Welcome to your first pupdate of 2020 and to kick things off, we’re so happy to announce our current total is …

£33,325.64!

Thank you to everyone who banked their funds and helped us get  that one step closer to sponsoring another life changing puppy. In our last pupdate, we welcomed Brearley (2.0) into the family and I’m delighted to include her 2nd pupdate below.

Brearley is a couple of months older since we last updated you and we were keen to find out how she's getting on. We've spoken to her Puppy Walker, Henry, to hear about all that they've been up to. 

Henry said that Brearley has developed into a 'fantastic pup', and described her as, 'lovely and very friendly'. She has come a long way with her training too, and is always learning new things. Henry is particularly pleased with Brearley's lead walking, as she doesn't pull too much and is very focused. If another dog is nearby, she can lose a little concentration, but she quickly recovers and gets back to the task at hand. 

Once Brearley had received her final vaccination several weeks ago, she started to go for free runs. We hear that her recall has been excellent, and 
isn't too bad when there are other dogs that she might want to play with in the vicinity. Brearley is at the age where pups can develop 'selective 
hearing', and start trying to see if they can get away with ignoring commands and being called -while she does this occasionally, she is mostly still very good. 

Puppy classes are always a fun activity, and Brearley adores going to see all of her canine friends. She has been progressing with the tasks and has built up a range of basic obedience skills, however, the last class just before Christmas, was a more relaxed affair -they had a puppy party! As a well 
done for all the pup's hard work, they had games such as musical chairs to play with their Puppy Walkers, and a great time was had by all. 

Elsewhere, Henry has taken Brearley into the local town centre a lot over the last couple of months, to experience all that it has to offer. Brearley has shown herself to be incredibly focused in busy environments, and Henry thinks she thrives on all the hustle and bustle. They can go in and out of different shops and businesses and Brearley behaves fantastically at all times. She is fine with all the traffic she sees and hears, and loud noises in general haven't fazed her at all.

Henry also does work with Brearley in cafes, as working guide dogs are expected to be able to settle in these areas so that their owners can enjoy visiting these sorts of places as much as everyone else. Brearley has taken very well to lying down quietly under the table, and tends to use the time to catch up on some well-deserved puppy sleep. 

To get around, Brearley is now very used to travelling on trams, buses, and in the car. She will be trying train travel in the next few weeks, and we can't wait to find out how she copes with this. 

At home, Brearley has had the company of another guide dog puppy for a couple of weeks, who Henry has been looking after while his Puppy Walker was away. Brearley has loved every minute of this and the two got along brilliantly. Now that her friend has gone home, Brearley isn't at all sad as she has been enjoying some of the new toys she got for Christmas, although her favourite toy is still her old cuddly monkey. 

We hope you've enjoyed reading Brearley's latest pupdate; it sounds like she is making good progress and hitting all the milestones expected of her at this stage. We look forward to sending you her next training report card soon.