 Help save a dog's life...
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SUCCESS STORIES ARCHIVE
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Daisy is doing really well. Every week we see changes in her behavior that say that she is adjusting to her new home. This past week we have noticed that she and Cuyler (our other Lab) have started sleeping closer together than in the past. They still don't touch, but are becoming more used to living together. They play together sometimes.. There is still some competition between them for our attention, but I expect that's normal.
Daisy finished obedience school. She wasn't the best student in the class, and we continue to work with her at home. But going to class has calmed her down quite a bit.
She loves her walks and "campaigns" for a walk every morning after she has had her breakfast. And she has taken on the doggie-job of protecting our yard from squirrels and deer. Once she almost climbed a tree to get to a squirrel.
She is a very affectionate girl, and loves to get her belly and head scratched. And she has really bonded with Jeff and I. We feel very fortunate that we adopted her and made her part of our family.
I have to say that having Roscoe join our family has been one of life's greatest blessings. We really could not have written a description of a dog and gotten a better one. He's loving, obedient, 'talkative', great with our kids, a great exercise partner, just an overall joy to have around.
We went camping this summer in Wisconsin on our friends 20 acre property. Roscoe LOVES it there, to say the least!
Thanks for checking in with us, I hope the picture shows you how happy he is and how happy we are with him.
Take care,
Bailey (formerly Annie) is the most loving and wonderful addition to our family! When we lost Jackson, our Chocolate lab after 14 wonderful years; I could never imagine another lab could wrap their paws around our heart in such a short amount of time! Naturally we promised the "next dog" would not lounge on the couch or sleep in our queen size bed. Yeah right....dear Bailey has managed to snuggle right in the middle of the bed and it is not unusual to turn and see her head next to yours on the pillow! The couch....well, it's a good thing I quilt because there is always a comfortable quilt on the couch for her to snuggle on!
Hey everybody! Here I am with my brother Jake (formerly Gunther of Molly's puppies, born April 8, 2002). We're relaxing after a busy day. I can't believe what a great life I have now. When I came here I didn't know how to walk on a leash, didn't play with any toys, bumped into things, and growled at Jake if he came near me. My family thinks I was always in a crate or maybe at a puppy mill. They said I was traumatized. I was also heart worm positive, had whipworms, and was in heat too!! Geez! Well I got over everything and learned to love my brother. He taught me to play with another dog and now my family is helping me to learn that other dogs can be fun too if I approach them nicely. I am a big cuddler and can be petted endlessly. It's never enough! Luckily I get lots of attention, love, and exercise now. I have a home and a forever family. life is good!
Maggie is a full pledged member of the family now…I quite honestly look forward to getting home every day as I enjoy her company. Maggie and our border collie , Luci and min-pin Ramses are well known across the neighborhood as “the Pack”. We can be seen every morning between 5:30 and 6am, again around 6pm…at noon the days I can sneak a stop off from work and sometimes at 10pm circling the neighborhood.
Thank you for your kind words of encouragement and understanding at the beginning of the “Maggie Adventure”.
Patti came to us in April, about 1 year old, and her ribs were showing. She is small for a lab, but perfectly proportioned for her size. She quickly filled out and even outgrew her collar! She is now about 46 lbs. (up from 37). Patti has fear aggression issues, and we continue to work on that. She has been attending obedience classes at Lyons Township Dog Training Club and is showing improvement. She is terrified of the vacuum cleaner and the lawn mower, shakes like a leaf and hides. However, fireworks and thunderstorms don't bother her a bit. She didn't care for her crate at first, chewing relentlessly at the front and side holes, but she is used to it now and has gone in it on her own a few times and laid down. She loves walks and car rides, and will tirelessly fetch a tennis ball. We think Patti is now experiencing being the puppy she probably didn't have the opportunity to be. She is excited to greet all of us whenever we come home and has tons of energy, although she needs time to get used to new people, and some she just doesn't like at all. One of her favorite places to lay is across a single stair, where she fits perfectly. She might be waiting for the last person to go to bed, our teenagers to wake up, or watching the yard, or out the front door from her elevated viewpoint. It's amusing to see her keen interest in watching birds (even a pheasant statue), squirrels, bees and other bugs, whether from a window or while outside. She loves to chase shadows and shiny reflections. No lazing around in bed is acceptable to Patti. When she decides it's time to get up (the earlier the better), she jumps on top of you in bed and licks your face. She takes a huge leap from the center of the room onto my son's bed - while he's in it. I could go on and on (and I have!) about Patti's energy and curiosity. She keeps us on our toes. She loves us a lot, and we love her right back.
