Episode 1 Meet the Kittens

BIRDSONG

Meow!

Meow!

Mew! Mew!

Meow!

Meow!

Meow!

# What's new, pussycat?

# Whoa, oh, oh, oh

# What's new, pussycat?

# Whoa, oh, oh, oh. #

Welcome to Meet The Kittens.

'Before we start, as a pussycat,

'I'll tell you something that isn't new, that song!

'Let's have something from this century, Granny!'

# Don't believe me, just watch! #

In this show, we're going to put on our spy glasses

and delve into the secret life of cats and kittens.

Did you know that one in every ten homes has a cat?

That is a lot of cats.

'What, counted us all, have you?'

I bet you've seen loads of them, because they're everywhere.

Crouching on the wall, peeping round corners, lying under cars.

Even sitting on wheelie bins!

'I know I'm a black cat,

'I just hope they don't mistake me for a bin bag!'

Yep, cats are everywhere.

And they just love getting out of the house and exploring.

Cats come in all shapes and colours and sizes.

There are curved cats.

There are flat cats.

There are lazy cats.

There are active cats.

There are grumpy cats.

And there are bald cats.

'Oi, who are you calling bald?'

There are even scaredy-cats.

And there are big cats.

ROAR!

I didn't mean that big!

You wouldn't want that sitting on your lap!

But the one thing most cats have in common

is they like to get comfortable and sleep.

So let's meet the stars of our show.

Our first cat is called Coco.

'Oh, hello everyone. Don't mind me, I'm just having a cat nap.'

Coco's got an excuse for being a sleepy cat -

see how big her stomach is?

That's not because she's stuffed her face with buckets of mice.

That's because she's going to have kittens.

And this is her sister Cleo. She's having kittens too.

Cleo! You look tired as well.

'Well done, Sherlock(!) Is it my yawning that gives it away?

'I'm exhausted. I can't even get up the stairs to bed.

'I'll just have to sleep here till it's breakfast time!'

SHE YAWNS

Cleo, it's breakfast time!

'Oh, goody! I have breakfast every time I wake up.

'That's about 11 times a day. I have to eat. It's not just for me,

'you know, I'm eating for my kittens.

'And then I'll have a little lie down.'

MEOW!

On Meet The Kittens, we're going to be with Coco and Cleo 24/7

as they become mums for the first time.

Coco and Cleo live in the country,

but wherever cats live they love to wander around without their owners.

They're not like big, lazy dogs who have to be walked

and take over the whole house because they're so massive.

Cats are exciting. They do whatever they like.

They roam around all over the place. Sometimes they stay out all night.

Not even I do that, and I'm a grown-up!

Coco and Cleo's owner didn't realise that female cats

can have their first litter of kittens when they're very young.

Cats as young as six months can have a quick operation,

called spaying, which stops them from having kittens.

Cleo and Coco are only eight months old,

but they haven't been spayed, so they're about to become mums.

MEOW!

Today, Cleo and Coco are off to see the vet for a checkup.

(Just don't let them know!)

They don't like the vet's,

but it's important to make sure they're healthy

and ready to become mums.

'Ooh, this is exciting. We're going for a ride in the car.

'Bagsy the front seat!

'Oh - OK then. I'll go in the cage in the boot. I love car rides.

'I hate car rides!

'They're noisy and I have to share a cage with my sister.

'Come on, Cleo, budge up!

'This could be exciting. We could be going on holiday.'

'Are we there yet?

'Are we there yet?

'Oh, this is taking forever. I just hope we're not going to the vet's.

'Please don't let it be the vet's.

'Oh, no! It's the vet's!

'I can't remember exactly what the vet does,

'but I'm pretty sure I don't like it.'

Come on, Cleo. He needs to check your teeth are healthy.

'He'll feel how good my teeth are in a minute, when I bite him.'

Just chillax! It'll be a piece of cake.

'Did someone say cake...?

'Hang on. What's he doing with that thing?'

Well, Cleo, that's an ultrasound machine

that can scan inside the body

and examine your kittens. How cool is that?

'What can he see?'

Well, that black circle is a heart,

and those little white lines

are the backbone and chest bone

of one of your kittens.

'Did you say "kittens" As in, more than one?

'Oh, I'd better start eating a bit more then.'

It's Coco's turn now,

and she hates the vet's clinic even more than the car.

'I don't like it here - and no matter how much you stroke me

'I'm not going to enjoy this.

'How can I get out of here?

'It's a vet's, they must have a catflap somewhere.'

Come on, Coco. He just wants to check you're OK.

'I am, thank you very much, apart from being stuck in a car

'and taken to the vet's. Worst day ever!'

Stop being a madam - he's checking you like he did with Cleo,

to make sure your kittens are OK.

'Well - all right, then, just be quick about it.'

Look. Your kittens are coming up on the screen now.

'Wow. Are they my kittens?

'Can we put that on YouTube? How many are there?'

'The vet can't tell Coco how many, because the kittens are so tiny.

'But there are lots of white lines,

'which means lots of kittens.'

'I wonder if they'll look like me?

'I hope so, because I'm GORGEOUS.

'Hang on. Humans get a sticker for being brave after their checkups.

'Hey - where's my treat?'

# Love

# Don't ever change the way you are... #

And just one week later - look.

Coco has given birth to five kittens,

and Cleo to six more.

And they're all gorgeous,

and really hard to tell apart.

'No, they're not. They're all completely different.'

Whatever. Anyway,

they're all sharing the same bed,

and since all of them were born

around the same time,

the proud mums have decided to

raise them as one big happy family.

Mind you - even with two mums,

that's a lot of looking after.

The kittens are born

with their eyes closed,

so they can't see, and their ears

are folded so they can't hear.

The legs are so tiny they can't walk,

they only crawl.

Which is probably just as well.

Because if they can see or hear,

they'd keep bumping into things.

They're little bundles of fluff who

will spend most of the time sleeping.

I think that's something

they get from their mums.

Isn't that right, Coco? Cleo?

SNORING

What next for Coco, Cleo

and their 11 kittens?

Well - we'll find out next time.

If you're considering the massive commitment it takes to own

a cat or a kitten, then check out the Meet The Kittens page

on the CBBC website for more information.