The first two guide dog puppies to be raised in Saskatchewan, have been sent off to Carleton Place, Ontario for formal training.
The year-old puppies, named Indy and Percy, have finished their obedience and socialization training.
Kerry Macdonald, the volunteer puppy raiser in charge of Indy, says that while he will miss Indy, he is excited for his journey ahead.
“He loves to learn, he loves to train, he loves to be active. I think he’s going to just excel as a guide dog, and someone is going to get a great dog, and they’re going to have greater mobility and greater opportunities,” said Macdonald. “He’s going to have a fabulous life, because all these dogs get to go places, do things, and it’s what he loves to do, so he’s going to have a great time.”
Macdonald says Indy is the first dog he has had in close to 50 years, and he can’t wait to train another puppy when the times right.
Christall Beaudry, Executive Director of CNIB Saskatchewan, says that a benefit to having the dogs raised in Regina is that they’ll be used to Canada’s climate and terrain.
She adds that she is thrilled to see the first run be a success and is excited to keep the program going.
“We’ve had great support from the community, we have puppy raisers lined up for the next batch of puppies to come,” said Beaudry. “Obviously, we need our borders to up, and a few things to happen in order to be able to transport new dogs in, but we hope to expand the program this fall.”
CNIB apprentice puppy raising supervisor Kezia Gray, says the program is always looking for more people to volunteer, adding that it takes a special kind of person.
“We really like to see a lot of enthusiasm from our puppy raisers,” said Gray. “So people that are really invested into what they’re doing and willing to learn. It’s also really important that our puppy raisers do have quite a lot of time on their hands, it’s not really a Monday to Friday job, it’s a 365 day a year job, so it’s pretty intense, the amount of stuff that they have to try and achieve while their in the program.”
Indy and Percy will now have to learn how to stop at curbs, walk in straight lines, find seats, and navigate around obstacles.
The graduation rate of CNIB’s guide dog program is around 65 percent.
