New England Labrador Retriever Rescue

New England Lab Rescue was founded in 2010 by Heather Labbe'. When she saw the number of Labs showing up in shelters steadily increase, Heather decided to step up and make a difference. New England is a region of the country with a high demand for Labrador Retrievers, resulting in very few found in local shelters. Heather realized that with funding and a lot of hard work, she could rescue animals from shelters in southern states and bring them to New England for adoption. To date, NELR has helped over 200 Labs find their fur-ever families. NELR expects to have 501c3 status in 2011 and hopes to see an increase in funding at that time, which means more Labs can be rescued! If you cannot adopt or foster a Lab but would like to help us with our efforts, please contact us to find out how you can get involved!

The Adoption Process: **Submit your application http://www.emailmeform.com/builder/form/Lo73PJur9gbha1DwEx5s0Ny6 **We will then conduct a phone interview with the applicant, check your references and check with your vet to confirm that your current pets are UTD on their vaccines. **We may ask to do a home check, which is always preferable if we have volunteers in your area, or we may ask for photos of your house and yard. **We will set up a meet & greet with any of the pups who match your family situation and who you are interested in. Most often you will need to drive to the area of the foster home, but if we can arrange transportation to you to meet the pup, we will do our best. **We will discuss with you how the meet & greet went. **Once approved to adopt a particular pup, we will contact you with the news. You then have 24-48 hrs to discuss it with your family. You must then contact an NELR rep within this 24-48 hr timeframe if you do decide to adopt. This is very important as the details of arranging transport of the rescued dog will need to be made, often times we have several people involved in this process and we need to plan around multiple schedules. If we do not hear from you in this 24-48 hr time period, we will assume you have changed your mind, your application will be voided, and we will move on to other applicants. **We will then work with you to either pick up your new pup, or arrange transportation to get the pup to you. ** Lastly, you will sign our adoption contract and the adoption fee will be required upon your taking ownership of the pup. Things to Remember: **Our goal is to find the best match based on the Lab’s background and the family’s needs. The temperament and energy level of the dog are our most important consideration. We consider factors in the home, including the ages of the children, ages of pets in the home and what type of other pets are in your home. We never base our adoption process on who gets their application in first, instead we weigh all applications to find the best suited family for the pup's needs based on our assessments of our dogs. Our number one goal is to be 100% committed to every dog we rescue. **If you apply for a certain dog, we will do our best to see if that particular pup is a good fit, but there are times when, for many different reasons, that it might not be a good match. That does not mean there is anything wrong with your application, just that that particular dog requires different needs. Should you not be applying for a specific dog, the Adoption Coordinator will talk with you about which dogs best fit your home and lifestyle. **Please understand that although filling out an application is the first step in the process, filling out the application in and of itself does not guarantee that you will be able to adopt a particular pup...again many different factors go into our decisions, and our number one goal is to find the best suited family for that dog, with the goal being that none of our rescue dogs ever find themselves homeless again. Also please do not fill out an application and share with your children that you are adopting that particular dog, as it is not a guarantee until you receive confirmation from the Adoption Coordinator that you are approved to adopt a particular rescued dog. NELR does reserve the right to deny any application for any reason. **At the time of adoption, we will provide you with copies of the Lab’s medical history and any information from the previous owner if available. **The adoption donation for a Rescue Lab is $350. For Labs under the age of 1 year, the Adoption donation is $375. For seniors over 7 yrs of age there is a reduced adoption donation of between $100-$200. Full payment is required at the time of adoption. This is an all volunteer organization, so all adoption fees and donations go right back into rescuing more labs in urgent need! **Families with children 10 years old or younger must have a fenced-in area. **We do not place Labs in families with children unless we know the dog has a positive experience with children. **We do not place Rescue Labs with families that run a home-based childcare or doggie daycare program. **All current dogs in an applicant's home must be up-to-date on all vaccines, including the Bordetella vaccine (kennel cough.) They also must be treated monthly with Heartgard or a similar heartworm preventative. **Finally please understand that all of us put many hours into helping NELR each week, but we are all volunteers, with our own families, jobs, our own dogs, often times foster dogs, etc...We work very hard at saving these beautiful labs, but we can't always make everyone happy with our placement choices. If a dog you were interested in is ultimately placed with a different adoptive family, please do not take it personally. Again it does not mean that there was anything wrong with your application, more that it wasn't the right placement for the dog. We always have other beautiful labs available for adoption, which we will be happy to discuss with you and might be just perfect for your family. Post Adoption **First and Foremost, please remember that all rescue pups need to be given a period of time to adjust to their new home, bond with their new family, and possibly relearn some manners. They may have already proven to be successful with house training for example, but once again are in a new place and are now confused & possibly scared until they settle in. They don’t arrive at a new home knowing which door they should use to go out, who to alert to, etc...they need to be trained with the new house rules and to learn what is and isn’t allowed. These pups have been through a lot, and need lots of love, consistency and set boundaries. Some rescue pups walk into their new homes and it is like they have always been there, others may take a few weeks to a few months to really settle in. **Volunteers will be available to help you with problems and concerns, and to answer any questions. **If, for any reason, the adoption is not satisfactory, the Lab must be returned to NELR as stated in the Adoption Agreement. **New England Lab Rescue reserves the right to take possession of a Rescue Lab that is neglected, improperly cared for, develops a serious temperament problem, or is allowed to run loose. Thank You for Considering New England Lab Rescue.