Dog Ranch Gives Labradors Another Chance

The Albuquerque Journal (subscription required) ^ | August 8, 2003 | Rozanna M. Martinez

[CedarDave]

Friday, August 8, 2003

Dog Ranch Gives Labradors Another Chance

By Rozanna M. Martinez

Of the Journal

    Down on their luck Labradors may now have a chance at finding a loving home after being abused or neglected by their previous owners.
    Lodestar Dog Ranch, created by Tijeras resident Tom Payne, focuses on saving Labradors and Labrador mixes.
    Payne rescues the animals from shelters and from owners who no longer want them. He also takes in strays that have been dumped.
    Lodestar Dog Ranch has been in operation about 10 months and has already placed 70 of its Labradors in homes, Payne said.
    The organization also runs Web site www.lodestarlabs.com, which lists adoptable dogs, those that have been placed in homes and those that have been euthanized at local animal shelters.
    "(Lodestar) can't physically adopt all of them," Payne said about posting euthanized Labradors. "I want people to realize what's really going on, and I don't want them to wait to get their dog."
    Dogs adopted from Lodestar carry a fee of $95 to $125. The money benefits the organization, which operates from donations. Some dogs listed on the Lodestar Web site may be adopted directly from their current owner, and those do not carry an adoption fee.
    Payne said the goal of a rescue group is to make sure a dog never winds up in a shelter again.
    Lodestar recently rescued a Labrador and five newborn puppies from Artesia. They had been dumped by their owner and placed in a shed that reached temperatures of 150 degrees, Payne said. Two puppies died as a result, but the mother and her remaining litter are up for adoption through Lodestar.
    A dog by the name of Cosmo was adopted from Lodestar by Placitas residents Charlie Young and his wife, Lucy Fox.
    Cosmo, a 1 1/2-year-old male yellow Labrador, was found in his previous owner's yard restrained by an 8-foot-long chain. Coyotes also frequented the area at night, Young said.
    Young said those interested in adopting a Lab should be aware of their distinct characteristics.
    Labradors need room to run, are energetic and loyal, and do not make good guard dogs, Young said.
    He said every Labrador thinks they are lap dogs despite their large frame. They also continue to act as puppies until they are about 3 but calm down around age 5, he said. Most Labradors rarely live past 12.
    "I encourage people to contribute to a rescue in memory of their animal," Young said. "They will be doing a whole bunch of good for a lot of other animals."
    To donate or to learn more about Lodestar, call 286-3729.

All content copyright © ABQJournal.com and Albuquerque Journal

[CedarDave]

Most Labradors rarely live past 12. Mine made it to 14+, and when I get a bigger place I'll take two, thank you.

[CedarDave]

BUMP

[lainie]

bump :)

[lainie]

bump :)

[austingirl]

Bump for a good doggie cause

[HairOfTheDog]

Most Labradors rarely live past 12. Mine made it to 14+,

Always there will be a soft spot for Labradors in my heart. A couple of them helped me grow up, and I have rarely been without one.

Logan, my last, lived to be purdy close to 16, and his heart would have gone on longer! His back went out and he ended up paralyzed one day, completely without pain.... Most honest dog I ever saw.

Less than a week before he had to be put down, bandaged for a toe surgery he was scheduled for. I lost his lifelong friend there a month later. They didn't want to be apart.

FRetriever Logan at 4 years old.

Rest in Peace Logan, Nov 1988-March 25, 2003

[Argh]

Beauty beauty beauty BEAUTY! I'm sorry he's gone, Miss Hair. I guess I missed your announcement here, if you made one.

[Tijeras_Slim]

As I told Dave in a FReepmail, Mrs. Slim is a friend and co-worker of Mrs. Payne who's husband is mentioned in the article. These are good folks who love these dogs.

[HairOfTheDog]

I made the announcement and grieved in the hobbit hole, there are links to those posts under his picture on my profile page...

Zulu was much harder to cope with a month later, because it didn't go as well when it happened.... I still don't talk about her passing much... though I did in the hobbit hole in real time, I didn't save links to it.

[CedarDave]

Thanks for sharing your pics -- please let me share part of an email I sent to friends after my MicMac died in the Spring of 2001...

"The day after Mic died, my friends from the ranch in Cloudcroft stopped by, not knowing anything about what had happened. They were shocked to hear about Mic. Gloria said that I should bring him up to the ranch and bury him in the meadow across the canyon from the ranch house. That way, as she said, "she could keep an eye on him". I did that this morning. It is a beautiful spot. Flowers will bloom in the spring and summer, and the tall pines and fir trees will shade it from the summer heat. Just a couple of weeks ago, he was chasing me down the hill in the meadow as we went sledding. It's a perfect spot for him to rest! "

The vet sent me a card that sums up things perfectly:

"We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we stll would live no other way. We cherish memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the necessary plan... "The Once Again Prince" from "Separate Life Times" by Irving Towsend

[HairOfTheDog]

Thank you! I planted ferns over my two... a little "where the red fern grows...

I love that quote at the bottom... I am going to save that indeed!

[Argh]

Well, I'm sorry I missed them, and I'm sorry for your losses, ages later. My, that Logan was a beautiful animal!

[HairOfTheDog]

He sure was, thank you so much!

[CedarDave]

The words from my vet and those posted on your FR page sum up our relationship with dogs and other creatures we care for. I read over the whole email I sent to friends back then and got teary eyed all over again. And I know where I'll get some new four-legged friends when I have a place large enough for them to run and romp. In the meantime they're due a donation from me.

[HairOfTheDog]

It makes me teary to think of them too! - But good tears.... the kind that make you feel alive. We were together a long time!

I haven't filled their vacancy yet either.... But I still have my spotted dog Gidget who is young still.... Somebody out there needs saving, and I am sure those dog beds will be filled before the year is out.

[Flyer]

I never thought I would say it, but after being out of the doggie bidness for almost 3 years I kinda miss it. About a year ago I dropped in at the vet clinic where I used to work. I was in the reception area yakking with a friend and a man and dog came in and the dog - he could only see me from the back - was barking. . . and barking. . . It was Max, a Golden I used to care for. He hadn't seen me in 2 years, yet he recognized me from behind. It's that kind of doggie love that I miss.

[blam]

My Crew.