Welcome! This is where we share adoption stories, upcoming events, and updates from the rescue. We’re an all-volunteer team that’s been finding loving homes for Labradors, Lab-mixes, and their friends since 2007 — grab a cup of coffee and see what’s new.
Sometimes, the smallest paws bring the biggest smiles.
When a Facebook post appeared looking for rescue puppies to visit a pet-friendly senior care facility in Orange County, Labradors and Friends volunteer Jennifer knew just who could answer the call.
As foster mom to Emma and her four remaining adorable puppies, Jennifer knew they were ready to spread some love. She recruited fellow volunteer Carole, and together they made the special visit happen.
A Little Less Yoga, A Lot More Puppy Love
The event was called Puppy Yoga, but we’re not entirely sure how much actual yoga took place!
What we do know is there were plenty of puppy kisses, warm cuddles, wagging tails, and smiles.
Residents welcomed the puppies into their arms and onto their laps, sharing moments of laughter, affection, and simple happiness.
For Emma’s puppies, it was another opportunity to experience new people and surroundings. For the residents, it was a chance to enjoy the unconditional love that only a dog can give.
Rescue Is About More Than Saving Dogs
At Labradors and Friends, we see every day how rescue changes lives. But sometimes, the dogs we’re working so hard to save have a little magic of their own to share.
These four puppies may be small, but their visit was a beautiful reminder that kindness travels both ways.
A heartfelt thank-you to Jennifer and Carole for recognizing an opportunity to bring people and puppies together, and to the residents and staff who welcomed Emma’s little crew with open arms.
Sometimes, making a difference is as simple as showing up—with a few puppies by your side. ❤️
Volunteer Spotlight | Labradors and Friends Dog Rescue
Sometimes, the smallest acts of kindness make the biggest difference.
When Amy first began volunteering with Labradors and Friends in 2019, she wasn’t looking for a major commitment. She and her husband, Brian, had recently lost their beloved dog, and spending time with rescue dogs seemed like a way to heal their hearts while giving back.
She started by walking dogs in boarding.
Seven years later, Amy’s volunteer journey has touched countless lives, including dogs who needed patience, medical care, a temporary home, or simply someone willing to sit beside them.
From Dog Walks to Second Chances
As Amy spent more time volunteering, her role grew. She began helping with intake assessments, dog-to-dog introductions, adoption meet-and-greets, and training new volunteers.
She also opened her home to foster dogs, including those with medical needs and those nearing the end of their lives.
But some of her most meaningful moments came from helping frightened dogs learn to trust again.
Josie was so scared that volunteers couldn’t even put a collar on her. After two days of trying, Amy discovered the key: letting Josie watch another dog enjoy training games. Suddenly, Josie wanted to participate, too.
Deejay needed a different approach. He was too frightened to accept a harness until Amy began singing to him. Her voice helped him relax enough to ask for affection and eventually let her clip on his harness.
Sometimes, a breakthrough doesn’t require anything extraordinary. Just patience, understanding, and a willingness to try something different.
Seven Precious Months with Kenji
One dog will always hold a special place in Amy’s heart.
Kenji arrived at Labradors and Friends in September 2022. A few months later, Amy and Brian noticed his leg was swollen during an outing. Veterinary testing revealed lymphoma.
When the rescue began searching for a hospice foster, they welcomed Kenji into their home right away.
He became a beloved member of their family, surrounded by love and comfort. They even celebrated his birthday with fellow rescue volunteers.
Amy and Brian originally thought they would have only a few weeks with Kenji. But as Amy recalls:
“We thought he’d live only a few weeks, but he thrived for almost seven months and became a true part of the family.”
What began as an act of compassion became seven precious months of love, laughter, and memories Amy and Brian will carry forever.
Understanding the Dog Behind the Behavior
What began as a way to heal after losing her beloved dog became something much bigger for Amy. Through rescue, she found close friendships, a deeper understanding of dog behavior, and a purpose that continued long after she welcomed another dog into her family.
But perhaps the most important lesson came from the dogs themselves.
“I want people to understand that rescue dogs are not broken, and they are not any less worthy of a home than a puppy.”
Amy has spent years working with dogs in boarding facilities, where the stress of kennel life can bring out behaviors that don’t reflect who a dog truly is.
Some are frightened and withdrawn. Others are overly excited, jumping, mouthing, or pulling on the leash. Behind those behaviors is often a dog who simply needs patience, understanding, and a chance to decompress.
