Labrador Retriever Rescue-CT, Inc

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Schuylar Schuylar is one of those unforgettable labs that come into rescue that has a personality larger than life. His story starts with the first time we met him at age 5. His family had just gone through a major financial crisis; losing their home and business. The family was intent on taking Schuylar with them but a home rental allowing a dog fell through. A series of frantic calls by the family and arrangements were made to take Schuylar into foster care with Schuylar arriving in style in the back seat of a car service from New Jersey. Like a little boy going on his first car trip to grandma's he had a note attached to his collar. "This is Schuylar, please take care of him. He likes potato chips and bread. He can get into any refrigerator." While in foster care, we soon found out that Schuylar was adept at breaking/entering any refrigerator. A loaf of bread left on the counter was meant for him. And more often than not after his adventure in the kitchen he could be found fast asleep in bed or on the couch upside down. He loved life and lived each and every day with an abundance of energy and joy.

He quickly went into his 2nd home with a wonderful woman. But three years later, she was transferred into NYC, working long days and leaving Schuylar alone. She came to the painful decision to find a home for him where people would want a social, outgoing buddy. Into Schuylar's life came Jack and Ian Archer-Watters. I call them his "heart home". Finally, Schuylar had a family that loved his companionship whether a trip to the park, a vacation or a weekend with friends or family. Ian, Jack and Schuylar were inseparable. I do remember a call early on with laughter in the background..."you were right, Schuylar broke into the refrigerator."

Jack shared the following: "The day we collected our boy Schuyler was one of the most memorable days of our lives, just like our wedding day. And in the same way, adopting a senior Labrador is a bit like getting married, just slightly later in life. It’s comfortable and very companionable. A visit to the park is very restful and sedate, meal times are regular. And just as you’re getting settled into this peaceful life you get a glimmer of puppyish, rascally, naughtiness that is as endearing as it is surprising.

Schuyler is his own dog. He was eight years old when he came home with us for the first time. He settled in very quickly and we soon got into a routine as if he had always been part of our lives. We discovered all sorts of commands that he already had; in fact, we still find new words to which Schuyler has a learned response. We soon noticed that he was fairly indifferent to most other dogs although every now and then he’ll meet a special friend and we can never figure out what it is about the other dog that wins Schuylie’s devotion and sets his tail rotating like a propeller.

He’s clearly retired from retrieving, although he’ll still brings us a toy, carefully chosen from his extensive collection, as a gift when we come back at the end of the work day. He doesn’t follow us around with puppyish devotion but he has a subtle way of sneaking into a room and before we notice he’s curled up at our feet keeping our toes warm. He’s slowed down a bit during the four years he’s been with us but all the years just fall away whenever there’s the promise of a treat. He’s a young boy all over again and we get a glimpse of a younger Schuyler. So really all we’re missing are the exhausting weeks of house training, disturbed nights, the obedience puppy training. Instead we went straight to a happy, contented, beautiful adult dog, who loves us in his own special way. Every day is a gift and our time together is so precious. Adopting a senior lab is the way to go.

POSTNOTE: We were all saddened to hear of Schuylar's unexpected death this past July due to complications from pneumonia. Schuylar taught us the true meaning of the small blessings in life. He lived each day of his life with joy and a smile. Schuylar left a legacy of good will, to honor him, Ian and Jack adopted another senior lab, Oakley.
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***********TRIBUTE TO OUR WORKING LABS************

REGAN!

"See Regan's story under our "Happy Tails". One little known fact----our rescue labs have gone on to become working k-9's in the U.S. Park Service, U.N. Security, NY State Police & U.S Border Patrol----Regan's story is just one of many of our rescued labs successes.

