Fostering kittens requires a small space – a bathroom, guest room, or any other spare room – for the kittens to live. Our bonus room served as my weekday office, Jeff’s indoor “clean room” work desk for personal projects, and storage facility. Several minor renovations were needed to make the room kitten-friendly.

Jeff used his desk for soldering and woodwork, messy stuff that was the opposite of kitten-friendly! It was no longer going to be possible for him to work from the same room as the kittens so his entire workstation was moved elsewhere in the house.

Then it was time to tackle my biggest concern – the door. I always kept the door open for air flow, but it would need to be shut to contain the kittens. I was concerned that the closed door would block air circulation and make what is already the hottest room in the house with its large, west-facing window, even more unbearable during summer months. After tossing around several ideas, we eventually settled a solution that required cutting out the panels in the existing door and installing wire mesh to make a very sturdy, kitten-proof screen door. It would keep kittens in but let air through – perfect!

The work desk and door renovations were the only initial changes and these lasted us through several litters of kittens last fall and winter. In January, kitten season had come to an end so we took advantage of a few kitten-less weeks to complete a few more renovations.

Jeff’s built-in desk that spanned an entire wall still remained, though now empty, and consumed valuable space in the small room. We tore it out and repainted the entire room, something I’d been wanting to do for a very long time!

We also ripped up the carpet and installed new wood laminate flooring that would be much easier to clean and look much more attractive. And we completed those renovations just in time as I got a call from Safe Haven that three feral kittens had been rescued and were in need of a temporary home on the very day we finished flooring!

The new green walls were lovely … but empty! Saying “goodbye” to the kittens is a necessary part of fostering, but I want remember each and every one that spends time in our kitten room. I started filling the newly-empty green wall with photos of each kitten, 4×6 prints with their names and attached to magnetic strips. It’s an efficient way to display a constantly growing collection of photos and makes me so happy to see all of those sweet faces, knowing I was part of their journey to finding their forever homes.

Tomorrow … A Day in the Life of a Kitten Foster-Mom