General Questions

What is Love of Labs?

Why are Labs in these Shelters?

What exactly does LOLIN, INC, do to help that helps save these dogs?

How can I help?

How long has LOLIN been around?

Do you recommend a certain color, style,or gender of Labrador?

What attracts people to the Labrador Retriever?

 

Adoption Questions

Can I adopt if I have a cat?

Do you require a fence?

What should I plan for financially?

Can I adopt if I have small children in the home?

Can I adopt a puppy from rescue?

How do I meet available Labs?

Will you reconsider a declined application?

Which dog is right for me?

General Questions

What is Love of Labs?

We are a group of dedicated Labrador Retriever lovers that have united in hopes of saving and rehoming unwanted, neglected, and/or sick Labrador Retrievers throughout the Midwest. Love of Labs (LOLIN, INC) is an IRS deemed, not-for-profit, public charity. We are a 501(c)3, organization of volunteers who work together to save Labrador Retrievers and Lab mixes from being euthanized in animal shelters and/or animal controls. It is a myth that friendly, well-behaved purebred dogs in shelters do not get euthanized. They do every day, and our mission is to stop this from happening whenever we can. We donate our time, gas, vehicles and all of our LOVE to help save these poor dogs.

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Why are Labs in these Shelters?

Since the Labrador Retriever is the #1 dog in the US according to the AKC, Labs & Lab mixes are also the #1 dog in animal shelters. When shelters are full they must make space to take in more unwanted pets. Many shelters still euthanize healthy, adoptable dogs for space, NOT because of disease, illness or aggression as one might think.

Many owners do not realize that their Labs do not fully mature until approximately 2-3 years of age. They also do not realize that these dogs need direction & training to compensate for their high energy level. The #1 reason that Labs are in shelters is LACK OF OWNER COMMITMENT. While Labradors have a reputation for being family friendly dogs who are laid back and friendly to everyone they meet, owning a Labrador requires patience, training, and a commitment to exercise and attention in order to bring out these wonderful qualities.

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What exactly does LOLIN, INC, do to help that helps save these dogs?

We work with shelters in Indiana and neighboring states (and occasionally further away) to pull their Labs and Lab mixes into our foster program. Our fantastic fosters evaluate the new dog while LOLIN has them fully vetted. Veterinary care includes spay or neuter, vaccinations, and a heatworm test for every dog in our program. Dogs are also wormed, given flea treatments, and treated for any medical condition while in our care. LOLIN often pulls dogs from shelters who have medical issues such as heartworm or broken bones. We provide treatment or surgery and nurse the dog back to health. Our adoption team works to match each dog with his or her perfect adoptive family!

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How can I help?

Our number one need is foster families. Please join us by fostering. Email LOLIN for a foster application. Or you can email us for an adoption application and adopt one of our Labs/Lab mixes.

If you can't do either of these, perhaps you could send a donation of any size to us so that we can continue to help the dogs in our rescue. We are a 501(c)3 IRS appointed NON-PROFIT CHARITY and your donations are tax deductible!

Or, click on our Volunteer page to find other ways you can help us—driving transports, working events, or donating professional services—there are many ways to help our rescue!

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How long has LOLIN been around?

Love of Labs started in May, 2005. Our founder retired in the Spring of 2010 after saving nearly 600 Labradors, however Love of Lab’s mission and work has carried on and we are looking forward to the next 600 lives saved!

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Do you recommend a certain color, style,or gender of Labrador?

ABSOLUTELY NOT, until we learn more about you/your family through your Adoption Application and telephone interview, we cannot determine which Labrador will fit best with your family. Once we get to know you, we will then match our dog by their personality & traits ONLY. Colors do not make certain personality flaws or strengths. Each dog is assessed by its personality and behavior traits only!! We can only tell you what we have personally observed.

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What attracts people to the Labrador Retriever?

It is no coincidence that the Labrador Retriever is the most widely owned and loved dog in the world. This breed may be one of the most even-tempered of all in the dog kingdom. Devoted, obedient, intelligent, gregarious, and dependable are only a few words to describe this dog breed. The Labrador Retriever excels in obedience, which is evidenced by his widespread use as a guide dog, a drug dog or an explosives detection dog. This breed loves water, and with its waterproof coat can handle even the coldest water temperatures. There is little negative to say about this dog breed; they're good with children, good with pets, and good with other dogs.

Experienced Lab owners will tell you that a significant amount of work and commitment goes into owning a dog as is described above. All of these wonderful traits are true of the Labrador Retriever. However, in order to help your pet realize his or her potential, you’ll need to give it daily exercise, attention, and training. They aren’t born knowing all the things they need to know to be these great dogs—just with the potential! YOU are responsible for whether or not your Labrador shows off these great qualities or is a very large and unruly nuisance! Labradors are great with children and make fabulous family pets, however they are large dogs who grow quickly and don’t always know their own strength. Some Labradors are better with children than others. Our adoption coordinators will help you find a dog in our program that is good with young children if you have a young family.

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Adoption Questions

Can I adopt if I have a cat?

LOLIN cannot guarantee that dogs adopted from us will be compatible with cats. Not all foster homes have cats, so we are unable to screen every dog in our program with cats. LOLIN’s website offers links to various educational resource websites that provide instructions for introducing a new dog to family cats, but we cannot accept responsibility for any adverse outcome including injury to your cat or dog. It is up to the adopter to exercise caution and use good judgment to ensure the safety of both animals in your home at all time.

