On July 2, 2018, Freedom Guide Dogs lost a dear friend, Cathy Vavrina of Franklin Hills Labradors.
If you have a Labrador as a guide dog there is a very good likelihood that there is Franklin Hills Labradors in your dog’s Pedigree. Many people have also called throughout the years as to where they could buy a lab. We always would give Cathy’s name and number. Many people have wonderful pets from Franklin Hills.
Cathy was introduced to Sharon and Freedom Guide Dogs through Gladys Rogers of Snowden Hills Labradors, probably 24 years ago. Cathy has always given freely her dogs, breeding females, puppies and Stud dogs. Foxy was one of the first females.
Ch. Featherworks Franklin Hills Autumn a lovely AKC Champion, female who we were to breed 1 time then spay her. She was about 5 when she was spayed. We asked Cathy if we could train her to be a guide as we had an older lady needing a guide dog. She said yes and we did. She was a guide for about 4 years until the lady could no longer use her. Autumn retired to be Freedom’s house dog. She lived to be 15 ½.
Bandit is another lovely female. She is now retired with her family in Wyoming
Franklin Hills Bonsai a nice Chocolate Labrador.
Ice-T was a great producer of guide dogs. We have a number of her daughters as breed dogs now. Dora, Wendi, stud dog Willie. Ice-T is now 12 years old and long retired and living near Boston.
The suds include Ch. Hillside Flash of Ash (Flash), Snowden Hills Grand Finale (AL), Franklin Hills Ammo (Ammo) JH, WC, CGC, Sherfire Fearless Flyer (Cargo), Franklin Hills Cactus Kid Joshua (Josh), Franklin Hills Congo (Cong), Graff’s Connor at Adamsway (Connor), Toynton’s Bogey (Slugger) who is Ice-T’s sire, Franklin Hills Spencer Tracy (Spencer) and I am sure there are others I don’t recall.