. Also a romance language and Isabella is a common name in Italian Commedia Dell’arte so maybe https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commedia_dell%27arte go with the Dell’artes? And names from there since there was often a romantic theme to many of the plays?
I like this! What’s more romantic than Italy and the Italians?? Romeo and Juliet is the most romantic play and it’s set in Italy, Verona (the city from the play) would be an adorable kitten name… Another reason to switch to Italian, St. Valentine was Roman.
I was just coming here to say the same thing! Italian names would be a good option.
Me too! And, since I am Italian (well, Sicilian) you could name them after all my relatives 😉 (my middle name is Concetta, hint)
The Little Ones: los pequeños
Para amor de Los Gatos or amor gatos
Los ninos for the family name
If there three girls and a boy – Felipe, Letizia, Leonor
and Sofia for the current Spanish King and Queen and daughters.
You could go with “Spanish Royals” (you might want to trademark that – I hear its a thing) 🙂 The names above – Felipe, Letizia, Leonor, you already had a Sofia… so, Juan Carlos, Elena, Cristina, Pilar…. Just healthy mom and babies bottom line! Happy Friday!!!!!
Just love da mamma & cannot wait to see the gatitos…..love the Spanish- ish names,tool
…. You guys choose,but there is Pedro, Paola, Pepe( Pepito), etc. Have the mama rest & relax & we’ll love to see her & her brood. You guys rock?
A variant of a group name listed earlier with Spanish terms of endearment for kitten names:
Los Gatos de Amor – The Love Cats
Amado/Amada (m/f) – loved
Amante – lover
Cariño/Carina – darling
Corazón – heart
Dulzura – sweetheart
Novio/Novia – boyfriend/girlfriend
Cielo – sky
Alma – soul
Príncipe/Princesa – prince/princess
Rey/Reina – king/queen
Well, “Dama” means lady, which mama surely is…. “Nena” means little girl. “Reinita” means princess. Very fitting names for little girls. “Chula” means cool and cute, could be for a little boy. Can’t wait to see the kitties. I love when your camera is rolling.
Explorers! Has anybody said explorers yet? Isabella (the original queen) sent Columbus, so if we can use the names without seeming to endorse the depredations they caused on the people of the Americas, it at least provides a list of interesting names. For the girls, Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria :-), and for the boys you have so many to choose from – Magellan, Balboa, Da Gama, Vespucci, also French ones like LaSalle and Champlain… just a thought.
That´s brilliant!
Angel, Victor, Violeta, Joaquin, Rolando… from some of my favorite singers…
I’ve always liked the name Marisol.
How about Los Felinos or Los Gatos? I love the name Milagro (Miracle) for a boy cat so much that I named my feral rescue cat that. Also like Mijo or Mija ( Son or daughter), Sol, and Luna.
Inigo!
One of Maxi’s kittens was actually named Inigo!
Love all the suggestions! I also was going to go with the Love theme as Delaney posted above. I was going to suggest the group name be the Lovebirds (I know they are cats, but…) Amore(love), Corazon(heart), Paloma(dove), Carino(darling), Querida(dearest), Roja(red), Cielo(heaven), Dulce (sweet), Sueno (dream), Tesoro(treasure)
I think these names are super sweet!
Los Compadres? Los Amigos?
Compawdres
OOOHHH, this is cool!
“Gattini” is “Kittens” in Italian!
How about Spanish names based on the movie, Zorro? Like Diego, Elena, Rafael, Luiz, Pedro, etc?
¡Los Mewchachos!
(or Mewchachas if they’re all girls)
<3 LOVE THIS!
Los Corazones (hearts)
Ok, hear me out: if you want to stick to Spanish, and you only want another name for the bunch, almost every Latinamerican calls cats “mishos”. Los mishos or los mishus (sounds more tender) would be a great name!
How about a gangster theme? They could be The Gangsters! Ma Barker, Capone, Dillinger, Bugsy, Bonnie, Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, Belle Starr. Could be a fun theme…
I just have one suggestion: Julio (or Julia) Armando!
Mariposa, Milagro….joya, preciosa, felicidad,
Since Isabella was a famous Queen of Spain, maybe the litter can be “Los Reales” — The [Spanish] Royals.
For female names, you may have to use royal princesses, since besides Isabella there was only Juana as reigning queen. But princesses include Maria, Catalina (Catherine of Aragon!), and Eleanor.
For male names, you’d have Felipe, Fernando, Carlos, Luis, Alfonso, and Juan.
A girl kitten called Juana the Mad – tucking that away for later…
Spanish is one of few languages that I know of with names beginning with X. What about naming the litter the X-cats and calling them Xiomara and Xavier (Spanish), Xu (Chinese), Xerxes and Xylina (Greek) ?
The X-Files?
Los Mininos (the Kittens) in Spanish
Names: Reigna (Queen) Ray (King), Pharaon (Pharoh), Misu (Meow – you call a kitty saying Misu, Misu, Misu), Diablo, Lobo (Wolf), Chicita (little girl) chico (little boy), Estrella (Star), Luna (Moon), Ximena, the usuals (Pablo, Julio, Jose, Rafael, Uriel, Miguel, Gabriel, Jesus, etc for boys). Maria, Marta, Milagros (miracles), Lourdes, or you could do the names of the week or numbers (Uno, dos, tres, etc).
I hope this helped (I’ve lived in Venezuela and I’ve had cats – and yes we had a Reigna, a Nerfertiti and Paraon all at the same time.
Yeah, mininos is also very good!
Los bambino’s?
In Italian: il micinos( pussies-kittens) or Ill gattaines- kittens
and depending on what you get in Isabella’s litter you then can chose Female: Amara, Angelina, Elena, Bianca, Lucia, Francesca, Alessia, Rosa Males: Lorenzo, Leonardo, Antonio, Federico, Nicolo, Giacomo, Manuel, Stefano:
Just love love and isses!!! Go Italian !!!!
