MG2010 South: Rikki's Refuge Animal Sanctuary

Rikki's has always been a rest home for the sick, afflicted and aged. Our cats move into the 9th Life Assisted Living Facility as they need more heat and comfort in their declining years. Now the dogs are joining the ranks of the seniors, and a heated facility would be such a comfort for their weary bones.

We have so many birds because of silly choices people make about them. It seems to come as a real surprise that ducks will learn to fly and poop all over your house. That chickens, yes, both hens and roosters, will crow and squawk and call at all hours of the day and night. That peacocks will call and talk to the chickens at all hours, too. They don't go to work on the same schedule you do, so if there's something cool to holler about at midnight, 2 am or 4 am, they do. And most of your neighbors in subdivisions will holler just as loud as the birds. A lot of people are even shocked to learn that their home owner associations include birds in their prohibition against farm animals.

The ducks, geese, chickens and peacocks all roam happily about, following folks around for dropped crumbs.

Our current avairy houses the tame doves that are released for weddings and can't survive in the wild, the pigeons no longer needed for racing, a chukar that wandered by one day and more.

This is a picture of one of our emus deciding whether or not to grab for the photographer's shiny watch. Emus like shiny things -- at least our emus do.

Five emus live at Rikki's Refuge. Three were found wandering as "strays" by animal control officers. (We know this statement puzzles you. It puzzles us too.)

Two were hatched as babies as an insane school project. Once born, the little birds were no longer useful and nobody knew what to do with the two little beings. Emu babies are small, but they grow fast.

Want to visit them? Bring shiny things. And stay away from their legs!