.IClancy, Colin, Eric, James, Helen, Amanda, Catherine, Ciara and Elizabeth with Guide Dogs Kandy and Puppy-in-Training Feena launch the upcoming fundraiser at Ballyseedy.
TRALEE branch members of the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind joined the team at Ballyseedy recently to launch an upcoming fundraiser in aid of the organisation.
Ballyseedy Home & Garden are delighted to support the ‘Irish Guide Dogs’ with a special in-store event on Saturday, July 8, between 10am to 4.30pm.
Members of the public can support the charity through-out the day at its merchandise table and enjoy a dog demonstration and in-store raffle.
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It is reported that to breed, train and care for a guide dog during its working, it will cost an estimated €53,000 so organisers are keen that any assistance or support that the public can give it will be greatly appreciated.
.Puppy-in-Training Frieda was greeted by two employees at Walsh Colour Print as they displayed the My ABC Puppy Book featuring puppy Frieda on the front cover.
JUDI Pheysey, volunteer with Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind (IGDB), was at Walsh Colour Print in Castleisland this week with 6 month-old puppy-in-training Frieda, to collect a very special delivery of books which have just gone on sale to raise funds for the charity Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind.
The ‘My ABC Puppy Book’, created by the Kerry Puppy Book Group, contains lots of interesting information about these very special puppies like Frieda, and their journey to becoming Guide Dogs or Assistance Dogs.
It costs €53,000 to breed, train and care for a Guide Dog during its working life. This fundraising initiative will play an important role in the ongoing efforts to help change the lives of those who are vision impaired and the families of children with autism.
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All funds from the sale of the book go directly to the charity.
This beautifully arranged hard-back book, with its abundance of heart-warming pictures of puppies and dogs in training, makes an ideal Christmas gift for those looking to shop local and support charity.
Selling for €15, the book is on sale this weekend at Tralee Christmas Market in the Brandon Car Park on Sunday morning, and at Annascaul Christmas Market on Sunday afternoon.
It is also on sale in local shops which are listed on the Facebook page @irishguidedogstraleebranch. Text or WhatsApp 087-4521921 or email guidedogstralee@gmail.com for sales.
THIS Friday is Guide Dog Day, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind’s national fundraising campaign and day of celebration of the guide dogs and assistance dogs who enable people with sight loss or autism to lead independent lives and actively participate in their communities.
The charity aims to change 80 lives this year, having successfully partnered 60 Guide and Assistance Dogs with clients in 2020 despite the difficult circumstances.
Branch members and puppy raisers involved locally with the Tralee Branch are taking on the fundraising challenge of walking, running, or swimming 100km in May for Guide Dog Day and are now inviting you to team up with their Tralee Branch Team to take on the challenge, or to donate.
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Branch member and puppy raiser of six wonderful puppies Anne O’Riordan is excited about taking on the challenge.
Her well-known and much-loved Ambassador Dog Marcel has continued his work throughout the pandemic, lifting many spirits by spending time with isolated friends to bring them much needed comfort and joy.
Anne is proud of the very special boost Marcel has also given to a number of communities in recent months.
To raise awareness of Guide Dog Day, the Tralee Branch members will individually go out and about many towns across Kerry on Friday, accompanied by working Guide Dogs, Puppies in Training and Ambassador Dogs.
.Anne and Gerry O’Riordan with Marcel. Photo by Dermot Crean
A TRALEE couple has told of the hugely rewarding experience of being puppy walkers for the Irish Guide Dogs For The Blind, as the organisation looks for people in Kerry to become volunteers.
The purpose of Irish Guide Dogs’ Puppy Walking Programme is to develop and care for a guide dog puppy from the age of 7-8 weeks to approximately 12-15 months.
The work will provide the puppy with a vital foundation for its future role as a Guide Dog for a visually–impaired person or as an Assistance Dog for a family with a child with Autism.
Anne and Gerry O’Riordan from Riverwalk in Oakpark are on their third puppy now and intend on taking a fourth next month.
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“We got Marcel when he was eight weeks old and we will have him a year in August when he will be leaving us,” said Anne.
“Marcel goes everywhere with me and I can take him anywhere, once he has his jacket on. We do all the basics, like the stairs in shops, into restaurants where he will sit quietly under the table and other places,” said Anne.
The puppy walker’s job is to rear the puppy and educate it so that it becomes a well-mannered, well adjusted, socially acceptable animal. This education forms an essential foundation for the future.
“The biggest thing really, when out and about, is that people don’t pet him when he has his [guide dog] jacket on, because he is working,” said Gerry, which, having met Marcel, can be tough as he is such a lovely dog.
“A lot of people — because they are such nice dogs — want to come up and rub him. It’s important that they don’t, because otherwise he will be going towards people all the time, so he wouldn’t be doing his job,” said Gerry.
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The O’Riordans are planning to take on taking another puppy in August but they will miss Marcel.
“We said we’d try it once and now we’re on our fourth dog. It is hard giving back the dogs, but when they go on and you hear the great work that they do for a person that is visually impaired, with autism or as a companion dog, then you would be very proud to have some part in that. Marcel is a brilliant dog and I know he’s going to go on to do great things for someone,” said Anne.
Part of the criteria for taking the dog is that you have an enclosed back yard, that there are no children under five years old in the house and you can’t leave the puppy on their own for too long, because they might get into mischief.
The Irish Guide Dogs pay for all the dog’s expenses in terms of food, bills etc so the family has no expense.
“We don’t get paid for what we do, but we love what we do. They are very supportive, we have a lady that comes once a month to see how we’re getting on and they’re always only a phone call away,” said Anne.
“And we’ve met Roy Keane, that’s another one of the benefits!” laughed Gerry, referring to the Irish soccer legend, who is a huge supporter of Irish Guide Dogs.
Gerry told of how one of the dogs they had affected the lives of a family.
“They are hugely successful with children with autism, having a very calming effect. One of the dogs we had went to a child with autism, who never really slept at night. The first night the dog was in the house, the child slept through the night. It calmed the child and changed their life,” he said.
After spending a year with a volunteer, the dog goes back to the Irish Guide Dogs base at Model Farm Road in Cork for further training and they will then decide where it will be placed.
“It’s a wonderful thing to do and anybody should try it. I guarantee you, after you’ve trained your first puppy, you’ll definitely take a second one,” said Anne.
THIS Friday is Guide Dog Day, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind’s national fundraising campaign and day of celebration of the guide dogs and assistance dogs who enable people with sight loss or autism to lead independent lives and actively participate in their communities.
