Good
Morning !!! And welcome to The Opie Show !!
First
some late breaking news my Uncle Ron brought to my attention this morning !
The
SHELTER CHALLENGE IS BACK ....
so I NEED YOU to VOTE EVERY DAY thru December 20th
!!!
Let’s
WIN a weekly prize .... and that’s $2,000 and 50 kitty beds ...... come on ... we can do it ..... and if YOU
can make us #1 .... the prize is $20,000 !!!
Yaaaa hoooooo
Now
we’ll interrupt this News About Rikki’s program while you take a break to
vote. Hurry Back !!
All
right !!!! Thank you for that VOTE !!!
And
BACK to our program !!
Let ME catch you up on what's been going on at Rikki's Refuge since I last talked to you.
Geesh
... does it seem like every where you look the news is sensational ? The headlines always leading you to expect
something hugely awful. Sometimes it is
.... but so often it’s day to day things blown up to be great big huge
....
We’re
thankful for the nice quiet routine days at Rikki’s .... getting up every morning and seeing all our
animal friends happy and healthy and going about their daily lives make us feel
good .....
and
that’s the vast majority of the news I have to report to you from Rikki’s
Refuge !!! Lots of happy animals, doing
happy things, and having a wonderful life ....
because YOU made it possible for them !!!
BUT
FIRST .... I want to invite you to our Special ThanksLiving Celebration coming
up
I do hope you’ll come ....
space is limited .... luckily
since hoomans stannd upright it’s easier to pack them in .... but you still need
about a square foot or two per person !!!!
This event will be held at
our Vincent D. Cat Memorial Life Center.
And YES, it’s indoors so you won’t freeze, and the goats won’t chase you
!!
 |
| The struggle is real.....our
employee Jessy trying to eat lunch at Rikki's Refuge |
But for those of you with
allergies or phobias ... there will be cats and turkeys and chickens attending
the meal too .... and not on the table
... well unless they jump or fly up ...
for ThanksLiving, as it is
everyday for those of us at Rikki’s Refuge, the animals are our FRIENDS not our
FOOD !!!
At Rikki’s we all SHARE and
SHARE alike !!!
I can’t wait to snuggle you
and purr .... and share your food !!!!
Yeahhhh !!!!!
We’ll start with fun and
appetizers at 3 pm and sit down nums will be at 5 pm.
Who know how long the party
will go on ....
EXCUSE ME ???
THIS is going on at MY Life
Center ?
Eat off the floor, Hooman !
Riley is our Life Center
Skitzo-Kitty who’ll probably have to spend the event in a bedroom, cuz
sometimes ...she’s ... well ... rather skitzo !!!
AIMEE
is a lovely kitty who’s lives
at the Life Center and she’ll be sharing your ThanksLiving meal. She’s a super sweet gal who has tried and
tried to find a forever home .....
She does have a little trouble getting along in a large group of kitties. She’s fine with just a few, like she’d find
in a normal home. And she LOVES dogs
.... way more than other cats !!
Aimee’s been rejected over
and over because of the scar on her left eye .... We don’t understand why.
We love everybody, no matter
what scars they carry from life.
Our motto is: No matter how
long your ears are, or how many legs you have, at Rikki’s Refuge you’ll find
love and compassion !!
SPARKY
formerly known as Trash Bag
Kitty will join you for dinner too.
His home is now at the Life
Center.
Yes, really, he was first
known to us as Trash Bag Kitty. He had
diarrhea, really bad diarrhea, when he came to Rikki’s Refuge to have his life
saved. His former owner did not want
the expense of vet bills nor the hassle of medicating “that stupid cat”.
When he arrived, he was in a
trash bag so he wouldn’t get poop in the owner’s car. And he was much to sick and dehydrated to protest.
You hate to add insult to
injury to a new comer, but Sparky’s first experience at Rikki’s Refuge, after
coming out that filthy stinking trash bag, was a good long bath !
Now he’s well and happy and
would like a quieter environment than we can offer here at Rikki’s Refuge. He gets along beautifully with other kitties. Sparky is gentle and sweet.
Coming? Or not?
HOW ABOUT A
BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE
FOR RIKKI’S
PUMPKIN PICKERS ?
