Spring/Summer 2024 Pupdate

Read the latest on our pups’ journeys!

Hello Friend,

As a monthly supporter of our program, you’re receiving this inside look at the journeys of our prospective future guide dogs! Past Pupdates can be found at this link.

It was an action-packed spring for CNIB Guide Dogs! April saw our largest-ever graduating class of guide dog, buddy dog, and ambassador dog teams, and in May, we wrapped up another successful Pup Crawl. Summer is now in full swing, training continues as always, and construction carries on in our ‘indoor city’ training arena at CNIB Canine Campus!

Calling All Dog Lovers!

The month of May also saw the opening of our newest Puppy Club in Vancouver, BC. If you’ve ever been curious about welcoming a future guide dog puppy into your home and introducing them to the world around them, there’s no better time than the present! CNIB Guide Dogs is currently accepting new volunteer applications at the Vancouver Puppy Club and other locations around the country. Visit cnib.ca/PuppyRaising to check for volunteer opportunities in your area.

A Humongous Thank You

Earlier this spring, we sent a little something to supporters in the mail which included a blank postage-paid postcard, asking you to send words of encouragement to our CNIB Guide Dogs team. And boy, did you deliver! We’re absolutely bowled over by the response and the incredibly generous, caring, hopeful, funny, and thoughtful words you’ve shared with us.

Your kind-hearted messages have been posted up at CNIB Canine Campus and are uplifting and bringing joy to all who pass by them – people and pups included! What a priceless gift that is. It’s incredibly touching to know how meaningful this work is to so many people across the country. Thank you for taking the time to send your words our way.

Pictured above: Angus and Ella, two guide dogs in training, along with their trainers, read words of encouragement on postcards from CNIB Guide Dogs supporters.

We’re thrilled to share that, in the past three months, many of the pups whose journeys we’ve been following have progressed to formal training at CNIB Canine Campus! Read on to learn how your support is building the next generation of guide dogs and empowering people with sight loss.

Training Update

Names: Winnifred and Sinclair
Entered program: February 2024
Sex: Female
Breed: Golden retriever

Meet two of the newest and fluffiest additions to our program: siblings Winnifred and Sinclair, pictured on the left and right respectively in the middle photo above. These two golden retriever puppies joined CNIB Guide Dogs in late February and have been enjoying life with their Volunteer Puppy Raisers in Winnipeg, MB.

Upon their arrival, their Volunteer Puppy Raisers worked on building day-to-day routines with the puppies, including toilet training and general house manners.  Along with settling in, their Puppy Development Trainer has introduced Winnifred and Sinclair to basic obedience cues, established a positive association with handling and grooming, started the foundations for loose leash walking, and most recently, helped the pups get comfortable and confident donning their yellow CNIB ‘Future Guide Dog’ vests. After that comes adventures outside the house experiencing new places, sights, and smells!

Name: Delores
Entered program: February 2023
Sex: Female
Breed: Labrador retriever

Great news: Delores has shown much progress with her dog distraction and excitability and has progressed to the next stage of training at CNIB Canine Campus! This is a big change for puppies as they leave behind all that is familiar to them, but Delores, friendly as ever, made fast friends with her podmates, which helped her quickly settle into life on Campus. She’s also bonding with her new Guide Dog Trainer through grooming, playing, and sitting together – a crucial step in the training process!

Did you know? The dog pods at CNIB Canine Campus can house up to four or five guide dogs in training, along with their comfortable ergonomic dog beds. Housing our dogs in pods together is important for keeping these naturally social animals happy and stress-free during their stay at Canine Campus.

So far, Delores has demonstrated a great joy and interest in training and has quickly adapted to wearing her guiding harness. One area of improvement is her avoidance of puddles. As a guide dog, Delores will need to be comfortable walking through puddles, snow, and slush, since trying to avoid these terrains can put her handler in danger.

She’s currently learning the guiding role, including how to stand and wait at curbs, follow directional cues, and indicate to her trainer the moment they are at the top and bottom of stairs. As she progresses, Delores will be introduced to different types of obstacles that a guide dog and their handler will encounter, like sidewalk signs, construction pylons, and crowded and narrow pathways, and learn how to safely navigate around them. Good luck with your training, Delores!

Name: Angus
Entered program: April 2023
Sex: Male
Breed: Labrador golden retriever cross

Angus has also begun his formal training at CNIB Canine Campus! His Guide Dog Trainer is giving him time to process the change of living in a new environment, and at this stage of training, he’s sticking to the basics: socializing with humans and other dogs, building confidence, and ensuring he has good adaptability.

Angus is a calm, sleepy boy who very much enjoys his downtime. He will often plop down and nap any chance he gets – even during group training exercises! Despite his fondness for naps, Angus has also shown his level-headedness and love for his training exercises. Overall, he’s making great progress!

Name: Jedda
Entered program: April 2023
Sex: Female
Breed: Labrador golden retriever cross

At 12 months old, Jedda is also part of “the new class” arriving at CNIB Canine Campus! This is great news, especially for Jedda, who loves to participate in training exercises so much that her Puppy Raiser jokes that Jedda has a case of “FOMO” – fear of missing out.

Jedda is calm and affectionate. She can also be a little sensitive at times, so the training team is giving her time to process things when she needs it. She continues to work on socialization, building confidence, and developing her obedience training and manners. At this stage of Jedda’s training and development, she is right on track and mostly needs to focus on maintaining her good behaviors while she learns the guiding role. Being at Canine Campus, with fun exercises and new canine pals, will definitely be an uplifting experience for Jedda.

Name: Ella
Entered program: April 2023
Sex: Female
Breed: Labrador golden retriever cross

You might have received something in the mail from Ella earlier this spring. Here’s an update on her progress!

Ella has entered formal training at Canine Campus, and her Guide Dog Trainer is proud to say that she’s transitioned beautifully. They bonded very quickly, and she’s thriving in her role as a future guide dog.

Ella is confident in most environments and loves to explore routes in new cities. She’s always eager to get out and work and shows great initiative. She thoroughly enjoys destination routes, which often include heading off to the bank or local coffee shop to practice settling within a crowd of people. Ella is very proud of herself after a walk, and once the harness comes off, she has a big smile and happily wags her tail, looking for all the love and attention she can get.

Ella is a sensitive girl who works best with a very positive approach. Depending on the environment, Ella needs a little extra support and encouragement, so she knows she’s doing an excellent job. Her pace at times can be inconsistent, so her trainer is testing out different speeds in various environments to find where she is most comfortable. As a working guide dog, she’ll need to be able to walk at a relaxed and consistent speed to match her handler’s pace.

Overall, Ella has progressed much quicker than expected during her four weeks at Canine Campus. Ella’s Guide Dog Trainer is looking forward to her first blindfold walk with Ella in a few weeks’ time, and if all continues to go well, hopefully considering potential matches later this summer!

As a monthly donor, you’re helping people who are blind access opportunities to live, work, and play without barriers. Thank you for your continued support of CNIB Guide Dogs!

Warmly,