If you are dog lover but your lifestyle means you cannot look after a dog full-time, then this could be the perfect role for you!
We ask that volunteers for this role are aged 18 or over.
As a fosterer you would provide a temporary yet loving home for a dog in training whilst they embark on their journey to becoming a guide dog. Experiencing the rewarding feeling of seeing the progress your furry companion is making in their training.
You’ll ideally have:
- Access to a car, so that you can take your dog to training school.
- The agreement of your landlord to have dog in the home or your own home.
- Have a safe secure area outside for the dog to go to the toilet.
What you’ll get
- The satisfaction in knowing you are supporting people with sight loss to live actively, independently, and well.
- The rewarding feeling of seeing your dog learn new training techniques to help them develop into a guide dog.
- The opportunity to learn our bespoke world-class training programme which can help you train your own dogs or advance in a future career in dog handling.
- The opportunity to have a canine companion, which can reduce feelings of stress and improve fitness.
- The opportunity to be part of the Guide Dogs Family, meeting like-minded people in your area.
- A dedicated volunteer manager and fellow peers who will help support you throughout your role.
Training and support
Our volunteers have access to our bespoke training techniques to implement with their dog in training, a great bonus for any dog owners! This is delivered in an interactive engaging manner, using a mixture of different learning techniques e.g., videos, documents and face to face workshops. Examples of the modules you will be learning include:
- Activities to keep your dogs entertained.
- Caring for your dog.
- Dog behaviour.
Our volunteers also receive lots of support from their volunteer managers to help them implement these training modules with their dog. If you have questions about the training requirements, we can answer these at your interview along with any other support or accessibility needs you may have.
Volunteering for Guide Dogs should never leave you out of pocket. We’ll make sure we pay any expenses related to volunteering with us, including veterinary costs, food costs for the puppy and other materials needed for the puppy’s training.