Three kittens need home in Phoenix Area!

I have three kittens that need loving homes in the Phoenix area. There is no fee. The only thing I ask is that they be spayed or neutered (more on that later). Introducing...



Regis Jr.! Regis Jr. is a mackerel tabby boy who is also a polydactyl (he has six toes) on all four feet. He is the largest of the litter and is going to be a big boy! He is a hunter and very active but also sweet and loves to sleep on your chest.

UPDATE: Regis Jr. has been adopted!



Hairy! Hairy is a grey medium-hair dilute tortie girl with quite the personality! She loves to talk and sleep on your chest.





Sox! Sox is a cute little tabby girl with calico elements and white socks and a white belly. She is very smart. The smallest of the litter, she was weaned first and also learned to climb first.

If you are interested in adopting one or more of these kittens or know someone who would like to adopt one please email me at adutton1(AT)cox(DOT)net.


I have been fostering these kittens since I participated in a trap-neuter-return (TNR) project in my neighborhood. My neighbor had been taking care of an old tom, Regis, who had been left by the previous tenant at her home. A year later, there were ten cats and kittens. I told her about TNR and we agreed to work on the project together and continue to take care of the cat colony after they had been returned to our neighborhood. We knew that one of the cats was pregnant, and the standard practice in TNR is to spay even if the cats are pregnant (there are just too many kittens that need homes). But she had the kittens one week before we trapped. We still spayed the mother cat, and I bottle fed the kittens for four days while momma recovered and her milk supply came back. She was a wonderful mother to the kittens for the past seven weeks, but as an outdoor colony cat, she was never meant to be a house cat, so she is now back outside and living with her colony where she will live out her remaining years.

Here are some pictures of the TNR project. If you have stray or feral colonies in your area I highly recommend that you consider a project such as this to end the breeding cycle for these cats. It was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.



One cat in a humane trap.



The mother cat was one of the last ones to be trapped.



The cats recovering after being spayed and neutered. They were released the next morning. All ten cats in the colony were spayed and neutered.

For more information about TNR nationwide visit Alley Cat Allies and in the Phoenix area AZCats.

Plodding along

I just returned from a 12 day trip to Washington DC and Richmond, VA. 7 days of the trip was the annual ALA conference and then the last 5 was vacation to visit my parents.

I've been getting out there, but my training has been sporadic. I've had stops and starts where I've done well some weeks and then dropped off others. I had one nice jog in Richmond while I was out there but other than that just a lot of running around from meeting to meeting.

If I don't have a goal, I don't seem to do well with the training! Marathons gave me a long term goal and focus. I ran 3 in 6 months because I wanted to keep that feeling of focus. It's such an intense goal. I think I still need to keep my eyes on the marathon but just not train at such a breakneck speed.

I had a nice 1.3 mile tonight. I walked 2/3 mile, jogged 1/3 mile, then walked 1/3 mile afterward to cool down.

If I get my butt out of bed tomorrow I'll do the 4th of July 5k! 6:30 is so early and you know I'm not a morning person. At least it's on my side of town! The west side!

Take care and enjoy your holiday!