Pumpkin day is like a wild safari .... when you
have the snacks in your car !!!! This photo sort of shows you the perspective on
the size of the cows. It's the same vehicle in photo 1 and photo 2 ... one
looks like a regular big van .... two looks like an itty bitty car .... it's
the same van .... it's a big cow !!!!
Now that you know how BIG
they are .... you understand why the eat so MUCH !!
Thank you Miller's Farm who gave us from 7 am till
noon one day to pick all the pumpkins left in their patch before they plowed
the remaining ones over.
Thank you to the great big truck drivers and itty
bitty car drivers, and all you drivers no matter your size !!
Thank you Uncle Paul for being there to load pumpkins
and pull folks who got stuck out of the mud !!!
Thank you to those who came out and picked and
loaded !!!!
We know you were grinning the whole
time knowing how happy the cows and sheep and goats and pigs at Rikki's are
gonna be !!!!
It was WET, CLOUDY, COLD and SLIPPERY ..... and you all DID IT !!!!
All cus YOU are AWESOME and YOU love the animals
!!!!
And you know what --- all us aminals LOVE YOU TOO
!!!
AND LOOK AT THAT !!!
Wonderful volunteers Tracey
(shown here next to my Daddy Fred on the leftist mostest) and Cindy both rented
huge box trucks to haul pumpkins !!!!
Another fabulous way to help
Rikki’s Refuge for FREE
Just go to iGive.com and tell
‘em you want Rikki’s Refuge to be YOUR charity !!! Then everytime you shop on line, so thru the iGive page, then on
to anywhere you want to go .... and the
merchants will give a little to Rikki’s Refuge.
iSearch works the same
.... load it up and designate Rikki’s
Refuge and every on-line search you do gives Rikki’s one penny .... and let me
tell you ... those pennies add up !!!
Oscar and Kong - best friends
forever !!
Theirs was the only species
that didn’t appreciate all the hard work that went into Pumpkin Pickin !!!!
Patrick and Preston Get a New Home
Tyler Maass,
a boy scout, and his parents are very active volunteers at Rikki’s Refuge. Any day you might see them out there
scooping litter boxes, washing dishes, mucking dog runs, hauling hay to the
cows, or mowing grass.
So when
Tyler was ready to do an Eagle Scout Project he looked around Rikki’s Refuge
for something that would really make a difference to the animals.
And he
decided that giving Patrick and Preston a bigger home was the best idea of all.
Since big
pig Petunia doesn’t do well with newcomers and since the hoomans at Rikki’s
aren’t very good at breaking up fights between 700 pound animals, Patrick and
Preston never got to move to Piggy Paradise and have been living in smaller
private quarters.
It was time
for a HUGE EXPANSION and for one fine young man to become an EAGLE !!!
Working hard to expand Patrick and Preston’s Piggy
Pen.
This Eagle Scout Project will give them 5 times the
space they had.
No matter what the project - you’ll have a
supervisor .....
.... or two .....
or .....
Patrick and Preston explore the new space ....
you can barely see the fence way back there now .... 5x the space !
... how long will any grass remain ?
PETUNIA
What do you do when you weight 700 pounds and have
a hangnail?
You oink and grunt and squeal and charge.
What do I do when a 700 pound angry painful piggy
charges ?
First take away that credit card !!! Then call Doc Tom Massie from Rosehill to
come make her stop whining.
She's even worse than a cat to hold down and trim
up the hurt hoof .... so doc gives her a shot and makes her go nighty for a bit
.... when she wakes up .... her foot is all fixed.
Doc checked up on Mr. Donkey, Candy the horse, had
to trim a horn on Milo the goat that was gonna poke his eye, and took a look at
a few other sheep and goat problems.
You can help Petunia and other animals at Rikki’s
with their vet bills with just a little click ...
It’s much less painful than listening to Petunia
squeal !!!!
Calvin n Rose - Rikki Alumni
Celebrate
their One Year Anniversary at their forever home in Pennsylvania with Katie and
family. they were residents of the Life
Center when Katie came to volunteer and visit.
They slept with her and purred in her ears .... take us home .... take
us home .... take us home .... and so
she did !!!!
Home
to their happy ever after forever home !!!
HURRY HURRY must have your orders in by November 30
end of day ...
Rikki's Refuge POPCORN ....
40 cents on the dollar goes to support the animals
of Rikki’s Refuge !!!
SIXTY SIX Flavors to pick from ....
SOMETHING IS PURRFECT FOR YOU ...
