What better way to celebrate National Pet Day today than with a ‘pupdate’ on Orbit – our very own sponsored guide dog.
Orbit is a ten-month-old German Shepherd, who is currently in puppy training in Kent and she was sponsored by us following a charity golf day organised by colleagues at our Maidstone office.
After raising £8,000 for Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, the team named Orbit through the charity’s Name a Puppy scheme and have been following her progress ever since.
During her training, Orbit has been learning the skills that she will need as a future guide dog and is making exceptional progress with her obedience commands.
On the lead, Orbit can maintain the basic guiding position and off the lead, her recall to both voice and whistle is really good. Occasionally, Orbit can be a little slow to return if she is playing with a friend – but she always comes back!
Although Orbit will live with her volunteer puppy raiser for another few months, it is already time to start looking to the future and start polishing up the skills that she has learnt, making sure that she is as ready as she can be to start her next stage of guide dog training.
After finishing the socialisation stage of her training, Orbit will go on to ‘big school’ to begin her specialised guide dog training. Then, once she is around two years old, she will be partnered with someone living with sight loss and will become their guide dog.
We are sure that whoever she is eventually partnered with, Orbit will be a real asset to them and will make a good fur-friend too. In fact, from the pupdates we’ve received so far, we know that she will be totally pawsome!
