Stephen and Geraldine have been volunteer Puppy Parents for Canine Partners since November 2016. They are currently looking after their third puppy-in-training. This is their story:

“Our primary role within Canine Partners is as Puppy Parents but we are also core members of the East Midlands Community Group and Stephen is a trained Volunteer Speaker for the charity. We have been volunteering for Canine Partners since November 2016, when our first puppy arrived at just seven weeks old!

“As puppy parents our role requires us to provide early education and socialisation of the puppy in our care. We introduce the puppy to new environments, take them on all forms of public transport as well as introducing them to both town and rural surroundings. Our ultimate aim is for our puppy to be well behaved, friendly and able to adapt in all social aspects.

“We both enjoy going out and meeting different people, striking up a conversation whilst training our puppy or talking to groups such as the WI and other Social Clubs. It’s great to be able to raise the awareness of Canine Partners in this way. Helping out with demonstration voice overs as part of the Volunteer Speaker role is a great opportunity to work with the demo dogs and their handlers at larger events.

“We both worked for a leading global Pharmaceutical company opting to take early retirement after a large reorganisation. We had talked about getting a pet dog and having visited some rescue centres, we both realised that perhaps this was not the best route for us as we wanted to give something more worthwhile back to a “dog” charity. A chance visit to Chatsworth Country show saw us walk past the Canine Partners stand.  After having a really good chat with both volunteers and meeting some of the dogs, we walked away knowing we had found ourselves a really great charity to help. This set the ball rolling for us and a couple of months later our first puppy arrived and we have never looked back.

“We really enjoy volunteering for the charity and being part of the wider family – it’s nice to be able to draw on past career experiences to help Canine Partners. We always look forward to being able to make a positive input and to help the charity increase its awareness.

“The most rewarding aspect of being a puppy parent, is seeing your puppy grow from eight  weeks into a fully trained, working assistance dog – transforming the life of the partner! It’s hard to put into words how proud you feel and the sense of achievement, knowing that all your hard work and effort has completely changed a person’s life.

“We would have no hesitation in recommending Canine Partners to anyone if they are looking for a volunteer role. Whether being a Puppy Parent or helping out at an event, you will always get a warm welcome, meet lots of lovely people and have a huge support network behind you.”

What does it take for a life to transform? It starts with a puppy, adorable and warm. Could you love and care for the UK’s future assistance dogs? Please visit caninepartners.org.uk/puppy-parents to find out more.

Hero – written by Mrs Christine Lewis

The lovely picture of Alan and his dog, Hamlin, on page 4 of The Parkinson’s UK Winter magazine, made me think that the Lichfield Group of Parkinson’s UK might be interested to know about Hero, a Golden Retriever. A little bit of background first: a couple of years ago, one of our super daughters-in-law decided to “foster” Canine Partners dogs at weekends and bank holidays. Canine Partners is a charity that transforms the lives of people with physical disabilities by partnering them with assistance dogs. When the dogs are around 14 to 16 months old, they start their advanced training at one of the charity’s Training Centres. During this time, the assistance dogs work hard during the week but at weekends they need to have a bit of a rest in a home environment, and so they are “fostered” by volunteers.

We had the pleasure of meeting my daughter-in-law’s family’s first foster dog, Clovis, at Christmas 2018. He was followed by Walshy, Lupin and Teagan, all of whom were characterful and amazing companions.

Then came Hero in April 2020. Hero was near to the end of his advanced training and was about to be partnered and receive his final on-site training with them – then came the first national lockdown, which compelled the charity to protect its staff and applicants by halting their advanced training programme and asking their volunteer Fosterers to give the wonderful dogs a home seven days a week! Even though advanced training has recommenced on a day-release basis, Hero is still, ten months later, with our son’s family!

Hero is very well-mannered, gentle and calm and has settled in well to his temporary home. Our daughter-in-law was a little worried the first time she let him off the lead but there wasn’t a problem. He loves his walks and comes back tired and will take himself off to bed and won’t make a sound throughout the night. We have seen a lot of him via the WhatsApp messaging service and have watched him take off our son’s socks, although occasionally his teeth do tickle!

