Feature photo courtesy of Michelle & Chris Gerard
It was a Friday night and our favorite guard dog needed to take a leave of duty before the class we were teaching that night. We went for a walk around the (two) block, leftover pizza in hand, munching on what was going to be a very quick dinner while indulging Ms. Dog. Pizza down, we searched for an open trash bin to toss the wrapper in before we headed back.
And then we heard this noise. It was a beautiful day, and so my first thought was, "What strange bird is migrating through Hamtramck right now?". There were a swarm of little birds in a tree that looked alarmed and I figured it must really be a big bird making this horrible loud noise. But as I moved closer it seemed like it was coming from the ground.
Sure enough, between the shed and the fence was this little, tiny ball of fur! "A rabbit?" I thought. I was a little afraid it was a rabbit. What would I do with a rabbit! But then I looked closer, and it wasn't a rabbit at all - it was our very hungry, thirsty scared little Roger!
With veterinary help and a whole bunch of kitchen equipment turned ad hoc kitten care unit and a quick trip by Margie and Shannon to get the essentials while I taught the class, Roger started to make a comeback. Most likely, Roger was kicked out of his nest! The day we found him, he was eyes shut, complete with umbilical cord, and two little ears stuck back to his head; He weighed 3.3 oz.
Side note: My kiwi veterinary friend and old roommate who walked me through this entire process (shoutout, Guan! Thank you!) scolded me for using ounces when I described his weight and asked for it in grams. I told him we measure everything at Bon Bon Bon in grams! But Roger was a baby, and baby's are measured in ounces - even in N.Z!
Following weeks of bottle feeding, daily baths and blow outs and snuggles galore from an entire community of Detroit culinarians (thank you Standby, Grey Ghost, Public House, Polish Village, Gus & Grey, Blu Kitchen/Blu Kitten, Take A Mega Bite, Detroit City Distilling & Canton Brew Works) Roger is doing great!
Not only is he eating solid foods, sleeping through the night and using a litter box, he has also found his place as the perfect sidekick to the greatest dog that this chocolate shop has ever known!