I could not be any more in love with Rosie! When we first met her at
the foster home, she was terrified of humans, her tail was completely
between her legs, and she was a very fearful dog. The night we
brought her home, she found a place in the living room behind a coffee
table and that is where she stayed that whole night and the next
morning. Eventually, we had to physically pull her up to make her go
outside to use the bathroom and eat something. Every noise scared her
and she was so skittish.
Wow! Henry (14 mo.) and Arnold (9 1/2 yrs) are the loves of our life. Both are MLRR dogs and they are
inseperable. They are truly in love. Henry follows Arnold all around. He wants to play all the time. He does wear out Arnold many a time. He is the big brother. Henry loves the huge fenced yard (3/4 acre). Every morning he blasts around the yard with Arnold. We have had Arnold since he was a baby from MLRR. They are both the sweetest four legged furry children in the world.
Max is now Linus. When we first adopted him from Cindy his foster mom.
he came with a green blanket which he carried everywhere.
Unfortunately, I can't locate the picture of him loping through the
house with it. He's 75#'s of playfulness, loves to chase and be
chased and adores our daughter. He also is a water dog. We're near a
branch of the Dupage river, and he eagerly wades into it and follows
us. One of the funniest things he does on a walk is to "bite" water
coming from in ground sprinkler systems. He will continue to "bite"
until the nozzle closes. He is everything we wanted and more.
As of July, Kahlua has been a part of our family for an entire year
and we’ve gotten to know each other very well. I think we’ve had a lot
of fun with each other doing all sorts of activities like: playing
with her “cousins” Lousie & Olive in Lake Michigan, napping on her
dad’s foot, & even helping her mom with wedding planning ?. Some of
her other interests include, chasing her brother Mattie (a cat) around
the house, playing fetch daily, going for long runs with mom & dad,
giving kisses, & getting belly rubs. We are so happy to have Kahlua as
part of our family and can’t wait to see what the coming year with her
will bring.
Latte is becoming a marvelous dog. We could not be happier. She is thriving in her new environment, and loves all the attention she is getting. She also enjoys the numerous walks and car rides she has been on. She has settled down nicely, and only occasionally has a bout of Labbiness and loses her composure. But she can be quickly be brought back under control. While I am sure her life will not be complete until she finally catches one of those darn chipmunks that keep coming into her pen, I think she is enjoying herself nonetheless!
Charlie is such a great addition to our family! He has gained 9 lbs., and his ribs and hip bones are no longer visible. His foster dad had told us he was the calmest one year old Lab, and he was right. Charlie impresses everyone with his good manners. People can’t believe he’s only one year old because he’s so well behaved. In fact, we joke that he sometimes acts like a senior citizen, because after a few minutes of exercise he’s tired. We’re working on increasing his stamina. He enjoyed his canine friends at obedience classes, especially MLRR alum Lottie (formerly Latte). Charlie has learned to play with toys, and especially enjoys his Jolly ball and rope. When we clean up the dinner dishes each night he gets very excited, because he knows it’s almost time for his walk. Although our cat is now tolerating him better, she still thinks she’s the queen, and he must be the court jester. Charlie loves all the attention from his two human brothers, sister, and parents. In fact, we are so pleased that we are going to adopt a doggie sibling for him. 
Hello everyone it's Sadie,
Here I am with my new sister, Haley, who is 6 years old so she has been showing me the ropes since I'm still just a kid. We have a wonderful forever family. I have a Mom, Dad and a human brother and sister. I really love all the attention I get and Haley's glad I like it because she doesn't really like attention so she doesn't have to deal with all the hugging and snuggling like she used to. I just push my way through to give her a break. We love to play keep away from each other with pretty much anything but I think socks are the best. I also like to put as many of them as possible in my mouth. Now that it's getting warm out we play fetch in the pool. I love to swim and I think it's helping my front leg heal better from the surgery I had back in March when I was in my foster home. I still limp but my new doctor said that I probably will for a while yet. It doesn't slow me down though, I can beat Haley in a race any time. I just throw it in second gear and I'm off leaving her in the dust. Can't imagine how fast I'll be when my leg is fully healed. Well have to go now and play another round of keep away. Keep up the good work getting us all forever homes. I really love mine.
Shadow, whose name should have been Bull, is doing wonderfully.
She adapted with no issues. As you can see she has "claimed" Codi as her boyfriend.
She has claimed top dog of Codi (9 year old yellow male) and Buddy (7 year old Jack Russell/Rat Terrier male)
If she wants something or someone she just takes it.
She can hold all 3 toys in her mouth at once.
She can move both boys out of her way to her you to rub her and pet her and yes feed her.
We changed her food and she did great with that.
She knows the routine and is first in line to tell me it is 5 o'clock and she wants, no demands her food.
We are teaching her to be patience and sit before she eats. Now if I could teach her to chew her food and slow down we would be set.