Our daughter-in-law keeps up his training and, with the charity’s work so essential, Hero is now able to be dropped off at “school” for one or two days each week to refresh his skills with his trainer! He has also enjoyed a staycation with the family and didn’t object to being squeezed into the car a little, together with his bed, food and toys.

His toybox is overflowing after Christmas but he has a favourite teddy which he will bring and put in your lap if he wants to play!

The family are all still working at home – Dad, Mum and two teenage boys – and sometimes he will look for someone to play with, but he doesn’t disturb them when they are busy.

Hero’s food is provided by Canine Partners and treats are part of his food allowance, so he stays lean! The charity also provides beds, toys and poo-bags for the dogs, and both vets and trainers are only ever a call away.

Hero has become part of our son’s family and will be very much missed when he is finally partnered, but as he gets older he will probably never forget them. The parting is made easier by knowing that such a loving, gentle and characterful dog will be an amazing partner to someone whose life will be transformed. They will be able to say “goodbye” to him when he “graduates”.

Reading Alan and Hamlin’s story, we know that, one day, Hero will be helping to improve someone else’s life – maybe another person with Parkinson’s!

Canine Partners is a charity that is well worth supporting!

Written by Mrs Christine Lewis

Could you become a volunteer Fosterer, like Alison?  To find out more please visit caninepartners.org.uk/foster.

Jenny has been a volunteer Puppy Parent for Canine Partners since July 2019. She is currently looking after her first puppy-in-training. This is her story:

“I am a new Puppy Parent and my first puppy came to me in November 2019. I had recently retired from work and have always wanted a dog and thought it would be very rewarding to join an assistance dog charity, such as Canine Partners.

“I have looked after friends’ dogs when they have needed it, such as holidays and dog walking, and I also had a few dogs as a child. I have also experienced how an assistance dog could have helped and made a huge impact on a severely disabled youngster that I know of. The person concerned, has various challenges both mentally and physically, but the comfort and delight in his face when a relative with a dog visited was immense and heart warming. The dog seemed to instinctively know this and stayed by his side. To know that I have helped to raise a puppy which will eventually be placed with a person in need is an amazing feeling.

“My role is to help look after a puppy from about eight weeks of age until they are 14 months old. I do this with guidance from a specialist Puppy Trainer, including Puppy Classes, one-to-ones, and training sessions in town. I teach the puppy basic training and the vital skills they need to become a future assistance dog. The end goal is to have reared a happy, well-adjusted puppy that is ready to go on to the next stage of their training at one of the two national Training Centres. They will eventually be placed with someone on the waiting list who is living with a physical disability.

“Seeing for myself the skills taught to Canine Partners’ puppies is amazing. The realisation of how dedicated the staff and the whole team are in achieving this and all of their hard work, (and the dogs of course), only fuelled my desire to make an impact to someone’s life by becoming a Puppy Parent.

“My part is only the start of an amazing journey, and every day I feel proud of this, even though I know the puppy will have to leave me, she will, I know, make such a difference to someone’s life.

“The wonderful thing is, when my puppy has successfully been placed with their partner, I can do it all over again with another amazing dog. Canine Partners are doing absolutely amazing work, and more volunteers should come forward and change someone’s life too, the rewards are outstanding.”

What does it take for a life to transform? It starts with a puppy, adorable and warm. Could you love and care for the UK’s future assistance dogs? Please visit caninepartners.org.uk/puppy-parents to find out more.

Julie has been a volunteer Puppy Parent for Canine Partners since January 2020. She is currently looking after her first puppy-in-training. This is her story:

“My husband, Martyn, and I had wanted to find a charity to volunteer for, so I did some research and discovered Canine Partners online. The Southern Training Centre isn’t too far away from where we live, so it seemed like the obvious choice of charity to get in touch with.

“After we had decided to apply to be Puppy Parents, we were at the local hospital and met a partnership. We spoke to her and she explained to us how much better her life was since being paired with her canine partner assistance dog. It just seemed like fate as we had already decided Canine Partners was the charity we wanted to support. We then knew we were going to proceed with becoming Puppy Parents after that chance meeting.

“We brought our first puppy, Chase, home just before the first UK lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic. Being a Puppy Parent during lockdown was better than we could have hoped for.  We had only had Chase for seven weeks at that point, so it meant we could dedicate more time to training her.

