Barnes & Noble Booksellers on Route 31 in Clay has invited Labs4Rescue volunteers back for the third time to offer free gift wrapping of your purchases.
Mark your calendars for Sunday Dec. 7, 14 and 21. From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on those days, Labs4Rescue representatives will have a table located in the front of the store where they will cheerfully, and at no charge, wrap your items purchased from Barnes & Noble. Also available to anyone interested will be information on adoption or foster opportunities for rescued Labs.
Labs4Rescue is a national, all-volunteer organization dedicated to rescuing and finding permanent homes for Labrador Retrievers and Lab mixes that are found in high numbers in rural Southern and Midwestern animal shelters. The breed is one of the most popular in the United States. Many “backyard breeders” in the South have tried to cash in on this fact by creating small-scale puppy mills, thereby creating a surplus in the region and making the dogs easy to come by — and easy to dispose of – when they’re no longer wanted. Combined with the facts that spaying and neutering aren’t encouraged, and Labrador females can give birth to large litters of 10 to 12 puppies, it’s not hard to see why Southern shelters routinely put down up to 60 purebred Labs and Lab mixes each week. Given only three to five days to be adopted, and routinely disposed of by the inhumane method of being placed in crudely constructed “gas chambers,” the need to rescue is obvious. The shocking statistics say it all — of the approximately 10,000 dogs that were gassed from these regions last year, at least 7,000 were purebred Labs or Lab mixes. Anyone who has ever owned or known a Lab understands the importance of stopping this horrific practice.
When Labs4Rescue founder, Cathy Mahle, adopted her first dog from a Missouri shelter several years ago, she was surprised to find many purebreds there. Once she learned the full scope of the situation, she knew she had to find a solution. The organization has grown to employ a professional transporter who delivers an average of 30 Labs a week to homes throughout the Northeast that have been pre-screened by local representatives of Labs4Rescue. To date, the group has rescued more than 7,000 Labs from rural high-kill shelters in Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas.
Local Baldwinsville residents, Dave and Tara McKenney adopted Gracie, a 4-month-old chocolate Lab who had been rescued from a Louisiana shelter shortly after Hurricane Katrina. Labs 4Rescue arrived just in time — Gracie was to be gassed the very next morning. The couple shudder to think of the dogs that weren’t so lucky and are now committed volunteers for, and proponents of, Labs4Rescue.
“Gracie is truly the love of our lives. To think that she could have been one of the thousands who were not lucky enough to be rescued just breaks our hearts. She has added nothing but joy to our home, and we are determined to help Labs4Rescue save as many other dogs as possible,” Tara McKenney said.
Those interested in finding out more about labs4Rescue adoptions, sponsorships or fostering can visit their web site at labs4rescue.com or speak with the volunteers wrapping their purchases at the Clay location of Barnes & Noble. This holiday season, help yourself to free gift-wrapping and help Labs4Rescue save lives.
