Blair Castle Barclays International Horse Trials and Guide Dogs, Scotland are proud to announce their charity partnership for 2013.  A friend at my local guide dogs fundraising branch (Perth &District) was Blair's puppy walker. To celebrate this we had decided to follow guide dog puppy Blair's journey to becoming a working guide dog and fundraise for him through JustGiving.

 

Blair started his training quite well, learning his basic commands and good manners while at home.  He then started heading into town, having walking sessions on the High Street in Perth and taking in a cafe where he learned to lay quietly while his puppy walker had a visit with friends.

 

A guide dog  will cost around £50,000 in its lifetime and is provided to a blind or partially sighted person at no cost to them.  So a pup will need help with his expenses as he grows and learns his work.  Guide Dogs receives no funding from any government sources.  Every penny raised comes from donations, legacies, and wills.  It's people like you that help pups like Blair change a persons life forever.

 

Blair's story took an unexpected turn about 2 months ago.  He started to show some lameness in his shoulders and he has been diagnosed with early onset arthritis.  Guide Dogs care first and foremost for the welfare of their dogs.  So Blair will now take time off from training to have surgery at the centre in Forfar, Scotland.  We will continue to follow his story as it unfolds.

 

But the story doesn't stop there!

In the meantime, retired guide dog Glen has been recruited to take over the fundraising mantel for Blair.  We will keep this as Blair's page - but Glen will be working hard to raise some more money on wee Blair's behalf!

 

So here's where JustGiving comes in.  If you'd like to help retired guide dog Glen raise money that will go to the training and care of guide dogs, then please consider donating to this page.  We will also follow Blair's story as he goes in for his surgery and takes the road to recovery.

 

Retired guide dog Glen will be at the Blair Castle International Horse Trials this summer, from 22-25th August 2013.  Come join us up in Perthshire, and meet him and loads of other  guide dogs in training.  I'm sure Glen will want to give you a big thank you lick for your generous donation.

 

That's not all... you can also help Glen and Blair by telling your friends about this JustGiving page.  Please share on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media site.  Thank you for just giving and doing even more!