ARK Christmas Party

The Area Rehabbers Klub held its annual Christmas party this afternoon.

I brought Roscoe, who is used to being held by me, but not used to other people. He was handed 'round and everybody enjoyed holding him. It was a good training session for Roscoe.

I don't have any pictures of Roscoe at the party (so far) but Colleen, the Possum Queen, brought Rosebud, and here are some pictures of Rosebud. She's half the size she ought to be, at her age. (These pictures enlarge, but only slightly, if you click on them.)

Rosebud, Dressed for Christmas

Rosebud was in constant demand, and got to sample at least a dozen different sets of arms and/or laps.



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Rosebud, Being Cuddled by Kelly. (I Don't Know the Man.)

But Holly brought us the biggest hit of the afternoon, in a cat carrier with a large heating pad under it. I knew something was odd when I saw her heat a baby bottle in the microwave. What kind of a baby could have been born this time of year? Answer: a five-day-old puppy! Some woman walked out onto her deck Tuesday morning and found a scrawny, not-fully-grown bitch on her deck, cowering in a corner in the rain, surrounded by nine soaked puppies, their umbilical cords still red and raw. She called Animal Control. To make a long story short, the new mother would only nurse two of her puppies. She and those two went to an Animal Control volunteer. All the rest were divided up between another A.C. person and Holly, who was given the three in the worst shape. And of these seven puppies, all had died, except the one we were now looking at. She's a gorgeous color of brown, with white blaze, chin, tummy, and paws.

Holly, Feeding Puppy

Puppy, held by Melinda

Chris has 4 different breeds of hens, each laying different colors of eggs. Our hostess, Julia, had used two dozen or so of those eggshells and had made tiny, wonderful nature scenes inside them, and had decorated them on the outside with braid and sequins, and added hangers to make them into Christmas tree ornaments. She gave each guest one of these.

We had a wonderful time relaxing together, renewing our bonds, meeting new rehabbers , swapping stories, passing around our babies, exchanging gifts, munching on all sorts of goodies. These are some very good people! I'm so grateful to be a part of them.

Merry Christmas, Ya'll!