Hello, world. It’s me, Baby Ralph.

Baby Ralph, King of Hearts

Our sweet little Baby Ralph continues to improve! He began eating on his own yesterday, and BOY, is he ever making up for lost time! He had breakfast, second breakfast, elevenses, lunch, an afternoon snack, dinner, second dinner, and a bedtime snack. I may have missed a few. Whatever, he’s eating (and drinking) on his own!

Baby Ralph and his best friend and possible dad, Big Guy

This, of course, is hugely positive. Baby Ralph had a rough start in life. Ringworm and roundworm left him depleted, and then he caught an upper respiratory bug! Thanks to good nursing from humans and felines alike, he is improving rapidly. He’s still a little sniffly, so he’s spending time with a humidifier:

Nothing like resting on a comfy blanky during treatments

One thing which really seemed to help him turn the corner was spending some (VERY WELL-SUPERVISED) time outside in the fresh air of rural Texas, basking in the warmth of a late-December sun. Yesterday was a bit too cold for that, but he got some basking time in today.

Let me stay out just five more minutes, dad!

Best of all, he’s started grooming himself again. When cats are sick, they don’t have energy for niceties like grooming, conserving it for more important things, like getting well. Grooming is an excellent sign that our Baby Ralph is doing better. We’ll continue to keep everyone updated on his progress. Profound gratitude to all of you who have expressed your love and concern for this baby. All that love and positive energy really helped him, and knowing you were all there rooting for him really helped his humans a lot, too. Thank you.

Sun sprite