Santa’s Little Yelpers Socialise With Saint Nick

Guide dog puppies have been preparing for Christmas with a visit to Santa’s grotto as part of their early socialisation training.

A dozen puppies and their raisers, who care for them during the first year of their lives, explored the grounds and gardens at Delapré Abbey in Northampton before seeing Father Christmas.

It was organised by sight loss charity Guide Dogs to help build their confidence in unfamiliar environments.

Claire Purr, the charity’s puppy development adviser, said it served as a reminder of why the charity needed to triple the number of its volunteer puppy raisers in the UK.

“Santa’s been amazing, and it is a fun thing, but actually it’s really good for their training too for them to learn to be around all these different things,” she said.

“There would be no guide dogs without puppy raisers; we need people to raise our puppies to help them on their journey to be successful guide dogs.

“We don’t have that many homes at the moment, so it’s been a challenge this year getting people on board.”

Linda Whitwell, one of the county’s most experienced puppy raisers, said the festive visit was “something different” for her 12-week-old labrador called Hollie.

“She [Hollie] seemed to really enjoy it,” she said.

“It’s nice that it’s all different experiences and it’s good for them anything like that.”

There are 12 volunteer puppy raisers in Northamptonshire, who introduce them to different experiences and prepare them for their formal guide dog training.

If they complete their training, they go on to become assistance dogs for people with sight loss.

Ms Whitwell – looking after her 17th dog – said the role of a puppy raiser “is very rewarding”.

“Although the cat wouldn’t agree with me,” she joked.

“It’s a lot of fun, it’s all experiences, socialising them and going to different places.

“If we go on holiday, we take them with us because it’s all new scenes and the seaside.

“People often say to me ‘I’d love to do it, but I just couldn’t let them go’.

“You’ve got to get the mindset [that] it’s not my dog and I’m doing this to change somebody’s life.”