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Do you require a fence?

Many people want a dog no more than two years old. Many rescue dogs have had little training in their former home, were prior stray dogs, were kept in a pen, or tied outside. This age groups requires consistent exercise 2 - 3 times a day. For these reasons, certain characteristics are most desirable in certain applicants that prefer these younger dogs such as:

• A securely fenced yard is desired so the dog receives adequate exercise by and with their guardians.
• Young dogs need to attend obedience training classes with their owner WITHIN 2 weeks of placement. Unless you are a professional trainer, it is not enough to train the dog yourself; an obedience training class provides socialization skills that are needed as well as increases the bond between you and your new dog.

If you want a dog and do not have a fenced-in yard, you may want to consider adopting an older dog that will be more settled and adequately exercised on a leash. Labs of any age do enjoy an occasional romp in a fenced yard, so if you are thinking about installing a fence, now is a great time. Each adoption application is considered individually, so please talk over your needs with your adoption coordinator. We do not deny any family a dog of a particular age without first speaking with them and understanding their needs.

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What should I plan for financially?

Before you adopt your Lab, please be sure that your budget can accommodate the expenses involved in owning a large dog. Owning a Lab can easily cost $800 to$1,200 a year for food, boarding when you travel, vet bills, etc. Remember, if you cannot afford the Vet, you can't afford the pet. Please do not ask for discounts. We lose money on many of the dogs that we adopt out. If we do not lose money from one particular dog, then the money (above the actual amount we have in that dog), goes into our Special Needs dogs. A heartworm positive dog, costs us over $500 and we often take in dogs that need expensive surgery or other treatments.

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Can I adopt if I have small children in the home?

Why are we concerned about families with kids if Labs make great family dogs? Because one of the top reasons dogs are turned into shelters is because a busy family purchases a puppy for their children and does not have enough time for training or caring for the dog. Most people expect a year-old dog to be fully matured, which is NOT the case in a Labrador Retriever. It can take up to three years before some Labs mature. Please take the age and energy level of the dog into consideration when you have young children in your home. While we think Labs make great family dogs (and many LOLIN volunteers have kids and Labs!) puppies and very young dogs are often better suited to homes with older children who are less likely to be knocked down or overwhelmed by the size and energy of a young Lab. Adding a Lab to a home with children is like adding another child. Are you ready for this additional responsibility?

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Can I adopt a puppy from rescue?

We rarely get very young puppies into rescue. Usually they are a little older - 4 to 6 months. If you want a young puppy, please be prepared to wait until one comes available. We also do not get purebred puppies very often, so most of our puppies will be lab mixes. If you are willing to wait for a puppy, please put your application in and get approved. This will allow you to be one of the first to hear of any new puppies LOLIN is getting in. Some pups we get do not even go on our web site, as approved adopters are already waiting for them as soon as we get them!

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How do I meet available Labs?

We do not allow applicants to view dogs for adoption until their adoption applications are approved, since all of our dogs are kept in private foster homes. Once your application is approved, however, we strongly encourage owners with resident pets to have a "meet and greet" between their resident pet and the potential adopter on neutral territory. If owners are not experienced in dog-to-dog or dog-to-cat introductions, we encourage them to use the educational resource links we provide to learn how to properly introduce pets. A well-planned introduction cannot be over-emphasized.

We currently do not have a facility where all the dogs in our program can be viewed. In addition, since our dogs are kept in private homes, we can't provide you the opportunity to "shop" for a dog by meeting several of our dogs at a time. We ask that you work with your Adoption Coordinator in matching with the correct dog for a meeting, as he/she truly does know these dogs and has the best interests of both your family and the dog at heart. If you meet a dog and do not click, then your adoption coordinator can work with you to find the next best fit.

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Will you reconsider a declined application?

When Love of Labs screens applications, we reject some applications immediately for various reasons. Please keep in mind that we are trying to take into consideration the special needs of our rescue dogs when finding homes for them. If you receive a rejection letter, we are not passing judgment on your family, but rather we are trying to meet the special needs of our rescued Labs that may have already been displaced from a home or two. If you receive a rejection letter and would like to correspond with us for reconsideration by the entire LOLIN board of directors, please do so. We do the best job of evaluating your application based on the information you give us, but if you want to provide additional information that may better clarify an issue or additional references on your behalf, please feel free to do so. Unfortunately we do not have paid staff to call all applicants individually to discuss the basis for rejections, so we must rely on letters. If you have a question on the status of your application, please email us at adoptions@lolin.org.

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Which dog is right for me?

Many applicants come to us with their heart set on one particular dog they have seen on our web site. In some cases the match was meant to be and all goes well. But in many circumstances there are several families interested in the same dog. A family may be meeting a dog on our web site on the day you are putting in your application, so that dog might be adopted before you are approved. We do our very best to match the desires of the applicants with the needs of our dogs and we ask that you be flexible in considering dogs available for adoption. We do not hold dogs for adopters and there are many factors that impact which dogs go to which approved homes. Please don’t be disappointed if the dog you initially apply for is no longer available. We get new labs in every single week and we are experts at finding that perfect match for you and your family!

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