Our Newest Graduate

MONTY!Monty's success is truly a Christmas Story...His family surrendered him to Manhattan ACC on Dec. 24, 2004 because he was too energetic and they didn't have time for him. He was only 12 weeks old! One of the rescue coordinators felt so sorry for him that she drove him from NYC to our rescue in CT on Christmas eve nite... Monty became one of the youngest labs accepted into the NY State Troopers Canine program. He was 4 months old when he arrived and had to be fostered by one of the Troopers until he was old enough for "class". He graduated November 9, 2005 from a 3 month intensive training program. He is trained in arson, bomb and drug detection. He will be on duty in Rensselaer County , New York.

********SPECIAL NOTICE MARCH 2008**************

Unfortunately, the aftermath of the Holidays brought us many new surrendered and abandoned labs. What has overwhelmed us this year, are the surrenders of senior labs due to owner deaths or catastrophic illnesses. All of these labs have been the most loyal of companions and loved by their owners dearly but they still found themselves in shelters or vet offices now homeless. Please take a moment to look at the faces of these "heart" dogs. They are the most perfect companions. Mature, loyal, kind brown eyes and always that labrador tail wag. Our seniors make wonderful move in companions for an adult couple or consider adding a second lab to the family. They are so grateful to any kindness shown them. We are a small rescue and It is not possible to take all of the labs we receive calls on. Please check your local shelters and rescues for labs in need of a home. We often hear..."there must be something wrong with the labs that are in shelters or rescues". More often it might be catastrophic circumstances in thier owners lives or irresponsible owners, not the lab's fault for being in a shelter. We find labs abandoned in apartments or let loose in parks because owners are moving. Many of our labs end up in the shelter because of an owner's illness or death. Many of them are older, well mannered and completely bewildered as to why they are in a shelter. This time of year, we also get the juveniles that were given as Christmas presents but now are adult size. Owners turn them into a shelter because they are jumping and have no manners, but what they fail to say is that they have kept them crated for long hours and never gave them attention or proper training. Is that their fault?...but in many shelters it is a death sentence for a young juvenile. Please...before you buy a lab, try going to a shelter or rescue and adopt a lab that someone else bought! You will be well rewarded with a loyal, devoted companion.

********FOSTER HOMES DESPERATELY NEEDED**************

Due to the volume of wonderful labs in our program, we are in desperate need of foster homes. We have limited space right now in our current foster homes, as well as kennel space and are in danger of turning away labs at this point. Please look at our list and see if any one of our labs might be a guest in your home for a short while. Our usual adoption time is 2-3 weeks. Our mid range to senior labs are grateful for even the smallest kindness. Look into your own labrador's eyes and see if you would not want someone to step up to the plate if they ended up in some unfortunate situation. We supply food, crate if needed and any supplies. Fosters must be in the CT, NYC area. Foster application will be e-mailed upon request. We will only place a foster lab in a compatible situation for both the lab and the potential foster. If you cannot foster, please consider sponsoring one of our labs in boarding for any amount of time. Our labs would be most grateful!!

NEWS

CONGRATULATIONS...to our 3 new graduates of the NY State Police Canine Academy and our most recent placement with the U.S. Coast Guard, most aptly named "Triton". They and their handlers will be part of the United Nations security task force. We now have a total of six rescue labs on duty at the United Nations, three with the New York State Troopers, one with Texas State Trooper(trained in NY) and one with the United States Park Service. Our thanks to the NY State Trooper Canine program who only take labrador retrievers for their program from shelters or rescues. The labs that are selected must pass a rigorous physical evaluation and then pass a 3 month training program with their handler. These are the high energy dogs that need a job and thrive on going to work everyday with their handler. It is ironic that these are some of the same labs that were rescued from NY city shelters(whose lives were in jeopardy) and now they are canine officers trained in drug/bomb/explosive detection and search/rescue. Many of them patrolling airports, United Nations Building, Park Service as well as routine law enforcement .