Sweet ... Salty ... Fruity .... Spicy ....
Chocolately ... Cheesy ... Kettle Corn .....
Nutty .... even Catnip Coconut Curry .... Check it
out !!!!
Great nummy snacks
for you and GREAT FOR THAT SPECIAL GIFT FOR THE HOLIDAYS .... prices and sizes
for every budget! This fundraiser runs from November 9 to November 30 and all
orders will be shipped and received no later than the second week of December.
Nom Nom = Yum Yum.
A SUCCESSFUL RUN FOR RIKKI’S
The day dawned cold and wet and drizzling .....
..... in
most of the area.
But Rikki’s Runners were lucky and the rain held
off till after the race at beautiful Lake Anna Park !!!!
Thank you Dennis and Crystal for putting on the run
again this year ... they already have
plans for the 2016 run .... again at lovely Lake Anna Park where you can race
by the lake .... send me a note if you
want to be sure to get a notice in time to register next year. Vincent@RikkisRefuge.org
Dennis briefs the runners on the trail
.... and they’re off ....
Do you see the dawggie ? Yup, no discrimination at Rikki’s Run !! Efurbody is welcome !!!
Our youngest runner and his dog, the day’s Canine
Champ !!
Rikki's very own employee, Dave, won a medal, too
!!!
Way to go, Dave, and good to know that you are so
speedy, a much needed trait to have in chasing down sheep at worming time!
Two of our most unique runners! We LOVE cat people!
We
still have some Tshirts left from the run ....
you can get gray with blue or gray purple !
Rikki’s
Logo on the front - race sponsors on the back.
$25 each and great Holiday Gifts !!!
Let
me know the color and size to make sure we have what you want.
$5
for Shipping or pick up at Rikki’s or Re-tail
We have a LOT of merchandise and we are bringing
more out onto the floor every day!
See you on a near Sunday!
And when you visit ... bring in your gently used
items for “recycling” !!! We turn YOUR
no longer needed things into very much NEEDED things for the ANIMALS !!!!
WIN - WIN
Did YOU get one? They’re in and I’m only hearing positive
remarks back !!! Let me know what YOU
think of yours !! Vincent@RikkisRefuge.org
Sullivan, the model for this shirt, was once
homeless and on death row. He is now a
happy kitty greeting visitors at Rikki's Refuge. He was so happy to earn enough from the sale of his shirts to
feed almost 100 kitties at Rikki's Refuge for a full month !!
Good Job Sullivan .... and GOOD JOB to his HEROES
who supported his efforts and bought a shirt !!
Lookie Lookie
Here’s Uncle Ron’s Panther admiring the Sullivan’s
shirt
..... or is he annoyed it’s not HIS picture on the
shirt ?
JASMINE
Kitty kisses are a great perk to being on staff at
Rikki's. Our amazing staffer, Brittney, has the complete adoration of little
miss Jasmine!
You’ll meet Jasmine if you come for out ThanksLiving Celebration .... she’s looking for a furever home that’s
quieter than Rikki’s Refuge .... She’d like to be an only cat ... which isn’t
happening at Rikki’s !!! But she’s
willing to tolerate a couple mellow kitties.
No kids though, too much activity and fast feet for her !
THE GREAT DUCK RESCUE
You often hear of awful things involving animals in
the news. You rarely hear of all the
good hard work that goes on behind the scenes and the happy ever after endings
of them !!
We got a call about abandoned ducks from a back
yard breeder/butcher who had been closed down.
We called our wonderful volunteer and waterfowl person, Robin, to
coordinate the rescue effort. Only
three volunteers and two vehicles were ready for the three hour drive and the
all day rescue.
65 ducks were found alive. they’d been five days with no food, and it
looked like no water. They were caked
in mud. They were frightened. They had not had good experiences at the
hands of hoomans. They did not
cooperate in getting in crates to ride to safety. Their enclosure had been neglected and there were many escape
hatches. Since so many were running
free, the round up took the better part of the day. When not a duck was left in sight, and we pray we got them all,
the volunteers headed back to Rikki’s Refuge.
Crates piled high in our big van and a big truck, ducks a squawking,
they arrived as the sun was going down on one of those really cold days. With the night falling, pictures aren’t the
best.
