Raising puppies for Guide Dogs charity has given woman unconditional love

Since her retiral from the Scottish Prison Service, Lanarkshire woman Pauline Duff has given her all to the six puppies she’s raised for the charity, Guide Dogs.

What she’s received in return for her full-time volunteering is “unconditional love” from the young dogs she’s reared, the majority of whom have gone on to give the gift of independence and companionship to a person with a visual impairment.

Pauline, 63, craved a new purpose in life after she retired eight years ago – something rewarding that would rescue her from daytime TV.

“I had a friend who was visually impaired and she posted on Facebook that Guide Dogs were looking for puppy raisers,” she explained.

“I had been considering getting a dog, and thought that I’d try before I buy.”

The charity conducted a telephone interview with Pauline to determine why she was interested in joining the organisation as a volunteer.

“They explained a little about the process of looking after a dog. It is a 24/7 role,” she said.

“You have the puppy from the age of seven or eight weeks, for up to a year to 18 months. Every puppy is different.”

A Guide Dogs representative then visited Pauline at her home in Newton Farm near Cambuslang to ensure that it was a safe and suitable environment for a puppy.

They also inspected her garden to check that it had a toileting area for a young dog – and no escape routes.

Pauline was then matched with Milo – a male black Labrador/Retriever cross.

“Milo was 14 months old before he went up to what we call ‘the big school,’ where they do the main training for guide dogs in Forfar, ” continued Pauline. “He is now a working guide dog, south of Edinburgh.”

The role of a puppy raiser, she explained, is to instill self-control in a young dog, and to ensure he or she is taught to remain calm in various situations.

“We take them out on trains, ferries, cars and buses, and expose them to restaurants and supermarkets – places that dogs are not normally allowed into,” said Pauline, who explained that Guide Dogs puppies are identifiable by a yellow flash on their leads.

“We train them to be self-controlled in certain elements that will help the advanced training further down the line. We make sure they sit and wait for a command before they have their food. When they are on free runs, we use certain commands that are the same as a visually-impaired person would use.”

In order to prevent them becoming obsessed with a ball in their playful pup months, Guide Dogs’ puppies are not given a ball as a toy until they are fully trained.

It’s the responsibility of a puppy raiser to discourage the pup from eating discarded items on pavements, and from becoming distracted by people or other dogs.

“To them, it becomes second nature. In essence, it’s how you should train any dog,” continued Pauline, who follows the journey of the puppies after they leave her care.

“Be consistent. Make sure they understand, and reward them when they do something good. Only interact with them when they are doing something you want them to do. It is what we call positive reinforcement.”

Every two years, full-time puppy raiser Pauline takes a summer off, during which time the puppy she is raising will be fostered by someone else who has been vetted by Guide Dogs.

“Anyone who gives us a break as a full-time puppy raiser is amazing,” she said. “It means I can go on holiday without any worries, and I don’t have to fret about boarding kennels. It is a great system.”

One of the puppies Pauline raised was Theia – a yellow Lab who went on to become a ‘mummy dog.’

She has had three litters of nine, eight and seven puppies, each of whom are in the process of either being trained as a guide dog, or being matched with a visually impaired person.

Pauline is now raising her sixth Guide Dogs puppy, Piper – an eight-month-old red fox Lab.

“She is very smart and curious,” explained Pauline, who latterly worked as a trainer of Scottish Prison Service staff – a career in an environment governed by rules and regulations, and one that equipped her well for her role in raising the next generation of guide dogs.

“That is what you are looking for – a puppy who wants to be with you to learn, a puppy who wants the challenges.

“At the moment, Piper wants everyone to talk to her, and she wants to go and talk to every dog she sees. She is interested in everything that is going on around her. She has to learn that I am the important one in the partnership. But she is coming on well.”

Conceding that it is a wrench when a puppy leaves her care to move on to formal, advanced training, Pauline explained: “Yes, it’s sad, but at the same time, I have signed up that I am a fosterer, with the knowledge that they are going to go on and do some amazing work. When you see the work that they do, you think: ‘Yes!’

“I suppose I get more upset when one of my dogs chooses a different career. I had one who is now a much-loved family pet. Not every dog is going to be a guide dog, but in that case you kind of feel as if you have not done your best for that dog.”

Saying that her role means she will never see a dog die, Pauline added: “I think it is much harder for somebody [with a visual impairment] who has had a partnership for eight years and then has to retire their dog.”

Pauline’s volunteering for Guide Dogs isn’t limited to puppy raising alone.

She continued: “The one thing about the Guide Dogs family is, once you get involved, you get volunteered to do other roles.

“I am a puppy raiser, a fundraiser, a coin box collector, a treasurer for several groups, a public speaker and I do meet-and-greet sessions by taking dogs into businesses in Glasgow. I train other people to become Guide Dogs speakers, so that the message is consistent. And I also bake and make tablet to sell at fundraising events.”

Because the charity meets the cost of the dogs’ food and vet bills, Pauline says volunteering as a puppy raiser can be a way of having a dog to love, without the associated expense.

“If you’re interested in becoming a puppy raiser, I’d say definitely go for it, but be aware it is a 24/7 role,” she advised.

“The amount of unconditional love you get from these puppies is brilliant.

“I have made so many new friends from being part of this organisation. When you retire, your life changes. You can feel low and a bit depressed. This has given me a purpose and it’s very rewarding, in a lot of ways. It is not just what I give to Guide Dogs in looking after puppies. It’s what they give to me.”

* Charity Guide Dogs is urging supporters to host their own Make Every Cuppa Count tea party, coffee morning or bake sale.

Fundraising relationship manager Sandi Johnson, who has named her guide dog Cup Cake Kane in honour of the campaign, said: “Small or large, at home, work or school, every penny you raise will go towards helping us provide life-changing services.

“Every cuppa and cake has the power to change lives by raising vital pounds and pennies.”
To find out how to host and to receive a Make Every Cuppa Count pack, visit: https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/tea-party/

* Dog lovers in Lanarkshire who have spare time and would you like to make a difference to someone’s life are being urged to consider volunteering as a puppy raiser for the charity, Guide Dogs.

To apply to be a puppy raiser, visit: www.guidedogs.org.uk/how-you-can-help/volunteering/volunteer-with-our-dogs/puppy-raiser/

If you have any questions, contact the volunteering office on 0345 1430191.

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