What is it like to raise a guide dog puppy? We speak with volunteer puppy raiser Myriam
Myriam’s life changed 23 years ago when she watched a documentary film about an assistance dog. The now 66-year-old had always had dogs growing up and throughout her life, but always found the final goodbye incredibly difficult.
Yet, seeing the film about assistance dogs, and the volunteers who help socialise them, Myriam was inspired to do the same.
“I did a search online and Guide Dogs was the first charity which came up,” she says. “I filled out the form and then, after a visit from a supervisor, six weeks later I met my first pup, Ed.”
Guide Dogs delivers a wide range of services to support people living with a vision impairment and are the world’s largest assistance dog organisation. Puppies are placed with volunteers from around eight weeks old and stay until they are at least one year – and 23 years and 31 dogs later, Myriam is still raising pups for Guide Dogs, and says she loves being a part of each dog’s journey.
She has a picture wall in her house, proudly dedicated to all the “life changers” she has helped raise.
Myriam, who is currently looking after golden retriever Frankie, says, “I love them to bits while they’re with me.
“Knowing that they will embark on a journey to help someone with sight loss is just amazing.”
Myriam’s pups go where she goes, gradually introducing them to situations like shops and cafes.
“When they are with me, they are my family, and the puppies all have completely different characters,” she says.
“I spend a lot of time at first making sure the pups feel comfortable and secure. I also give them a little talk saying we’ll have a good time because for them it’s daunting being somewhere without their brothers and sisters.”
Fostering can have its challenges but the puppy raiser says it is worth it.
“It’s an amazing journey. Once you get that graduation picture you forget about the remote control being chewed or the odd tiddle here and there. It’s the sense of pride knowing that it’s your little life changer up there.”
And you are never alone, says Miriam.
“There’s always someone from Guide Dogs at the end of the phone to give you a bit of advice, and there’s a network of other Puppy Raisers you meet with for coffee so it’s very social,” she adds.
Last Easter, Guide Dogs put on a dog-friendly