Amy remembers something she once heard from a dog behavior professional:
“They aren’t giving you a hard time; they’re having a hard time.”
It’s a lesson she now shares with new volunteers.
Rescue isn’t always easy, and Amy doesn’t pretend otherwise. There are heartbreaking losses, frightened dogs, and adoptions that don’t work out. But when asked what keeps her coming back, her answer was simple:
“What keeps me coming back is that there is always another dog who needs you. The simplest acts of kindness can make a dog’s day. Sometimes even just sitting quietly with them is all that they need.”
And that may be the greatest lesson of Amy’s volunteer journey: You don’t always have to change a dog’s entire world in one day. Sometimes, you just have to make that day a little better.
You Don’t Have to Do Everything to Make a Difference
For anyone thinking about volunteering, Amy has a simple message:
“If someone is considering becoming a rescue volunteer, I’d tell them that it will be more rewarding than they expect.”
She knows rescue can be hard work, filled with dirt, scratches, and heartache. But she also knows how much even the smallest commitment can mean.
“Walking dogs a few times a month may not sound like much, but it makes all the difference to those dogs. Whatever time you can give is a gift to the dogs and to the rescue.”
Because sometimes, changing a life starts with something as simple as showing up.
Because sometimes, changing a life starts with something as simple as showing up.
Thank you, Amy, for seven years of compassion, patience, and dedication — and for reminding us that every dog deserves to be understood, loved, and given a chance.
Sometimes rescue begins with something incredibly simple: someone saying yes.
Yes, I’ll foster him. Yes, we’ll make room for them. Yes, I’ll keep sharing her story. Yes, I’ll bring him home.
Here’s what happened this week. 💗🐾
This week at Labradors + Friends, those yeses showed up everywhere—from a 10-year-old dog who needed somewhere to go, to two tiny puppies who made it safely into rescue, to a long-awaited Happy Tail and a volunteer whose commitment to LAF didn’t end when she moved out of state.
And one very special Rainbow Bridge story reminded us just how much life can fit between that first yes and a final goodbye.
Plus, we’re celebrating an incredible Pulls for Pups fundraiser, sharing new ways to join us at upcoming events, and asking for more foster homes so we can keep saying yes when the next dog needs us.
There are some dogs whose stories stay with you long after they leave rescue.
Apple was one of them.
In 2015, Apple was barely a year old and sitting on death row at the Baldwin Park Shelter. She was a 46-pound black dog with one blue eye, one brown eye, and an old injury to one of them. She had been passed over, sitting in her kennel waiting for someone to notice the sweet, gentle girl inside.
We noticed.
Labradors and Friends said yes.
And for me, Apple’s story has always been a little more personal.
I was the volunteer who pulled Apple from the shelter. I spent time with her before she became a Toliver, and over the years I had the privilege of spending time with Nicole, her family, and the dog who had once needed us to give her a chance.
So when Nicole recently told me they had lost Apple, this one hit hard.
Because I remembered the young dog we rescued.
And I knew just how extraordinary the life waiting for her would become.
From Shelter Dog to Family
On March 17, 2015, Apple went home.
Nicole remembers that young girl perfectly:
“One blue eye and one brown… a love propeller that wouldn’t stop… that shiny black coat and the velvet bat ears.”
What began as a rescue quickly became something much bigger.
Apple became family.
The Toliver daughters grew up with her beside them. There were cuddles and swimming, homework sessions, dress-up and dancing. Apple joined them on family adventures and was there through the ordinary days that, looking back, become some of the ones we treasure most.
Nicole’s favorite memory of Apple is beautifully simple:
“Coming through a door and being greeted by her.”
Anyone who has loved a dog for a lifetime understands exactly why that can be the thing you miss most.
She Knew What It Meant to Welcome Someone In
Apple’s rescue story didn’t end when she was adopted.
Over the years, the Tolivers opened their home to foster puppies, too.
And Apple—the dog who once sat in a shelter waiting for someone to make room for her—became part of welcoming other dogs who needed somewhere safe to land.
Nicole remembers watching Apple with those fosters and seeing a side of her that she didn’t share with everyone.
“Seeing her with fosters and how she loved!!! That wasn’t anything she shared with many…”
There is something especially beautiful about that circle.
Someone saved Apple.
Apple found her family.
And then Apple helped other dogs along their own journeys home.
Quietly, Gently and Fiercely
Nicole describes Apple as a dog who “loved quietly, gently and never let you doubt where you stand in her circle of trust.”
She also protected fiercely.
“She was always where she was needed and more.”
