Happy story for the day . . .



When Shackle and her owner were unable to get out of town in time to avoid Hurricaine Ike, they showed up at a local church where folks were taking sanctuary from the rising floods. Shackle was welcomed along with her keeper, and here she hangs out on the altar riding out the storm . . .

As reported by the AP:

"The full-grown lion was from a local zoo, and the owner was trying to drive to safety with the animal when he saw cars and trucks stranded in the rising floodwaters. He knew he and the lion were in trouble. He headed for the church and was met by a group of residents who helped the lion wade inside, where they locked it in a sanctuary as the storm raged. The water crept up to their waists, and two-by-fours came floating through broken windows. But the lion was as calm as a kitten.

When daylight came, everyone was still alive. "They worked pretty well together, actually," said the lion's owner, Michael Ray Kujawa. "When you have to swim, the lion doesn't care about eating nobody."

Everybody in the church made it through the storm safely, and Shackle was rewarded for her good behavior with a pork roast.