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Pet Time at the Farm
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News 2009Last Trip to Visit Grandma in Phoenix - December, 2009Last has two meanings here: Most recent, and final. Rick and Nancee Moster Pontious drove to Phoenix to pack up Nancee's grandma's apartment of 30 years and move her to a nursing home in Cleveland, where she'll be closer to Nancee's mother, father, and cousins. She'll even be closer to Rick and Nancee - driving to Phoenix takes 19 hours; driving to Cleveland takes only 7-1/2. The trip also produced some firsts - Rick and Nancee:
Nancee took pictures along the way with her new Blackberry. Two problems:
Have dog; will travel.
Doug and Dawn tied the knot in the Bahamas shortly after Nancee took their picture in their new home outside Kansas City.
Not only did Grandma's friends throw a fabulous going-away party at the Ritz Carlton, but they provided invaluable advice and assistance to Rick and Nancee. Back row from left to right: Marvin Patack, Andi Minkoff, Dr. Sherman Minkoff, Ken Seidberg. Front row from left to right: Adrien Herzberg, Grandma, Carol Seidberg.
While Rick and Nancee were on the road, David and Megan paid a quick visit to the farm, where Megan fell in love with two of Sweetie's kittens. Newly named Wyatt and Virgil join Millie the German Shepherd and Mutt the... mutt.
The Bateman family expanded (in July and November respectively) with the addition of Leah Claire Bateman and Athena Rose Brown.
More New Kittens - September, 2009Nance Moster Pontious expected four to six kittens. After all, KitKat was HUGE! Still is, actually. She may need to go on a diet after her babies are weaned. ;-) No matter. KitKat's three kittens are stunning - and possibly Pontious Farm's first tricolor cats.
New Kittens - September, 2009We found Sweetie in the picking shed on June 29th. She delivered four beautiful kittens September 15th. Gestation period for cats is about nine weeks. Hmmm. That means the proud papa resides here, not from whence Sweetie came (wherever that was). Theoretically, all farm cats are spayed/neutered except for Nike's uncatchable sibling. So that's one potential dad. And there's a peeping Tom in the neighbor's alfalfa field - that's another possible father.
Sweetie and her family are now sharing office space with KitKat, a hugely pregnant cat that came to the farm from a friend. More kitties to come...
Exotic Feline Rescue Center - August, 2009Rick and Nancee Moster Pontious (belatedly) celebrated their wedding anniversary at the Exotic Feline Rescue Center in Center Point, Indiana. The center is one of the largest exotic feline (lions, tigers, leopards, etc.) rescue centers in the United States. Its mission: Provide permanent homes for exotic felines that have been abused, abandoned or for some reason have nowhere to live out their lives, and educate the public about these beautiful cats. The center was founded in 1991 by Joe Taft on a rural stretch of 15 acres. Today the 108-acre center, a USDA-licensed and inspected, 501(c)(3) not-for-profit is home to 196 cats representing nine different species. Rick and Nancee spent Friday night in the center's guest quarters, which entitled them access to both public and restricted areas of the facility all day Saturday. Nancee took almost 300 pictures, at least a third of which are keepers. (Have you ever tried to photograph pacing cats in the shadows?) Below are just a few that contain images of people as well as animals. Rick says hello to some handsome fellas outside the guest quarters.
Nancee says hi too. You can see the guest quarters in the background.
One of the staff members fills the water bowl for the black leopard outside the guest quarters.
A staff member says hi to one of the tigers outside the guest quarters.
A staff member feeds a leopard in the restricted part of the center.
Jennifer, Rick and Nancee's guide for much of the restricted tour, says hi to one of the tigers she raised from infancy.
Jean, the center's assistant director, chats with a lioness on the standard tour.
For more information about the Exotic Feline Rescue Center, see http://www.exoticfelinerescuecenter.org/home.html Champaign-Urbana Herb Society - July, 2009The Champaign-Urbana Herb Society held their July meeting at The Pontious Farm. Nancee Moster Pontious, who was delighted to see fellow Ground Zero volunteer Mary Scott "Scottie" Miller, explained how the honor system works at the farm and then set members loose in the blueberry fields. Melissa Merli presented sage as the herb of the month. Refreshments were provided by Melissa Merli and Jan Kalmar, including delicious sage cookies.
Meet Sweetie - June, 2009We discovered Sweetie - named by Nancee Moster Pontious for her sweet disposition - one early Monday morning in the picking shed. It was apparent she had nursed kittens until just recently, but we couldn't find her kittens anywhere. After the Animal Hospital of Monticello gave her a clean bill of health and vaccinations, Sweetie formally joined The Pontious Farm menagerie.
Summer Do's at The Pontious Farm - June, 2009
Sweet Dreams, Mystery - May, 2009Little muppet, your time with us was much too short - we didn't even have a chance to take you to the beauty parlor for your summer do. Nevertheless, your wonderfully goofy grin will last forever in our hearts. Look for your old friend, Thelma. She'll show you the ropes.
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Pixie, a three-year-old Blue Merle collie from Goldleaf Collies in Seymour, IL, is Rick Pontious's newest best bud. Pixie accompanies Rick everywhere, including on his weekly trips to Carbondale, IL. Rick even bought her a seat belt harness to ensure her safety. She also continues to sleep in Rick and Nancee Moster Pontious's bedroom - usually unheard of after dogs acclimate themselves to farm life. But Nancee put her foot down when it came to sleeping on the bed! Rick and Nancee discovered the hard way that Pixie is afraid of thunder and lightning. And she's not too fond of small engines - she keeps attacking the tiller and the lawnmower! Otherwise, she's adjusting well to her new digs. |