She gets at least 3 walks a day and has lost 5 pounds. Why can't it be that easy for us?
She went to the vet and all is fine. I had the vet check her eyes. She has a space issue. She does not like steps it takes her a few looks before she feels like coming up. A few looks at the bed and around it before she will come up. Getting better and no medical issues that the Vet could find.
She has taken to all of us but in particular to my husband Bruce, he calls her his Shadow girl.
Again she has claimed him as her boyfriend.
She is a true pack member for the four legged and 2 legged.
Emily is doing great!!! I just recently had her spayed (5/1/09). When I first got her on 2/10 she still had heart worm. When I took her to the vet to check her hear worm on 2/14, she was still positive, so they gave me heart guard and said to come back the first part of May. I’ll have her stitches taken out this Friday. Emily gets 3 walks a day, has plenty of energy and is very happy. She loves to ride in the car, go to Pet Smart and the forest preserve. She’s quiet the social butterfly with all the neighbors and other dogs. The only dog in the neighborhood she doesn’t get along with is another 3 year old female black lab and I think it’s more of a jealousy thing than anything.
Emily gets plenty of love and loves to get hugs and plenty of petting. She’s very playful around the house with her tennis ball and enjoys fetching it. I try to brush her for a half an hour to 45 minutes on Saturday’s and Sunday’s which has made her coat look beautiful. All in all, Emily is very happy and has a great life. She is quiet the joy to have around and I look forward to her having a good life for years to come. 
Pickle was adopted by his foster parents and is now living in downtown Chicago. He loves exploring the city on long walks and chase his bright orange ball into lake michigan at the dog beach. He's a phenomenal swimmer and a skilled retriever. His adoptive parents are sure that he has the thought, "Throw the ball, throw the ball, throw the ball..." running through his head all day long. He has settled in beautifully to city life, but looks forward to weekend adventures to the Indiana Dunes and Mathieson State Park for long hikes and new smells. When he's not out and about he is happy to curl up next to the closest person and give a little love. 
Hi everyone! I'm Jillian, but I'm called Jilly, and sometimes Silly Jilly because even though I'm two I act just like a puppy. Here I am lounging in my bed at home. Aren't I pretty? I love having a bed, a home, and a family. I'm getting along really well with my foster brother too and learning to play with another dog. I'm learning all sorts of things in my obedience class and on my walks. I never knew there were so many things to do! I seem to be healthy but I'll be retested for heartworm in a few months to be sure I am all well. I still like cuddling the best and now I get hugs all day long!
Everything is going extremely well with the addition of Brody (MLRR name Bandit) to the family. He and my other labs (Mason and Gordo all of which are from MLRR) get along and he really enjoys his time at the dog park. He has a clan of dogs he hangs out with at the park and he is referred to at the park as the "bro-man".
Initially, I was scared to leave Brody unattended in the living room for fear of him chewing on the furniture. The good news, it hasn't happen. He has been an angel.....for the most part. He and Mason seem to team up now and then for a little rough housing. Nobody get's hurt but the barking can get a bit loud.
For the first couple of week's the bro-man had to sleep in the same bed as me but now he has gotten comfortable enough to share the Queen sized bed with Mason in the guest bedroom.
While Brody gets along with others at the park he still has some work to do on his walks. There have been many a time we have been on a walk where he wants to chase squirrels and as such I have had to shorten up on his lead.
Thank you so much Midwest Lab Rescue!
Before adopting Chloe, we had never owned a dog. To be quite honest, I never understood "dog lovers." We came to a point in our life, when we decided maybe a dog would have a good home with us, and we could help a dog in need. I never thought I would actually fall in love with a dog. Then I met Chloe! After meeting her and spending only a short time with her, we knew she belonged with us!
Our "Chloe" is the best dog in the entire world! She is sweet, smart, loving and so well behaved
she has become an instant part of the family. Our chlidren adore her and love spending time with her!
Wrigley is now just one the boys in our family !
He has adapted greatly to his new home and we are enjoying his fun personality.
He loves to poke us with his nose when he wants something, carry around his towel or his bone and play tug of war with his play rope or wrestle with the boys. He has chewed quite a few items he should not have and we have learned to put stuff away.
We are also happy to report that he has put on a few pounds so that we cannot count his ribs anymore.
We have gone to obedience classes with him and he is pretty good with the basic commands, although he still acts very much like a puppy !
Kiki is doing great! Her name has been changed to Shelby. She is no longer the skin and bones dog that she was when we got her. She is doing really well. We did have an issue a few months back where she bit my son, but he was bothering her. We've worked with our son to show him the proper way to treat our newest family member. Shelby did really well in her obedience training class, but I found out that she would like to eat small dogs! I don't know whether she would really attack a small dog, but she barks and tries to get at them when she sees them. When we first got her, she was a counter-surfer, but that's changed. I think now that she knows she won't be hungry anymore she has stopped her counter surfing. Except for the way she tries to get at small dogs, she is the perfect dog! I'm looking forward to the warmer weather when we can walk her and play with her in the yard. My son was out there with her today. She had a ball and he was chasing her all over the yard trying to get the ball.
