Labrador Retriever Rescue Southern England is a registered charity that rehomes purebred and Labrador Retriever crosses. We are not directly associated with any other Labrador rescue organisation, but we try to assist any that may contact us for help.
We are a small independent breed rescue run entirely by volunteers.
We are totally self-funded. We do not own a rescue centre, kennelling facilities or office premises. We all have personal and family lives to juggle in addition to our rescue work. Some of us work full time; some of us work part time. Once our regular paid work is done we then give our free time and passion to our rescue work, all on a voluntary basis.
We have no full or part time employees and do not employ vets, trainers, behaviourists or any other professional people. Should we need to call on the services of any such professionals then we will do so, the costs for which must be funded from our own charity account.
Every penny of our costs is funded from the donations we receive when we rehome a dog and also from our fundraising efforts over the year and any other direct donations received. We do not make a profit, in fact if we were a business our accountants would have long ago suggested we close down or try another type of business!
Every penny we raise counts and every pound raised helps another dog realise its potential and to find its new home.
In this last year alone we have so far taken in and rehomed upwards of 450 dogs.
Last financial year our main costs in running the rescue were spent on kennelling and veterinary fees. These accounts are available for anyone to view on the charity commission web site.
This last year has seen all of us working to full capacity due to the constant pressure and the increasing number of dogs needing rescue places. We have to prioritise and sometimes find we cannot reply to emails or phone calls as quickly as some people would like us to. Please be patient with us, you will get a reply just as soon as we are able to.
Contrary to what some people may think, we do not all live in the same town or village. We are spread between Oxfordshire, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Wiltshire. This means we do not meet up with each other on a daily or even a monthly basis. All of our regular day to day communications are done via telephone, text or email. Work and social lives permitting, we aim to meet up 3 or 4 times a year to discuss ways to improve and develop our charity and all other aspects of our rescue work. We have recently introduced a fortnightly conference call/skype session in order to help us improve and develop further.
We also rely on our silent team of wonderful fosterers without whom we would find it difficult to operate. Our fosterers help us by having a dog to stay in their homes, helping us assess the dogs, caring for them and often working with them on various training or behavioural issues. Once a new home is found for their foster dog, they then wave the dog on to its new home and then take in another foster dog to start all over again.
If you are interested in adopting a dog you should visit our website and contact, preferably by email, one of our volunteer area coordinators for the county you live in. List Of Contacts & Details >
They will send you an application form to adopt a dog, please return the form directly to the person who sent it to you, preferably by email. This will ensure your application is dealt with swiftly. If you do not receive a reply immediately this may be due to them being very busy with regular work, rescue work or family lives. Please be patient, you will get a reply.
