Smokey and Bandit the Kittens at Five Weeks Old

Above are images of sibling kittens Smokey -- on the right -- and Bandit -- on the left -- taken yesterday afternoon when they turned a full five weeks old. These aren't the best pictures that I have taken of them, but they will have to do, as the others were even worse. As you can see, Smokey's left eye -- on the right side as you look at the image -- is totally cured of the conjunctivitis which plagued him for three whole weeks. I am still amazed by how quickly the pink eye disappeared -- less than one day -- after the vet flushed his eyes with a saline solution, and I applied the AK POLY BAC ointment.

These two little kittens have continued to give us hours of enjoyment as we watch them romp and play together, challenge their mother Socks in kitten games, etc. They both love being held in my arm as I gently stroke them and talk to them. Smokey often falls asleep in my lap while I am working on my computer, or he will fall asleep in my bed. I think he is a little closer to me than his sister Bandit, being as I gave him a lot of extra attention while I was caring for his infected eye.

As sort of a joke, I have given the kittens the nicknames of Slicer and Dicer. If you saw my ankles, you would completely understand the appropriateness of these names. Whenever they want to be held, they will crawl up my legs, and neither pants nor socks can protect me from their sharp little claws. Seriously, my legs are a scratched up bloody mess.

At this stage, mother Socks' job is almost done. She still nurses them, but the nursing sessions are becoming more infrequent. As I have mentioned before, Smokey and Bandit are fully on solid food and water now, so complete weaning is probably just around the corner.