Ducks of every kind ... dozens and dozens ... more
than 5 dozen ... all scared and hungry
Peekings who will never end up on anyone's plate
There was no time to plan, no time to build a new
enclosure, one of the 9th Life Center’s Day Runs would have to do
for now. The first goal is to save life
.... the second to provide a habitat suited to their long term needs.
One by one they came to watch ........ the Cats
Who's moving in with us ?
Do I have to share my Fancy Feast ?
The Peacocks heard about the new guys in town ... and they told the Chickens
As soon as everyone was safely in the enclosure
...... (and the cats evicted !)
Release
...... Freedom ......
Ducks, Ducks,
and More Ducks, huddled together for comfort
We don’t have a good pool for them, so many lined
up pans had to do. They were so thirsty
.... they drank and drank and drank.
And now they have settled
in. The weak ones have gotten
stronger. The skinny ones have gotten
fatter. They are happy. But it’s time to move to a bigger area that
can be their forever home.
They are eating about $12 of
feed every day .... not bad for that
many animals .... but one more hit for our over stretched pantry ...... if you’d like to by them a bag of nums for
the holidays, just click www.RikkisRefuge.org/FeedMe
We need a nice big swimming
pool for them. The little kids ones you
see in the stores in the summer are ok, they can get wet. But a nicer bigger one would be so lovely
for them. Then families could all go
for a swim together ... round and round and round.
I found this
at Tractor Supply here in
Orange. They’re willing to discount it
10% to $320, but that’s still more than these poor ducks came with in their
wallets !!!
It’s an American
Farmland Round Plastic Tank 8 ft. x 2 ft. and holds 625 gallons of water. The width is nice, the depth is nice ... and
that’s just how much water something that size will use !!
If any of you have great negotiating skills .... you
know where Tractor Supply is !!!! And
if anyone wants to give a great big huge gift to the ducks .... you know what to do .... and here’s where to
do it !! www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate
In the mean time, if you have any kiddy pools
laying around, please donate them .... let me know where you are and I’ll find
a volunteer to pick them up (obviously no more than 100 miles or so,
sorry). Just let me know, Vincent@RikkisRefuge.org
Or if you have any kind of livestock pool that you
no longer need .....
Having good water to swim in is important to the
duck’s health and well being !!
Oh, and NO, the inflatable
kids pools will NOT work --- ducks have sharp claws and will tear them. You should have seen the faces and arms of
the rescuers on Duck Day !
BETTY
Meet Betty, one of the amazing cats that call
Rikki's Refuge home. Once on death row cus nobody wanted her .... now Betty is a happy and friendly little
miss at Rikki’s Refuge who is quite the social butterfly and has been known to
greet visitors and follow along on tours. We were able to help Betty because
you help us. THANK YOU !
BUTTER CUP AND RECEE
Inseparable sisters .... when their owner moved and
couldn’t keep them their options were slim ... most folks responding to the ad
on craigs list wanted some goat for dinner.
It’s wonderful people like YOU who make it possible for us to save lives
like theirs !!!! THANK YOU !
GREAT BALLS OF FUR
..... and HOW
many cats did you say ?
When ever we can we will help with problem
situations. Especially when animals no
other rescues want are involved. Like
feral cats, animals with behavioral issues, older animals, farm animals, fiv or
feluk kitties, and so.
Usually we’re called on here or there to help in a
situation involving a lot of animals that have been seized or left behind in
awful situations. Though in the last
few weeks, we’ve been asked to help in four different situations involving
kitties. A few dozen kitties and still
counting. They’re still being trapped
at 3 of the locations. Hopefully the
final count will be less than the recently rescued ducks !
Though they’ve come from a variety of difficult
situations, some hungry, some a bit thin, many flea covered and full of worms,
very few have had serious medical problems.
All are doing well.
All THANK YOU for saving their lives. Though we may be the ones doing the dirty
work, going out in the night to save them, being bitten and scratched as we
medicate them and clean them up, scrounging to find places to set up cages for
quarantining them, and assimilating them into happy kitty families here ....
it’s YOU who make it possible.
We NEED YOU right there, behind the scenes
supporting us all the way, from the gasoline to get to the rescue site, to the
neutering and spaying, to the vaccinations, the food, oh so much food as they
all have needed at least some fatten up, the medicine .... everything they need
is provided by YOU !!!!
All because YOU CARE !!!
Thank you, for every penny helps us to help
somebody else !!
