Wanted: Volunteer walkers for trainee guide dogs

When Doris Caruana and her husband placed an advert to sell pedigree Labrador puppies they did not realise it would answer the prayers of the Foundation for Guide Dogs and Services for the Blind.

The directors of this NGO had been seeking to rear puppies that could be trained as guide dogs for the blind for the past year.

"The asking price was beyond our resources, but seeing the good cause, the Caruanas decided to give us a hefty discount on the price of the three dogs to help our new charity," said foundation chairman Ron Colombo.

Mr Colombo, who is blind in one eye and has one-tenth vision in the other, is working hard to introduce the first guide dog service on the island.

"This is just the boost we need," said Mr Colombo, who has already secured fully trained animals from guide dog schools in Slovakia and Croatia.

The dogs will arrive next year, but having puppies to train here means the foundation can achieve the first phase of its five-year plan.

Mrs Colombo has already seen the puppies - named Alan, Alex and Axel - and they have the necessary docile and laid back qualities a guide dog requires.

What the foundation desperately needs now are three volunteer puppy walkers who can adopt these male, black Labradors for 14 months.

Mr Colombo explained that the ideal walkers would be families, because a puppy cannot be left alone for more than three hours.

These volunteers play a vital role in the early life of guide dogs. Each puppy would also have to attend obedience classes once a week.

"We are looking for a disciplined family which will not let the puppy do what it wants, or eat whenever it feels like. The puppies would need to be taken to places where there are crowds and other dogs as part of their training," he said.

Once the 14 months are up, the dogs will then attend a guide dog school abroad for a further eight months, before being teamed up with the new owner in early 2009.

"There is no guarantee that any of them will graduate from the tough training to qualify as a guide dog.

"The average pass rate is 70 per cent. However, these three pups look promising," Mr Colombo added.

The foundation estimates it needs 45 to 50 guide dogs, a number that would give a new lease of life and independence to blind people and those with impaired vision.

The first three guide dogs should arrive from Bratislava next September and the foundation is hoping these can be paired up with a tertiary education student, an employee and a housewife.

At the moment the three Maltese puppies are being kept at the Tat-Targa Kennels.

Those interested in becoming a puppy walker can call Maria Colombo on 2134 4695 or Roy Perry on 2155 4153.