Call for Swindon Guide Dog puppy raisers

The guide dog puppies live at home with their puppy raisers from eight weeks old until they are 16 to 18 months of age and start their formal training. 
With hundreds of people across the UK waiting for a guide dog, the sight loss charity needs more puppy raisers.  
Volunteer Puppy Raiser Bev said: “It was always our plan to get a dog when we retired and then we saw the Guide Dogs website. 
"After a discussion together with my husband, we decided to apply. Just a few months later we got our first puppy who is now a working Guide Dog. Wren is puppy number five, and we absolutely love being just a small part of their incredible journey”.
Puppy raisers provide a loving home and a vital foundation for future guide dogs through training, socialisation and the introduction of new environments and experiences, from bustling cafes and busy shops to the hum of public transport.
Karen, another local puppy raiser said: “We’ve been raising puppies for six years now. We only meant to do it once… but when you discover that life with a future guide dog is equal parts chaos, comedy, and pure joy, it becomes thoroughly addictive. 
"The early days are full of mop-and-bucket emergencies, mysterious puddles, and the moment you realise your favourite slippers have been formally claimed by a tiny furry dictator.
"And I won’t pretend it’s all easy. Puppy raising is hard work - proper, roll-up-your-sleeves hard work. But we never do it alone. Guide Dogs give us brilliant support, and fellow puppy raisers become the kind of friends who understand exactly why you’re laughing, crying, and disinfecting the floor all at the same time. 
"It’s a community that lifts you, teaches you, and keeps you going”.
Barbara Clark, the Puppy Development Advisor covering the Swindon area, said: “Our Puppy Raisers do an amazing job helping our pups prepare for their future life as a guide dog. 
"Being exposed to different situations and environments when they are small means they grow in confidence and can approach those environments with ease once in their working role.”
Volunteers need to be aged over 18 with suitable housing and plenty of time to invest in raising the puppy. Guide Dogs provides training and support and covers the essential costs including food and vet bills.  
Puppy raisers can still take holidays and have weekends away as Guide Dogs will arrange for a puppy fosterer, also known as a boarder, to look after the puppy.  
Volunteer Karen said: “Saying goodbye at around 18 months never gets easier. They take a piece of our heart with them when they leave, but they always leave a piece of theirs behind.
"Knowing that somewhere out there someone is living their best, most independent life because of the start we gave our pups makes every goodbye worth it”.
More information can be found at https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/how-you-can-help/volunteering/volunteer-with-our-dogs/puppy-raiser/
Alternatively, people can email Claire on [email protected]
 

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