When your neighbor knocks on your door at 9 PM at night, a lot of things go through your mind. I answered the door with my two labs in tow, barking, and carrying on. While they are fairly obedient, they have been known to forget themselves for a minute or two, especially the seven month old puppy. Of course, you can definitely expect some of this behavior, as we were not expecting any visitors.

When I opened the door, my neighbors wife was cowering behind her husband. She was deathly afraid of these two monstrous beasts. I couldn’t understand why. They were behind a secure door, and she was protected by her husband, and me. Still, it was as if she had never seen a medium-size dog like a Labrador Retriever, or any other dog before in her life.

It must be terrible to have a fear like this, I thought to myself watching her squirm, and cling to her husband. I didn’t even try the usual, “they’re Labrador retrievers, they won’t hurt anybody, they may let you to death”. Why waste my time? There was no way I was going to cure her of this fear on my front porch.

It did make me wonder though. How do you cure somebody of a fear like this? It scares me having a neighbor, so afraid of dogs. My neighborhood seems to be overrun with rabbits, and squirrels. While I can’t imagine my labradorsNot following my commands, and chasing after them. It is definitely possible,  predictable, even probable, and potentially, a huge predicament.

In my nightmare I drive into the garage, from a local trip to the grocery store. Chase my 8 month old 68 pound Labrador retriever, knocks down my not so much heavier wife, carrying a bag of groceries. As she falls to the ground, and the soy milk, and organic food fly out of the paper, not plastic,  into the air, And just about the time my wife reaches out to grab the tofu, my 4-year-old 76 pound lab comes chasing after the same rabbit, and completes the perfect storm by knocking her back down.

Meanwhile, across the yard, there’s a very nice lady, with a fear of dogs, that’s also unloading groceries. As she turns with both hands full, carrying three bags of groceries, she deftly swings her hips, and nudges the door closed when her SUV, and is proud of herself for not jumping through the air, as the rabbit crosses her path. In fact she’s proud of the fact that she wasn’t afraid of the rabbit. Just as a smile starts to come across her face she sees two, as far as she’s concerned nuclear missiles headed straight for her.

Of course I’m right behind the nuclear missiles, screaming, “it’s okay, they’re Labrador retrievers, they won’t bite”. just what she wanted to hear, as she tuck and rolls, into her house.

Although this sounds amusing, my neighbor won’t think it’s  amusing, in fact she will be terrified, and scarred,  and that is something, I do not look forward to.

I am not concerned about them “attacking” her, or anything like that. I don’t want to be responsible for awaking the fear that she feels when she sees my dogs. If you own a Labrador retriever, you know that they have an “overly friendly manner”. Their tails have cleared more tables than most busboys!

So my question is… How do you cure somebody that has a very deep rooted fear like this?

We are going to address this in a series of articles over the next few weeks.

Jessie looks worn in this picture, 24 hours after TPLO surgery. Looking at her eyes, she may be a little shnockered from the drugs. She walked to the car, toe tapping, and slept most of the way home.

I don’t like using cones for my Labrador Retrievers, but the Dr.’s wife made it pretty clear we should. Horror stories of staples, and trips to the emergency room pretty much confirmed it.

After all these years, no one has invented anything better than the dreaded “Cone”! If you have any comments on this please add. We are always looking for new ways of handling old problems.

Thanks again for all the well wishes, especially from her local dog park pack!

We are getting ready for recovery mode!

Please post comments with any tips you might have.
Jessie is a 2 1/2 year old Yellow Labrador Retriever. She was never a crate trained puppy, and can be a handful, like most Labrador Retrievers.

Jessie & Sam...The House Labradors

Before I even had time to write the article about how Jessie tore her CCL, and how we picked the surgeon, or how scared we were when it happened, I could go on and on, the journey is starting. A quick recap….

The Players

Jessie (female Labrador Retriever), is one the two house labs. Sam (also a female Labrador Retriever), is the older sister, at 4 1/2. Jessie comes in at 2 1/2 years old (human years).

The Dog Park

Just like I do every weekend, I took the the two to the dog park; they chase balls, while I walk and chat with the PDPM Group (yes we have T-Shirts).

Just Like That…

30 to 45 min. after we were there, she tore it. How she did it? I don’t know! I heard somebody yell that Jessie was limping, and the next thing I knew I was trying to carry a 76 1/2 pound dog, out of the park, in 90° heat! I didn’t make it very far. She limped on three legs back to the car (I think she felt sorry for her old man).

Emergency Animal Clinic

Labrador Health (the price tag):  $479 later, the vet said she tore her CCL, and referred us to a surgeon for a consult, but was certain she needed TPLO Surgery.

TPLO Consultation

Two consultations later, not including the one on the phone (who diagnosed her without looking at her) and here we are.

Thanks for everyone’s kind thoughts!

I will post updates later…

My passion is Labradors. I have 2 females, Sammie who is 2 years old, and Jessie who is 5 months.  Each adds so much joy to my life, and each has a special place in my home and in my heart.  They are, however, a lot of work, and can be very destructive as puppies.  Sometimes owners don’t know what they are getting into, and sometimes owners don’t realize that when puppies are given the time and attention they need, they turn out to be great pets, and loving companions.

While doing research for this article, I realized that Labs are the most common dog in the US, and there are Lab Rescue resources in every state and major city.  All rescue dogs are spayed or neutered, and usually microchipped.  Because Labs are people oriented, they quickly adjust to their new surroundings, and their new families.

If you are not able to foster or adopt,  There are other ways to support Lab rescue.

Meet Sheila Wedegis:  Sheila paints beautiful portraits of Labs to raise awareness and support Lab rescue.  All proceeds from her sales go to that organization.

“I was born in Boston and now live in Palm Bay, Florida. Art has been my passion and expression since I was a child. I feel it contains an unmistakable spiritual essence. ‘To touch the soul of one other person, to know they are not alone on this journey is the dedication of my art and the reflection of my life’s journey. I share my home with a menagerie of dogs and cats who inspire me to capture the essence of their souls’. The window to the soul is through their eyes and hence people comment about the eyes of the paintings I do.”

You can see Sheila’s artwork at http://savingalabaday.blogspot.com/ or http://www.labradorretrieverart.com

You can also check with your local pet stores to see if they have fundraisers for rescue pets and shelters.  I know that in my area, Operation Kindness and several Rescue groups visit the local stores with information.  You can always donate there.