Labrador Friends of the South

A non-profit organization dedicated to the rescue and adoption of homeless Labrador Retrievers in Georgia, Alabama and the entire Southeast region

The Labrador News

Vol. 4, No. 1, November 2007.

The Holidays are around the corner and with them our biggest event of the year. On December 15th we are having our Holiday Party and Reunion and you are all invited. The party will be from 11am-4pm in Alpharetta and it will be big! We will have a huge silent auction, training tips, dog games, photos with Santa, food, vendors, micro chipping and more!

Go to http://www.labradorfriends.com/invitation.htm

to see the full invitation. You don't want to miss this event!

Our Latest Adventure

Dogs and Kids

Friends Fund

Dog of the Month

Dog Tips

Deals of the Month

Adoption Stories

Last Month’s Adoptions

 

 

 

12 lucky Labradors found their forever home last month: Tebow, Rainey, Lady, Marta, Bowen, Fergie, Gabrielle, China, Chastain, Phoenix, Crystal and Lacey, all have a new home. Enjoy guys!

 

You can meet our new happy additions on our available dogs webpage.  Look at Stella, Tonga, Pumpkin, Libby, the super personality puppies - Sage and Hickory - and the Dachsadors sisters. And of course Mr. Chance who needs lots of TLC but getting better by the day.

Why every kid should have a dog.

Ever wondered why kids love dogs so much?  Dogs can offer children many things that money can not buy.  Our son, Owen, has had a dog (or 2 or 3) and a cat always in his life. He is proud they are ‘his’ and he loves them like they were a 2 legged child.

Why is owning and taking care of a dog is a great experience for kids?

Unselfish love: Kids love attention and when they come home and their dog can barely sit still with excitement, they are reminded that they are extra special. When your child is ill, you will be surprised how close the dog will stay to him and how comforted the child will be by the dog. Our son was sofa bound for 2 weeks, Owen’s dog Colby kept his head on Owen’s lap every minute of the sofa time. 

Responsibility: Most kids are old enough to help out in some manner with the dog.  Mine feeds the dogs, throws the ball and helps brush them. Owen is very proud of the fact that he takes care of ‘his’ dogs. He even asks questions at the vet and most recently voiced an opinion on boarding.

Confidant: This one may surprise you, but many times when Owen is in his playroom and the dogs are there we can hear him talking to them. About-lost games, school, having to go to the doctor and so on. Whatever the animals tell him, it sure seems to perk him up.

Confidence: Can you imagine the confidence a preschooler gets when he (or she) tells two dogs to sit, stay, or come and they do it? 

Pride: Ownership and taking care of a living being provides children with something tangible every day that gives them pride in themselves. Fostering also gives them pride because they are proud of the fact that they are part of saving an animal.

Security: All those things that scare kids, aren’t as scary with a lab next to them. We trained our labs a command “stay with Owen”. From the backyard to hike in the woods, at that command, our labs stay with him. As a parent, what could feel more secure than a devoted dog staying with your child?

 

 

Kids and Dogs

The Friends Fund is still up and running so please don’t forget about our dogs in need and keep making donations. Chance has just been diagnosed with entropion. Although not a life threatening disease, it is very painful and he needs eye surgery. The surgery costs around $600. Help us make him feel better! This month our thank you goes to:

Bronze Bone level: Daniel Muzzarelli, Sallie Hughes and Gabrielle, and Kristi Hanna.

Silver Bone level: Burt and Sarah McCullough and Gypsy.

Platinum Bone level: Jessica Sanderson and everyone who donated at the Cumming Fair.

Where is your money going?

The money you generously donated so far went to:

· Tonga’s heartworm treatment. She is feeling a lot better and she is now  in a foster home learning a few life lessons like the difference between shoes and rawhides.

· Sage and Hickory’s vet bill. These two cute siblings had to stay at a vet a little while after eating something that made them quite sick. Now they are up and running around as typical adorable lab puppies.

· Well, that is about it. No matter how much we try to stretch money….

As little as $10 can make a difference! Donate today.

Christmas is just around the corner: Don’t forget to shop through our links.

http://www.labradorfriends.com/affiliates.htm

Amazon.com, Overstock.com, ebay. Orvis, Petco, The Body Shop, Flowers.com, Dean and Deluca, Dell, ebags, Eddie Bauer, GiftBasket.com, Macy’s and many more...

Lacey had her big adventure a few weeks ago when she went from adoption to Florida and then to Alabama, all in the span of one day! Yes that is right, one day. She was adopted by a wonderful family who flew from Alabama on their personal plane to pick her up! Of course Ms Lacey is always up for an adventure, so she did not even flinch at the idea of flying. Here she is on her way to her new home with her new brother. You go Lacey!

Who would not give a treat to two smiling superdogs?

?

Would you really trust Reece to be a cop?!

Katrina was the first four legged bee of the neighbor!

A few tips for kids and parents.

Here are a few tips to make sure owning a dog is a good experience for both kids and parents. Many resources are also available on the web. Ask us, talk to a trainer, or just look around.

· Make sure the dog feeding area is off limits, unless your child is old enough to help feed.  A toddler and a bowl of water make a huge mess.

· Train the dog to wait at the top of the stairs until allowed down. Until then, tell the child never to go down the stairs with the dog, even sliding down with them hollering weeeeee.

· Dogs love crumbs and will happily clean your child for you.

· You won’t have to fetch food thrown or dropped from the table.  Just watch out because your child will love feeding the dog from the table.

· Kids should share toys with other kids, just not with the dog.  Make sure the dog has their own toys and both parties know who owns what

· Kids tend to leave things around on the floor (well mine does), make sure they pick them up when they are done playing.  It will help with the confusion about whose toy is whose.

· Let your kids show love the way they like to receive it.  Kids don’t like to be hit, pulled on, chased, ridden or poked therefore it is reasonable to assume they would not do this to the dog (or be allowed to do so).

Don’t forget last year’s resolution to send Holiday cards to your friends and family. We now have beautiful Holiday cards. They are made on high quality glossy paper, the inside is either white or colored (see the website for pictures of the inside), and they have our labs on the front including a big cheery smile from Fred! You can mix and match any of the three cards and they come with individual white envelopes.

 

Order some today:  $1.50 each, $13 for 10 cards, $24 for 20 cards, or $32 for 30 cards. All the proceeds from the cards will go back into our Friends Fund. Come and pick them up at any of our adoptions or email us the order and we will mail them to you. Prices do not include shipping.

If you were a happy chocolate lab who loves to play with other dogs, how would you imagine paradise to be? Well, I think our Fergie (the one in the front) just made it to chocolate land and doggie paradise. Have fun Fergie!

Meet Chauncey, a sweet and laidback lab. You cannot see from this picture, but he has a wonderful very dark chocolate color and golden eyes. Chauncey loves to play with his foster siblings and at home is a very good and easy dog. Unfortunately he gets really stressed at adoptions so he does now really show how good he is and therefore he is getting overlooked. Probably a kid in his past was not very nice to him as he is not sure how to act around small kids. Chauncey will be happier in a home with adults or older kids only. Don’t let past experiences get in the way of a wonderful dog:  help us spread the word about this wonderful dog.

“I love warm laundry.”

I have a young child (just starting Kindergarten this year) and wanted to share with you something’s I learned, the hard way, so that some of you with young children, looking to adopt and a new to dogs can learn (and laugh) at my mistakes.