Chiming in with the overlooked… los gatinhos is the Portuguese of it. You’ve had a French and a Spanish litter variation on ‘the kittens’, so why not? 🙂 Getulio, Caetano, Luiza, Florbella (I think that one’s Angolan), Mariza? Maia could go either way, technically; it scans as female, but there’s at least one male figure in the Carnation Revolution who had it as a surname. I am a nerd. XD
Awwww, Isabella the snugglebug. Oh hey, there’s a litter name: The Lovebugs! And double awwwwww, Frankie the lap kitty! Clearly, he hasn’t lost those adorable lap cat tendencies of his. 😀 *pets him!*
I was also going to suggest a Romance language other than Spanish or Italian. Being a 1st generation Portuguese-American, I was naturally going to suggest it as well, so I’m glad someone else was thinking the same thing 🙂
Except it would be Os Gatinhos (not los).
Robyn:
Girls: Ana, Maria – there are so many variations of names in Portugal that include one of these names (Ana Maria, Ana Margarita, Maria Joao, Maria Angela…) Marisa, Fabiana, Ligia, Paula, Raquel. My name was almost Carlota. And I would also suggest Isabel, which is my middle name, so I’m a bit biased 😉
Boys: Joao, Manuel, Pedro, Bruno, Jose, Gaspar, Hugo, Jorge, Nuno, Rui, Tiago.
Note that the J in Portugese is pronounced as a soft g, as in the last sound in “massage” or like in French (je mange).
Romanian is also a Romance language.
*facepalms* Oops, ‘scuze me! I have a fondness for Portuguese, but studied Spanish growing up. And now it shows. Os gatinhos, yes. There we go.
Oh hey, what about Leiria, for the forests so horribly damaged in the fires in Portugal recently? Little bit of an homage, naming a hopefully happy, healthy, wiggly kitten after a recovering forest, but I know it could read as a smidge eerie…
Ooh true, Romanian is a possibility! How about Ciocalia, Lark, for an especially bouncy or chirpy kitten? 🙂 I’d add Maltese to the potential language list as well, though would it be only half counted due to all the Arabic incorporation? From my limited knowledge, everyday conversational Maltese vocabulary is much more easily understood by an Arabic speaker than, say, an Italian one. Ooh! This could link back to the Arabic influences in Spain, prior to the inquisition… Here I go again. 🙂
True, it could be place names, too. Leiria, Belem, Faro, Sintra, Silves, Minho…
Love the name Lark for a kitten!
Arabic definitely had an influence across the Mediterranean. Even in Portugese. Al-Andulus was the name for the penunsula and Gharb was the western part: Al-Gharb turns into Algarve.
I wasn’t sure about Maltese, so I checked. It’s not a Romance language, but in the Semitic language group.
Los Tigres
or The Tinos (short for Los Valentinos):
T-igre/Tina
I-sabella (check)
N-atalia (check)
O-ctavia/o
S-erafina/o
or if they’re all boys, there’s always The Poozos:
Vito
Sonny/Santino (look what they did to my ornj boy!)
Tessio
Barzini (ohhh, two weeks in, “Guess what – Barzini is actually a girl!”)
Paulie Gatto (heh)
Moe
or, if they’re all black and floofy, Los Moopitos:
Kermito (it ain’t easy bein’ verde)
Señorita Piggata
Fozzioso (oso is bear in Spanish, dontcha know)
Gonzito
Scooterino
Juanita (“Everyone knows Juanita…”)
Or combine two former litters and have Los Chiles (Gatitos + Peppers):
Ancho
Serrano
Piquillo
Jalapeño
Chilaca
Mirasol
Tapas (okay, okay, but how cute is a kitten named Tapas?)
You could go with a region of Spain:
Los Madrilenos
The Andalucians
The Castilians
I would love a kitten called Don Quixote.
ooooh, and Pancho!!
La Manchas!
The Castilians is a great idea, since Isabella was one. And I like the Quixote angle too. Sancho and Dulcinea both great options.
*sighs* Renew my DAM card (Mothers Against Dyslexia)
The Mewchachos suggestion cracked me up.
Some names I like are Javier, Lucia, and Rodrigo.
Another vote for the Mewchachos here!
There are lots of name suggestions, so I will make no more, but please call this group the Mewchachos.
In addition to my suggestion above about Portuguese instead of Spanish (it’s also a Romance language, as is Romanian, and don’t forget French :)), how about riffing off of Rudolph Valentino? Famous romantics (in film or history) or lovers.
https://www.history.com/news/historys-great-romantics
From that list, I’m partial to Sappho, Casanova, and Edith as names. From off list, also Eros and Aphrodite (Greek) Cupid and Venus (Roman), Kamaveda and Parvati or Rati (Hindu), and there are a few Norse options as well: https://historylists.org/other/list-of-norse-gods-and-goddesses.html
They could be called The Lovers.
Or, if you want it in a Romance language, according to Google Translate, you’ve got:
Los Amantes (Spanish)
Os Amantes (Portuguese)
Gli Amante (Italian)
Les Amoureux (French)
Iubitii (Romanian…okay, maybe not so much this option 😉 )
Not to change the subject…did you see the video of the guy who was run over by a deer in a parking lot? Fred should be careful 🙂
What about Isabella’s real husband, children, descendants, and their spouses? John, Joanna the Mad (love that one), Maria, Catherine, Philip the handsome, Ferdinand, Eleanor, Charles? Or perhaps the lovely place names… Toledo, Castile, Granada, Aragon, Medina, Madrigal…
How about Romantic Poets? Lol, I don’t know of any … it could be educational.