Some of the kitties came from a situation where the
owners had been arrested and left behind cats all over .... inside ... outside
.... running about. Rescues were called to take the indoor
friendly cats right away. The ferals
and semi-ferals were left to fend for themselves.
As the house was going to foreclosure, someone
finally noticed the thinning outdoor kitties.
Thankfully they called for help and they helped
trap too !!!! There ARE good people in
this world !!!
These kitties were so
thankful to finally have a few days of food before the traps were set in preparation
for a trip to Rikki’s Refuge.
Just look at the fear and
lack of trust in that kitties eyes. No
one should ever have to live so frightened.
Now that they’ve arrived at Rikki’s Refuge, they will never have to be
so scared again.
They’re in quarantine now
getting de-fleaed, de-wormed, vaccinated, blood tested (but no problem, with
have houses for fiv and feluk so every one is welcome here) and speutered ....
and that’s the expensive part ..... for
$50 you can neuter a guy, for $75 you can spay a gal. Once they’re all fixed up, they’ll get the freedom to roam a
whole cat house !!! You can give them
one more step towards that freedom from quarantine by “fixing” one kittie
!! www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate
Thank you from every kitty who’s
gone thru this trauma of being neglected
..... YOU make it possible for
them to have HAPPY EVER AFTER !!!
With all the new cats, the
pantry is empting faster than usual.
With so many being underweight, it’s going even faster.
Food is one of our biggest
expenses. With 1300 animals to feed
every day, the feed bill alone is about $390 a DAY .... WOW !!!
There are kind stores who
help us out too. Sometimes they donate
some .... often they give us discounts for buying in bulk. We’ve gotten three loads from a store that
is giving us 5.5 ox “regular” size cans of cat food for 20 cents a can. Each load has been 100 cases. That’s $480 .... sounds like a lot of cat
food huh ? But it’s only 4 or 5 days
right now.
Not only do the new kitties
need to put on weight, but this is the time or year our residents are packing
on the weight and in need of more protein for their lush winter coats. Normally our food consumption is almost 50%
higher in November than in August. You
know how that is, around the holidays YOU eat a lot more too !!!! Now if you spent you time outside in the
summer heat running and playing all day and half the night .... you’d loose it
all slim and trim by the time the August heat rolled round .... but ...
Oh well, enough about you !!
During the summer only the
elderly, the ones with health problems, the ones in the hospital get canned
food more than once or twice a week. As
we’re preparing for winter, all the cats and dogs get extra large helpings of
canned food. They also (except some of
the dogs who just don’t know when to stop) get unlimited dry food.
Another store has made a deal
with us for $1 for a 22 oz can of cat food.
A bit more expensive .... but a much much shorter drive, only 25 miles
instead of 60 .... And the 20 cents a
regular can store can only get in a limited amount each week.
Many many of you have chipped
in and sent us on shopping forays ......
if you can help with next weeks food ..... oh please, please .... we
will be eternally grateful ..... www.RikkisRefuge.org/FeedMe
THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS
It’s so wonderful to have
help washing all the litter pans ... any idea how many of them we use around
here ? And the dishes ... the stacks
of dishes .... often called Mount
Dishmore !! And the laundry !! Goodness you should see the laundry
detergent we go thru, the bleach, the dish soap !! The quantity of product we need to keep every one sanitized for
their protection is crazy !!!! Next
time you’re shopping grab a few extra bottles and bring it on down, or leave it at the thrift shop, Re-Tail, for
us.
And I’ll tell you what ---
some of you VOLUNTEER to help do some of my work .... and I can have time to
WRITE TO YOU more often !!! How about
that ???
You can volunteer physically at the refuge .... you can volunteer to help with
events and fundraisers and tabeling .... you can volunteer to wrap at Barnes
& Noble Book Store for Christmas
You can volunteer VIRTUALLY and help with our web site, blog, facebook,
twitter, instagram and more !!!!
So so so many ways to volunteer ....
just let me know what YOU’d like to do to help the animals !!
Cat Food Run
Here we'z is gettin ready to go up the mountains
... headed to the kitty num store .... gotta climb those mountains you can see
... they have CLOUDS on them .... oh my .... it was up up up up ..... I was
scared when I looked down ..... yikes with the rain I was hopin goat cart would
stay safely on the road.
