Back in late February I was asked if we could help a young cat and her two little kittens seen living around a derelict house in a town in Dumfries and Galloway. The house had already been set alight and that being their only shelter from the wet and bitter weather, meant they needed help quickly. Fortunately, I was able to get there within 24 hours (I'm in Ayrshire, so couldn't get there sooner) and fully expected this to be the first of many trips to catch the wee family. These situations are rarely straightforward and it's absolutely vital to ensure all kittens are found and caught before their mother is removed. Leaving young kittens unprotected is just not on. However, it actually only took about five hours to catch one of the kittens and then I found out that the second kitten had actually been killed on the road just a few days previously. I just wish we'd known about them earlier. The mother cat was caught in the trap and both she and her little son were brought into our care. At that point I estimated the kitten, later named Geordie, to be about eight weeks old. Little (okay, so he's not so little now!) Geordie is completely black and very handsome and his mother, who I named Olivia, is mainly black with a little white on her chest and tummy. I'm pretty sure Olivia, and possibly her kittens, once had a domestic home because although they are shy they have never shown any signs of real fear (so often mistaken for aggression). Another hint of an earlier domestic life is that Olivia has a shortened tail. It may well be that she was simply born with a shorter tail but it's also possible that part of it was surgically removed due to an injury. That's a mystery, and it really doesn't matter. As mentioned earlier, Olivia and Geordie are shy but that's partly due to the fact that I haven't been able to spend enough time with them over the months, enough time being a constant problem with rescue work. A quiet home with the right people who would give them the time and understanding to let them settle and feel safe is what's needed here so a home with young children wouldn't really fit the bill, but one with older, gentle, children who wouldn't expect Olivia and Geordie to be climbing onto their knees any time soon would probably be absolutely fine. A  gentle, laid-back dog who's used to cats in the family shouldn't be a problem so long as the usual 'getting to know you' introductions were taken. We always visit potential homes to try and ensure the right cats go to the right homes so that everyone (i.e. cats and humans!) is happy and it all works out fine. Both Olivia and Geordie have had their neutering ops, of course, and been fully vaccinated and microchipped. A home well away from busy roads and the possibility to get out and about once very well settled and happy would be just wonderful and, as they're so close, we could never consider separating them.