Boy

Boy was a gorgeous, fully trained, 1.5-year-old white Labrador Retriever we met in June 2011 while photographing the pets at the St. Bernard Parish Animal Shelter in Violet, Louisiana. A young man had surrendered him for adoption because he could not afford the surgery to remove Boy’s severely ulcerated eye. The shelter manager was heartbroken by the situation and agreed to arrange for the surgery because they felt someone would quickly adopt him; in fact, many visitors did show initial interest in Boy but no one ever came back for him. At the time, SBPAS was a small, high-kill facility* with limited space, so his chances of being euthanized grew with each passing day.

Fortunately for Boy, our pictures of him received a lot of attention and initiated many phone calls from potential adopters. Ultimately, SBPAS allowed Labs 4 Rescue to pull him and carefully screen for the perfect home. L4R felt that a puppy with his story and temperament deserved a second chance filled as much love and hope as he had within himself. True to their word, Boy left the rescue with a loving and caring forever family.

This picture helped save Boy’s life!

* In 2011, when Boy was at the shelter, the SBPAS had an 85% kill rate, meaning approximately 85% of the dogs and cats entering the shelter were euthanized. In 2025, SBPAS achieved official “no-kill” status by reducing their kill rate from 85% to 10%.