Me and Timmy were stupervising mom and I fell off
her shoulder .... she shouldn't be loud to clip my claws and such horrible
accidents wouldn't never happen ....
Takin inventory to make sure we gotz ALL the nums
promised .... Dreamin of eatin ..... See .. it's "fire sale" nums
.... good stuff but with no labels ..... and only 20 cents a can .... we gotted
all they'd promised and it filled up the goat cart ... they promised to have
more cans in soon and a friend is going to bring them over the mountain to us
.... I bet 100 cases of kitty nums lasts longer in your house ... than in mine
!!! And I bet I know why !! Do YOU?
On the way home ..... I knew what was at the end of
that rainbow ... YOU my very favorite sponsors who make it all possible !!!!
You're MY lifesaver !!! And I LOVE YOU !!! Opie
This is Smokey Joe ..... he’s working on his sumptuous winter coat .... Did you know it takes an average of $47 a
month to totally care for a kitty here at Rikki’s Refuge ? That includes housing, sanitation, food,
meds and all the love they want?
Recurring donations earmarked for certain things is
a wonderful thing. To know that things
will be taken care of one day or one month and to know we can always count on
someone is a really spectacular feeling.
Use the Recurring
Donation paragraph at www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate if you’d like to
sign up to sponsor a cat each month .... only $47 .... Less than one cup of coffee in most places
.... only $1.57 a day .... to give joy, love and life !!!!
CURLEY GOOSE
This goose is NOT blown in
the wind .... NOT having a bad feather
day .... and IS really named Curley Goose .... I bet you can even guess why
? I don’t know what breed he is, but
it’s some kind of special show breed.
He’s one of the 30 something geese and half a dozen turkeys that were
rescued last year when an older gentleman who loved them passed away and his
place was being sold and the animals had no where to go .... luckily his heirs found Rikki’s Refuge.
Just one more big rescue YOU made possible !!!
You’re really awesome ...
know that !!!
MOUKY IS LEARNING ENGLISH FAST
Meet Mouky.
He was living on the streets of Cairo, Egypt and was seriously
injured. Probably hit by a
vehicle. He lost the use of his hind
legs. The rescue who took him and the
vets available to them were not equipped to provide the care he needed to be
able to walk again.
Here he is, shortly before
boarding a plane for the USA. See how
thin he is, how his hind legs are drawn up, muscles atrophied, sores on his
thighs where he’s drug himself around on a rough floor, sad and pathetic.
At Rikki’s Refuge and getting
used to several sessions of physical therapy and massage a day. Look at how much better those legs look
already. He’s kicking them and trying
to get up, but can’t support weight on them yet.
Within two weeks he was able
to stand. And not long after beginning
to walk. Better and better every day.
Now, after less than 2
months, he runs, though his hind legs occasionally cross and he stumbles, the
jumps, he climbs. His sores are healed,
he’s gained weight ! He’s looking
terrific !!!
And he’s learned English
!! No doubt about it ... Mouky knows what “here kitty kitty” means
!! And he’s become especially bonded
with Chicken Little .... whom you’ll meet in just a minute.
Mouky is thriving and doing well, and thanks to you, we were able
to say YES to helping him and making sure that he has an amazing life at Rikki's
Refuge.
CVC & CFC
Did you know if you’re a state employee of
Virginia, that you can give to Rikki’s Refuge through the Commonwealth of
Virginia Campaign? Just designate Life
Unlimited of Virginia, Inc. - Rikki’s Refuge’s corporate name - CVC #03163 as
YOUR charity !!!!
Autumn-Skye
hoomans an information booth at a CVC event.
It very important to have a Rikki’s volunteer at these events to hand
out literature and to tell people about the good things Rikki’s does. Every year our presence grows thru the CVC
because of dedicated volunteers like Autumn-Skye.
And
that means .... you guessed it .... MORE animals get SAVED !!! And that is GOOD NEWS !!
And if you’re a Federal employee ANYWHERE on the
planet, you can give to Rikki’s Refuge through payroll deductions with the
Combined Federal Campaign? Just
designate Life Unlimited of Virginia, Inc. - Rikki’s Refuge’s corporate name -
CFC #77674 as YOUR charity !!!!
We are now considered an international charity,
thanks to a world wide chain of volunteers and the work we’re able to do in
many countries.
Be sure to tell all your friends who work for the
Federal Government, the Military or the Virginia Government !! Thank you !