And when Apple needed her family, they were there for her, too.
Over the years, she faced several medical challenges, including ongoing eye care, two eye surgeries, and surgeries on both knees. None of it was easy for her.
But her family surrounded her through every recovery—day and night.
Nicole says Apple answered all of it “with a grateful heart.”
That’s what family does.
Until We Meet Again
On September 17, more than eleven years after Apple first walked into the Tolivers’ lives, they had to say goodbye to their Ladybug.
Nicole shared a beautiful vision of where she hopes Apple’s next journey has taken her:
Chuckit! balls. Endless grilled salmon. Sir Matty, Mr. Bean, Monty, Sugar, Frankie, Delta Chance—and a comfy resting place in a corner with a view.
Until they meet again. ❤️
Nicole began her tribute with something that will resonate with anyone who has ever truly loved a dog:
“If you say it was just a dog…”
Apple was never just a dog.
She was the puppy pulled from a shelter.
She was a little girl’s best friend.
She was a protector.
She was a patient.
She was a traveling companion.
She was a foster sister.
She was the familiar face waiting when someone walked through the door.
She was family.
And perhaps that’s one of the greatest gifts of rescue: we may be there at the beginning, when a dog desperately needs someone to say yes, but sometimes we’re lucky enough to watch what happens afterward.
I pulled Apple from the shelter in 2015.
The Tolivers gave her the life we hoped was waiting for her.
And for the rest of her life, Apple never had to wonder whether she was loved.
Rest easy, Ladybug Apple. 🌈🐾❤️
With love to Nicole Toliver and family, and with gratitude to everyone who was part of Apple’s life—her veterinary team, trainers, dog sitters, fosters, volunteers, and the entire rescue family who loved her along the way.
Sometimes volunteering starts with something as simple as asking a question.
For Christie, that question changed far more than she ever expected.
She would often see people walking dogs while she was out on her own walks. One day, she finally stopped and asked who they were and what they were doing.
They were volunteers with Labradors and Friends.
Christie decided to become a dog walker.
What she found was much more than a way to spend time with rescue dogs.
She found a sense of purpose she hadn’t realized was missing.
The dogs were incredible, but Christie quickly discovered something else: the people were pretty special, too. Before long, she was helping organize adoption events throughout Orange County, and volunteering with LAF became an important part of her life.
A Move Couldn’t Take Her Away From LAF
In 2024, Christie moved to Arizona. She looked for another rescue organization where she could volunteer, but nothing felt quite the same.
Labradors and Friends had become more than a rescue.
It had become family.
So when the opportunity came to help remotely as an Application Coordinator, Christie jumped at it.
Today, she helps prospective adopters through the application process and works to connect families with dogs who may be the right match for them.
And when Christie travels back to California, she still makes time to meet the dogs whenever she can. Knowing them personally — their personalities, quirks and needs — helps her do an even better job helping applicants find the right dog.
And there is one LAF dog Christie will never forget.
Then There Was Bradley
Bradley’s journey with Labradors and Friends began in one of those ways you couldn’t make up.
One of our volunteers was camping when they woke up to discover a dog sitting in a chair at their campsite.
Someone had abandoned him.
The dog was Bradley — an incredibly sweet Pit Bull who needed somewhere safe to go. The volunteer reached out and asked if Labradors and Friends could help.
We said yes.
Bradley became a LAF dog.
But finding his forever family wouldn’t happen quickly.
Bradley was a wonderful dog, but his prey drive toward smaller animals meant he needed a particular kind of home. Again and again, he was overlooked.
Days became months.
Months became years.
Bradley waited nearly two years.
One Post Changed Everything
Christie never stopped seeing the dog behind the wait.
In 2022, she posted a photo of Bradley on Instagram.
A former coworker saw it.
She reached out to Christie and asked about him. Christie told her all about the sweet senior who had been waiting so long for someone to choose him.
And then, on Christmas Eve, Bradley finally got the gift everyone at LAF had been hoping for.
He went home.
Today, Bradley is living his best life with a family of his own.
For Christie, knowing she played even a small part in getting him there means everything.
But Bradley’s story also shows something we see over and over again in rescue.
One volunteer found him.
Another kept advocating for him.
Someone shared his photograph.
Someone else saw it.
And eventually, someone said yes.
That’s rescue.
And it’s why the people behind Labradors and Friends matter just as much as the dogs whose lives they help change.
Christie says it best:
“For me, Labradors and Friends is so much more than a rescue. It is a community, a purpose, and most importantly, family.