I was worried that she might attack our Christmas tree this past Christmas, but she didn't even try to eat an ornament. Santa was very good to Shelby this year!
When she first came to live with us, I crated her whenever I left the house or went to bed. We haven't done that for some time now. She pretty much has the run of the house although she chooses to sleep in her crate at night (we leave the door open). She loves the car and when we take her to other people's homes, she is the perfect guest!
Jack (formally Jinger) is doing great. He has adjusted well to our family, loves going on walks and chasing the bunnies and squirrels. When my daughter had soccer games at Lovelace Park he would tag along, usually while we watch Kathleen play he barks at the other dogs, we also take him by the pond where all the geese are we want to let him go swimming there but are afraid he may go after one of the geese. Whenever we go on a car ride he comes along, James isn’t too pleased with that because Jack slobbers all over his new truck’s windows.
All of our neighbors love Jack, they say he is so handsome and such a good dog. They are surprised that we have adopted him from a rescue and not a breeder. He does great with the little kids Kathleen babysits, after they have met Jack they are thinking of getting a rescue lab for the family. The next-door neighbors favor him the most because they have a garden and the critters are always taking their food, until Jack has started barking constantly they go away. We cannot wait for spring so he can play in the water all the time. Jack is such a good dog he doesn’t chew up any of his stuffed toys except for his squeaky ball. We are so happy to have Jack come into our family; he truly is a great addition to the family. Usually the kids fight over whose room he gets to sleep in.
Thanks you MLRR for matching us with such a great dog. 
Cocoa is a joy to have around. She and our dog Jackson play pretty well together but mostly they want the attention of the humans in the house.
Cocoa initially had some pretty bad separation anxiety which just seemed to end one day. The only explanation I can come up with is that she had some oral surgery at the vet and must have decided that it was better to be home alone with Jackson from time to time than to be back at the vet! She is extremely docile with the kids. In fact, my 4-year-old daughter's friends usually wind up hanging out with Cocoa much to the chagrin of my daughter who then has a hard time getting the children to play with her. Cocoa just sucks up their attention! She is however, my dog. When I close the bathroom door, she bangs on it with her nose! There are so many times I have stepped on her or tripped because she is always close behind and always quiet. If I am in the house, she is visibly torn when another family member offers to walk her or goes outside with a ball. She goes back and forth until I finally trick her into going outside by making it look as though I am going out too. We just love her though and I have become very used to reaching down to pet her from time to time. She seems much happier and healthier now than she did early on.
-Lisa
Everything is going very well with her and she has become an important and
delightful addition to our family.
Cleo and Dixie (our 8 year old yellow lab) are great companions and are
proving to be a positive influence on each other. Dixie keeps Cleo grounded
and Cleo keeps Dixie young!
Cleo and Dixie are my running mates and together we have weathered many cold
wintry runs along the lakefront this winter. Cleo is an unbelievable
athlete and really enjoys the exercise.
We no longer feel the need to crate Cleo while we are away or at night. She
is very well behaved and has calmed down considerably. While she still
loves to follow me around the house, Cleo is comfortable enough to lie on
her bed in another room and know that I will still be here.
Cleo LOVES other dogs and is thrilled that our next door neighbors are
adopting an 11 month old Akita. Maura, the Akita, is being fostered by our
daughter Sarah, so Cleo has spent quite a bit of time with her. When the
adoption goes through, we have plans to take down a section of fence between
our houses so our dogs can more easily play together.
Our three daughters, who are either grown or away at school, adore Cleo and
love the zip that a 2 year old lab provides.
It's me, Jesse! Thought I'd let you know how I'm doing, since I haven't written for a while. We think I'm over ten now and I'm still pretty peppy, even with my arthritis, although I don't last as long as I used to playing fetch. But hey, I still look marvelous, as you can see from my picture....very distinguished with my gray, don't you think? I also have an enlarged heart, and have recently had some liver problems, so I do take a lot of medications, but so far, they're making a big difference. I did have to retire from the therapy dog business, though. Geez, you'd think I was an old geezer or something! However, mom says I am still playing a very important role in helping her figure out some of life's more pressing questions, like, can a banana being peeled be heard from three rooms away? Of course, we all know the answer to that one! Mom says I am also still helping her to keep in shape with our walks.
P.O. Box 1473
Lombard, IL 60148-8473
(847) 604-3254
mail@midwestlabrescue.org
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