Chicken Little
Please meet Chicken Little. She is only a few
months old now and was an abandoned few day old chick when we found her. She was so small she could fit in the palm
of your hand.
One of our amazing staffers, Jessy, worked to save
her life and continues to work with her everyday. At any moment, Chicken Little
can be seen following her around the property.
Chicken Little has even been known to
"assist" on the medical table!
lol
She is in the process of working on her skills to
become a Spokes Chicken so she can attend events and teach animal compassion
and kindness. She’ll be dining with us
on ThanksLiving !!! This will be one
celebration of life you don’t want to miss !!
We are able to be here for Chicken Little, because
you are always there for us!! Thank you!
Just walk around Rikki’s Refuge and " the lamb
will lie down with the lion" will keep ringing in your ears.
A visit to Rikki's Refuge will make you feel like you've landed in a Magical Kingdom !!
Schedule YOUR tour today
Tours@RikkisRefuge.org
PRANKSTER AND HIS LAMB
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
Brush Strokes Gallery, in Fredericksburg, VA, one
of the area's most established cooperative galleries, will host a special show
in January 2016 highlighting Rikki's Refuge Animal Sanctuary.
Recently, several of the artists visited the
refuge. Many of the animals they met will be featured in artwork for the
January show!! Here’s two of the most
spectacular so far ! They give a whole
new perspective to life at Rikki’s !
We'll share more as the event approaches!
Goliath n Darwin
These
beautiful boys are at Re-Tail, our store in Fredericksburg, in the adoption
room, just waiting to meet YOU. They
are bonded siblings and must be adopted together.
They
came to us in early summer, sick and scrawny, along with two other siblings who
have already found their forever homes, and a very feral mom who was
desperately ill and doing her best to keep her kids alive. She needed emergency surgery, and while she
was recovering, the kittens had to be bottle fed.
Mom and all her kittens survived, put on weight, and became happy healthy
kitties. The kittens tamed up, but Mom
remains feral and will soon join one of our feral cat houses to live happily
with others just like here.
Come
on into the store and meet Goliath and Darwin ..... even if you’re not ready to
adopt .... come and play !!!!
SKULLY
Skully
was one of those one in a million survivors.
He’d fallen from his nest and been beaten and pecked badly by other
birds. There was no feathers or skin on
his head. He was too young for
extensive surgery, and there was no flesh or skin left to pull the wound
closed.
Our
fabulous Lauren became Baby Bird Mommey and fed him round the clock, dropped
the antibiotics in his little beak, cleaned and cared for his wound. It was a 24 hour job for many days. No one who saw him thought he had a chance
of surviving and if he did, certainly he’d be horribly brain damaged.
But
Lauren wasn’t letting that happen. She
became a total Bird Mommey and soon Skully could sit on her shoulder.
Though
there are consequences of being a bird mommey, Lauren stuck to the job.
Skully
is now a little over a month old, has learned to fly, and has made friends with
Chicken Little and with many of the cats ....
though not all are impressed to have a pigeon fly down and land on them
while they are sleeping.
Skully
is never left unattended with kitties .... after all ... you know what they
have a reputation of doing.
Sorry
-- but Skully won’t be at ThanksLiving to meet you as he flies .... and likes to land on anything .... like your nums .... and he poops a lot !!! Maybe by next year he will have learned
better manners.
Out
for a Sunny Sunday Stroll
mail check or money order: Rikki’s Refuge, PO Box 1357,
Orange VA 22960
mail package: Rikki’s Refuge, 10910 Barr Ln, Rapidan VA
22733
drop off: Life Center, 21410 Constitution Hwy, Rapidan VA
22733
shop and/or drop off: Re-Tail Thrift Shop, 3503 Lafayette
Blvd, Fredericksburg VA 22408
Today would be a great day to take Opie's Kindness
Pledge! Won't you join him in doing your best every day to be kind and make a
difference in the world? Share a kindness that you did or that someone did for
you in the comments! We love to hear happy news!
So you can see, these last few moths have been very busy and very productive at
Rikki’s Refuge !!!!
I think we’ve
pulled off an unprecedented number of spectacular rescues and healings ...
don’t you ?
Thank you for being a part of the Miracle of Rikki's Refuge !
Love,
Opie
HUG ME AND GIB ME KISS .....
