December 11, 2002

Happy Howl-lidays

Dogs and cats line up to see Humane Society Santa Paws
By LISA PERKINS
Herald staff writer

      A four-legged sweater, raw hide chew, catnip mouse - not your typical Christmas wish list, but then the dogs and cats that lined up to see Santa at the Cherryland Humane Society on Sunday aren't your typical visitors to St. Nick's lap.
      For more than a dozen years the Cherryland Humane Society has invited the public, and their favorite photogenic pet, to tour the facility and have their picture taken with "Santa Paws" at an open house held each December.
      For a $5 donation, a photo of Fido on Santa's knee comes with a lasting memory of a faithful friend.
      "It's fun to see all the animals come in," said Humane Society executive director, Mike Cherry. "You never know what to expect. We have a lot of dogs, some cats and occasionally a rabbit, one year we even had a guy bring in two pythons. Santa is a really good sport."
      For many of the visitors, like Heather Lancaster of Traverse City and her mixed-breed dog George, it wasn't their first visit to the Humane Society. Lancaster adopted George from the Manistee pound three months ago after he had been abandoned on a local beach.
      "When I heard about this I just thought it would be so much fun to bring George in and get his picture taken. We are just crazy about the little guy," Lancaster said.
      Debra Burcar brought Julip Tulip, her rare catahoula leopard dog and AC Paws rescue dog, dressed for the occasion. Wearing a red jacket and cap, Julip was a little nervous about getting on the big guy's lap, so Santa got down on her level and sat on the floor. With the offer of a treat, Julip gave a toothy grin for the photographer.
      Santa's lap was more than full with Bugaboo, a cocker spaniel and Budda, a long haired cat who belong to Sherri Burford of Traverse City.
      "I've brought them here before," Burford said. "Since I was here last year, one of my cats passed away. I'm glad I have the picture of the three of them together. Now I need a new one of these two."
      Geri Valentine of Traverse City brought in her black pug puppy in at the insistence of her mother.
      "Grandma wanted a picture of Ferguson's first Christmas, I just wanted to see all the other dogs," Valentine said.