“The support from the specialist Puppy Trainers was fantastic. They have been available for us on the phone or on video chat whenever we have needed them. Training lessons continued online throughout the pandemic and had been fun and informative. We have nothing but praise for our trainers, and I am so proud of how Chase is developing her skills.

“The most rewarding thing about volunteering and being a Puppy Parent is knowing  that at the end of the process, Chase will go on to enhance someone’s life for the better. Having Chase is a pleasure as she is such a joy to have around.”

What does it take for a life to transform? It starts with a puppy, adorable and warm. Could you love and care for the UK’s future assistance dogs? Please visit caninepartners.org.uk/puppy-parents to find out more.

 

Liz has been a volunteer for the charity since 2014, when she became a volunteer Speaker. Over the years she has taken on other aspects of volunteering and is now a Community Champion.

Liz describes why she became involved with Canine Partners:

“I first discovered Canine Partners when I was surfing the internet for charities to support in lieu of sending Christmas cards. Canine Partners was the one that really stood out. I usually support animal charities but I chose this one as it involves both people and animals!”

Liz describes what her role as a Community Champion involves:

“As a Community Champion, I undertake speaking engagements for local groups such as WIs, Rotary and Probus clubs and other social clubs – I really enjoy this aspect. In addition, I attend local events such as dog shows and fetes, where we sell merchandise and run fundraising games. I have a small team of friends who help me with this. To date I have organised two events myself – a quiz night and a sponsored walk. Both of them were hard work by were so satisfying and useful as fundraisers. I also have previously helped with Canine Partners’ involvement with Dogstival. Networking is key to being a successful fundraiser and I never go out without my business cards as one engagement often leads to another!”

Liz describes what experience she has that suits her voluntary role:

“All my working life I have had jobs which involved working on my own initiative in admin roles and I have always enjoyed developing projects. It is stressful at times, but once I decide on something I follow it through regardless. I moved to a new area in 2016 and didn’t know anyone, but my networking skills and determination came into play as I set about finding speaking engagements and fundraising opportunities for Canine Partners. This led to several Charity of the Year opportunities and raising awareness of the charity.

Liz describes what it is like to volunteer for Canine Partners:

“I have worked alongside partnerships at speaking engagements and it has given me a unique insight into the benefits of a canine partner. Seeing the difference their dogs make is all the reward one needs. I would encourage others to volunteer for Canine Partners as it’s as varied and rewarding as you can get!”

Become a volunteer for Canine Partners:

There are lots of ways you can volunteer for Canine Partners. To find out more, please visit caninepartners.org.uk/volunteering

Sarah and Darryl have been volunteer Fosterers at our Midlands Training Centre since 2015. This is their story:

We met a lady in our village and were full of compliments for her beautiful Labrador. She explained that it wasn’t her dog and that she was a volunteer Fosterer for Canine Partners.  About five minutes after we got home, we had been on the website and registered! We both work full time and having a dog of our own just isn’t ideal, but the opportunity to foster sounded really appealing – and we were right!

We get quite emotional when we think about the  benefits the dogs bring to their respective partners -assisting with a disability and all the clever tasks the dogs do is one thing but the emotional support the dogs can give is something quite unique. What started as an opportunity for us to have some time with a dog quickly turned into focusing on what the dogs do to others. We love hearing how the dogs we fostered are getting on with their partners, we have been incredibly lucky to have a couple of them reach out to us once the dogs have settled in.

We feel absolutely blessed to be given the opportunity to support Canine Partners by having our current foster dog, Smartie, during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown Having her 24/7 has been a dream. She has been the perfect girl and is so patient when we’ve been working from home. Neither of us were furloughed and it’s been a very busy time, but we made sure that she’s been stimulated during the day and kept up with the weekly tasks and activities set up by the Canine Partners training team, who kept in touch with us throughout. She’s such a willing learner.

The work our volunteers do is incredible and their support is so important to us at all times, but especially during the Covid-19 crisis. They play a vital role in the socialisation and training of our future canine partners, before sending the dogs and puppies off to continue their journey to become life-changing  assistance dogs.

Could you provide a foster home like Sarah and Darryl? To find out more, please click here.