Sunday, May 11, 2014

Good Morning Good News !!!! May 11, 2014




.... no matter how long your ears are, or how many legs you have ....  all of us at Rikki’s Refuge wish you a very Happy Mother’s Day ....  none of us would be here with out YOU moms !!!!



If you’d like to make a special donation in honor of your very own Mom, regardless of her species, I’ll include your note to her in the next issue of Good Morning Good News and if you give me her email I’ll send her a personal note too !!!!    www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate  -- just put your request in the comments !!!

I want to wish a very Happy Merow’s Day to my Tummy Mummy, Nelly
with out her, I would be here !!!  Thank you mom !!!

And to my adoptive Mummy, Polly
who raised me with her partner Vincent to learn to be a Spokes Kitty, and who taught me to devote my life to helping others less fortunate than me.

And to my Maternal Grandmother, Lesley
who put up with Polly’s long absences from home when Vincent picked her up on his corporate jet to spend time with me and Timmy at Rikki’s Refuge.

And to my Paternal Grandmother, Kerry
with out her, there’d be no Rikki’s Refuge and none of us would have a home.

And to my Auntie Amy
who, even though she says she’s a dog lady, loves me lots and takes care of all of us at Rikki’s Refuge.

And to my Great Grandma, Louise,
who’s at the Rainbow Bridge looking after my dad, Vincent
who taught her daughter, Kerry, to love the animals and that she could grow up to do anything she wanted to and who encouraged her dreams of 100 cats and 100 acres ......  until it grew to 650 cats and 450 acres.
My Great Grandma loved all the animals too and was always surrounded by them.

And did you know, that without her, there never would have been a Rikki’s Refuge?  Rikki was her kitty.  And she donated the land to build Rikki’s Refuge in his honor to give back the love to many homeless animals, that Rikki had given to her.

     Rikki, born Jan. 13, 1981, was a new breed - a Balinese, a Siamese mutation, same body shape, grace & disposition, but with silky long hair. My daughter gave Rikki to me in April 1981. He was greeted by our 11 year old Siamese, who let Rikki know, “I’m top cat.” Rikki, who was always happy, was satisfied to be “bottom cat”.
     The only thing Rikki ever regretted was not having wings! He would climb the drapes, walk across the valence and look for something high to jump to, like the top of the china cabinet. He darted this way and that in perpetual motion. My husband said, “He darts around like a mongoose”. So Rikki was named after Rudyard Kipling’s Indian mongoose story, “Rikki Tikki Tavi”.
      Rikki was 4 years old when the Siamese cat died at the age of 15. Rikki was lost. Who could he follow around? Rikki needed a companion cat. My husband suggested a kitten - so “Rikki could be boss for once.” When the kitten cried for its mother, Rikki laid down and the kitten suckled Rikki’s paw while Rikki washed him. Although Rikki was a bachelor, the kitten could not have had a better mother. The kitten grew up to be “top cat”.
      Rikki would get up on my knick-knack shelves, and with a graceful paw movement would push a cat statue off, then lean over and watch it fall to the floor. This was great fun and Rikki would stop only temporarily when I said, “NO NO”. Rikki always hated water far more than the typical cat. One day while playing this game, I wet my fingers and tiptoed near enough to flip my fingers so a few drops of water hit him. He never played that game again!
      My children grown and gone, my husband’s business keeping him out of town, Rikki was my loving, loyal, joyful companion. With me almost always - he slept with me, sat on my lap if I read or sewed, rode on my shoulder out to get the mail. Rikki never did a mean thing to a person or another cat. He was all softness and love. All he ever wanted in life was to be hugged and loved.
     Rikki died in my arms in September, 1996 of kidney failure. He had become like a toddler in his illness - never letting me out of his sight. My grandson said, “Rikki was all love without a mean bone in his body.”
     I still grieve for him, crying as I write this. What could be a more fitting memorial for Rikki, always so full of kindness & love, than to give comfort & love to homeless and unwanted animals. So I donate this land for Rikki’s Refuge as a perpetual memorial to Rikki for the love and happiness he gave me for 15 years. And so others, less fortunate than Rikki, may know love in their lifetimes. I know Rikki would approve.
                                Rikki’s Refuge’s Benefactor, Louise A. Hilliard        (written in 1998)

To read more about the remarkable life of Louise Hilliard click here http://rikkisrefuge.org/Rikkis/louise_hilliard.pdf

Tell me about your Mom, what made her special?
If you’d like to make a special donation in honor of your very own Mom, regardless of her species, I’ll include your note about her unique specialness in the next issue of Good Morning Good News and if you give me her email I’ll send her a personal note too !!!!    www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate  -- just put your request in the comments !!!


