PHAR

I am doing a switch with this blog and telling you about Potomac Highlands Animal Rescue, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Hardy County, West Virginia, does not have a shelter for rescues and strays, but it has several brave and persistent women who devote considerable time to rescuing animals and finding them foster or permanent homes. Small dogs and cats have a good chance of being homed through animal agencies in DC and Northern Virginia, but larger dogs are always an issue--- particularly if they have never been allowed to live inside a home, which is too often the case out here. PHAR also helps arrange for pets to be neutered or spayed, which helps tremendously with the overpopulation issues.

For several years, Lost River Artisans’ Co-op has sponsored PHAR fundraisers. We set up in the gazebo, post signs all over the Lost River Valley and State Park, and arrange for Chestina, our local PHAR rep, to bring the van and some animals. After the first event, Chestina went home with more cats than she came with; thank goodness we have not done that again! We raffle off donated prizes, sell healthy dog biscuits (containing the stuff WE probably should all be eating), and have a good time. For a change of pace, last year I began making quilted potholders to sell at the co-op between events. Those have proved very popular and all of the money goes to PHAR. A more deserving group I can’t imagine! Visit Lost River Artisans’ Co-op; there are new potholders in the basket!

 

Healthy dog biscuits*

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup oats

2/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk powder

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1½ cups chicken broth

½ cup corn oil

2 eggs

The ingredients, when combined, may either be rolled flat and cut out, or shaped into small balls and flattened before baking for about 40-50 minutes at 340˚ F. They last indefinitely when thoroughly baked and dry. I’ve never met a dog who does not like them!

*From No barking at the Table (Howell Books, 1996).

 

Cat tale

My Mom always had a cat, my Dad a dog. It still seems pretty normal to me to have one of each so I have never been an either-or, fully committed “cat person” or “dog person.” Indeed, I am enough of a soft touch for animals in general to run Lost River Artisans Co-op’s community fundraisers for Potomac Highlands Animal Rescue on Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. For those events, and for sale at other times too, I make pumpkin bowls with cat or dog (or even both) themes. They are fun to create and are generally well received by folks who cherish pets.

At one of my shows, a woman came along and explained that she’d bought a “cat bowl”

from me the previous year. She took it home but could not decide whether to put it in the cabinet to use for food or leave it on the kitchen counter to collect her keys and the mail. She decided to sleep on the decision. The next morning she found her cat sound asleep in the bowl—and there he has slept ever since.

As they say: “Purr-fect.” Sometimes it’s nice when decisions get made for us!

Lost River Artisans’ Co-op: Fundraiser for Potomac Highlands Animal Rescue.

Saturday, August 30^th from 10 AM until 2 PM

Lost River Artisans’ Co-op (7151 Route 259 in Lost City, West Virginia) will sponsor a fundraiser for Potomac Highlands Animal Rescue.

PHAR is an all-volunteer 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1997. It serves Hardy and Grant Counties by providing temporary shelter and foster homes, food, medical attention, spay and neuter assistance, and comfort to neglected, homeless, and injured animals. It also works to reunite lost animals with their human partners. My wonderful dog, Xander, came from PHAR after being rescued from a house fire. Please come out and support the cause. There will be some great Kahoka dog and cat pots to win!

What's New

What's new at Kahoka Handbuilt Stoneware studio? I live in the woods, and leaves are part of why I am here. Yes, those were real leaves that made the designs on many of my pots. I use them all year, so in the autumn I press masses of leaves between Washington Post pages for the winter months. I have cedar boughs, pine needles, and other things to play with all year, but I really love fresh green leaves on the clay.
 

Leaf Bowl

Right now the fern fronds are unfurling like magic. Then I keep an eye out for burdocks, which will be along soon and make wonderful images because they have intricate veining and they are undaunted by being rolled and pummeled. Burdocks are some of the toughest vegetation I know. (Just try to get one out of your garden!) Only a potter could love them!

I hauled new pots to the Lost River Artisan's Co-op in Lost City, WV, and to OASIS Fine Art & Craft in Harrisonburg, VA last week. Now I'm getting ready for Fiber Fest at Lost River on June 24th. That's a great gathering with sheep shearing and other events, including a fundraiser for Potomac Highlands Animal Rescue. Come "rescue" a whimsical animal potholder or two, or even a Kahoka animal mobile or bowl.

Kathy Kavanagh