WHO WE ARE

Labrador Retriever Rescue-CT, Inc (LRRCT)is an LRC, Inc. affiliated Lab Rescue(www.thelabradorclub.com/rescue.html) dedicated to the rescue and rehoming of Labrador Retrievers that have been abandoned, lost or abused and found in shelters throughout the Northeast. The group was founded in 1996 and organized through long time participation with the Labrador Retriever Club, Inc National Rescue Program. All LRRCT labs are for the most part purebred. We do accept some compatible "retriever" mixes but essentially the predominant look and temperament is one of a Labrador Retriever. Our labs come into our program from shelters, veterinarians and owner surrenders. They are given up because of family relocation, divorce, allergies, serious illness/death of the owner or simply because their owners do not have enough time for them All of our labs are evaluated for temperament and have been kid/cat/dog tested. All of our labs are spayed/neutered, up to date on immunizations and heartworm/lyme tested. Any medical issues/surgeries are taken care of prior to placement and fully disclosed to adopters.

ADOPTING, FOSTERING OR SPONSORING A LAB

We adopt to approved families in Connecticut, SE New York and southern Massachusetts. We require an adoption questionairre, veterinary reference and home visit. Our questionairre helps us to match you and your family's needs with those of our labs. It can be e-mailed or faxed to you. When we have a lab that we think might make a good match for you; an appointment is scheduled for you to meet your lab. Usually, you will be called to see just one lab and you will have to notify us within 24 hours of your intention to adopt. All of our labs are adopted under a legal, binding contract. Our adoption fee is $300.00, which often only partially covers the full vetting and medical expenses incurred by our rescued labs. Rarely, no matter how carefully we match a lab and family, we are asked to take the lab back. If the placement is not working for either the family or the lab, the rescue lab must be returned to us. Lastly, LRRCT reserves the right to reclaim any rescue lab that becomes neglected, improperly cared for or is allowed to run free unsupervised. If you are not in a position to adopt but might be able to foster one of our labs, please contact us for a foster application. We carefully place our foster labs in a home that would be an appropriate match for them and the foster family. And lastly, if you are not in a position to adopt or foster, please consider sponsoring one of our labs in foster care. Donations can be made directly through our Pay Pal account or mail directly to LRRCT, Inc., PO Box 461, Bridgewater, CT 06752. Our senior labs require more vetting than our average adult labs plus treatment for geriatric illnesses. We waive or reduce the adoption fee substantially for our senior labs, as well as special need labs. 100% of our donations are used towards our labs medical and foster care, including food and boarding expenses. No amount is too small...Please support us in our mission to help these wonderful labs.

FAVORITE SITES

Please take a moment to visit some of our favorite sites: LABMED(www.labmed.org); LabradorLifeline (www.labradorlifeline.org);Best Friends Animal Sanctuary(www.bestfriends.org). LABMED and Labrador Life Line are organizations that provide funding for medical assistance to labs in need, especially those requiring extraordinary medical care while still in rescue. These organizations depend solely on donations and fundraising to support their mission objectives. We are also a member of the Mayor's Alliance for NYC Animals, Inc (www.animalalliancenyc.org) and a participating pet partner in Mattie's Fund(see link below). Their goal is to help NYC animals who are of good temperament and health get a second chance at adoption. One of our favorite local shelters is Animal Welfare Society,Inc , New Milford, CT(www.animalwelfaresociety.homestead.com). It is a private, non-destroy shelter caring for abandoned animals in Fairfield & Litchfield Counties of CT.

PLEASE NOTE

We are an all volunteer organization. We have jobs, families, understanding spouses, children & labs of our own plus a foster lab or two. Our first priority is "rescuing" the labs we are so committed to---this takes an enormous amount of manpower to evaluate at the shelter, transport from a shelter, vet & transport into foster care. We do not have the luxury of returning phone calls, unless it is an emergency surrender. If you need information, the quickest response will be through e-mail. Thank you for your patience.

Labrador Retriever Rescue-CT, Inc
P.O. Box 461
Bridgewater , CT 06752
Phone: 860-354-9098

Email: labrescuect@aol.com
Click here for a list of our labs

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