Please VOTE today and EVERYDAY!! 
Your vote today, will help to feed all the mom’s here at Rikki’s Refuge !!!!   Of course everyone is speutered and no reproduction is allowed at Rikki’s Refuge.  Many of our residents come to us already with child.  Sometimes it’s a surprise.  Sometimes their kids are born and they’ll have the privilege of living together as a family all their lives.  

The Shelter Challenge is a wonderful opportunity to help the animals with only a few clicks !!!!  Totally FREE and EASY and QUICK ....  turn your clicks into meds to prevent ticks !!!!

Please vote today and every day thru June 29 !!!   Just go to this link http://www.shelterchallenge.com/web/charityusa/nomineehome?userId=53331&nomineeId=17448
and enter Rikkis Refuge (no ‘ ... see ??)  in VA in the USA and that’s it !! Thank you



NUMS for YOU
you share with me, and I’ll share with you
try this wonderful vegan recipe today





MOTHER’S DAY SPECIAL

WOW Mother's Day special at Re-Tail .... check it out !!!! The best place to take mom on Mother's Day .... give her a gift certificate and watch her shop for fabulous deals .... what's she like? Jewelry? Hats? Antiques? Art work? We have it ALL and every last piece is at a fabulous price !!!

Sunday is Mother's Day at Re-Tail! The Orange County Emergency Vet Fund will be holding a yard sale and a bake sale at the store (and maybe dog adoptions!) starting at 10:00 a.m.! We'll open the store at 10:00, too, so that you can get your Re-Tail Therapy in on Mother's Day!!!!

New and wonderful things are coming into Re-Tail every day ..... if you don’t check in daily, you could miss the deal of a lifetime.  Last weekend two very expensive and very lovely litterbox hiding furniture pieces came in.  Lovely “look like cabinet” with litterboxes hidden inside.  The next day someone came in saying she’d been searching all the thrift shops for just these litterbox concelers that she could afford.  And YES, she sure could afford the low-low price at Re-Tail .

Look who came in yesterday !!!!  And he’s available today.  Your mom a Pooh lover ???



Raffle tickets are on sale now!!!!

This is a 2009 Honda Rebel CX250, and has 3540 miles on it. Tickets are $5 each or 6 for $25. The drawing will be held at noon on July 4, 2014. Watch it in action! 


Pop a Wheelie, Dude, Pop a Wheelie ..... this motorcycle could be YOURS for $5 .... you heard me right ... that's the price of a raffle ticket ..... available at Re-Tail

Do you have a cool Mom who’d like to ride a bike?  Buy her tickets for her special day !!!

Tickets can be purchased at Re-Tail, by phone if you call Re-Tail with credit/debit card information, or by mail sent to Re-Tail.  Raffle tickets cannot be sold they payments on paypal.  Sorry ....  We’re looking into other on-line options.

Winner will have to pick bike up at Re-Tail ......  sorry, we can’t ship !!!!!


Just like Moms !!!


Thank you
for your love and prayers, my Great Grandpa is home from the hospital and doing well !!!!   Paws crossed for a continued healing.


Hey Walker, I can't find your brofur Wally on facebook .... would you pass a message on to him for me? Hi ya Wally, hope things are going well in your new home! I want to thank you for mom's birthday present. That's her favorite tea you know. She'd just run out and was starting to get fussy in the morning !!! Thank you !!! She loves opening cans while she has that first cup of pomegranate white tea !!!! And being the nut case that she is, she loves nuts too !!!! Thank you !!! Love, Opie



Mother's Day Special $17.99 exclusively from Rikki's Refuge .... 
many color selections available ....


THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME TO
SAVE SO MANY LIVES
... with your support we’re able to help so many into their new furrever happy homes ....  and to give that life long home to those not quite so fortunate ...  Thank you for your support
Without YOU none of us would be here to wish you a Happy Mother's Day !!

Make a special donation in honor of your very own Mom, or one you admire: www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate  I’ll include your note about her in the next issue of Good Morning Good News and if you give me her email I’ll send her a personal note too !!!!  Or make a donation in honor of my Grandma so she’ll be happy and smiley and open another can of Fancy Feast for us !!  Be sure to put your request in the comments !!!

Love,
    Opie and Timmy

Rikki’s Web Site:         www.rikkisrefuge.org
Help the Animals:        http://rikkisrefuge.org/donate.php