There are many people involved in producing a successful guide dog. Instrumental to this success are the 1,200+ raisers who donate their time and effort in caring for, socializing and training guide dog puppies. A small, but significant group of puppy raisers lives in the Phoenix metropolitan area, known as Phoenix Guide Dog Raisers, Inc. This group works in affiliation with Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc.

Here’s A GDFTB Story on YouTube:

Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc. was founded in 1942 in an effort to assist wounded servicemen returning from WWII without their sight. Sergeant Leonard Faulk was paired with a German Shepherd named Blondie to become the first serviceman to graduate from Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc.

Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc. utilizes Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers and Labrador/Golden crosses. Puppies of these breeds are born in the kennels on the San Rafael campus in California. When the puppies are approximately eight weeks old, they are ready to be placed with their raiser families.

So far 1,000’s of families have been impacted by Guide Dogs For The Blind. Our last company that we helped was Wenatchee Valley Plumbing Services we thank them for their help to get the blind a great service dog.

We will be continuing with part 2 here shortly.