A Puppy's Journey

Most Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB) puppies are born on our California campus in the GDB Puppy Center. Socialization begins shortly after birth with volunteers and staff gently handling and cuddling puppies daily. As the puppies grow, they are exposed to many sights, sounds, and activities to prepare them for a smooth transition to the raiser home such as leash walking, crates, different surfaces, wearing equipment, body handling, and nail trimming. When the puppies are about 8 weeks of age, they are ready to be placed with volunteer puppy raiser families.

Puppies are generally placed based on age, availability, and transportation logistics. If a dog you raised is selected as a breeder, you will be offered the opportunity to raise a puppy from one of their litters as a special thank you. We appreciate your understanding that other special requests based on breed, color, etc. may not be accepted. Our top priority is for the oldest puppies to be placed first. Members of the Puppy Raising team generally place puppies on a first-come, first-serve basis. Placement by special request from raisers is discouraged because doing so may leave puppies unplaced during critical developmental stages.

It takes a village to raise a GDB puppy, and many GDB puppies do not stay with the same puppy raising family for the entire duration of their time in the puppy raising program.

• Some volunteers specialize as “puppy starters,” taking our youngest program puppies and providing them with critical foundations before passing them along to another puppy raising home. These specialized volunteers are invaluable and make it possible for other families whose lifestyle is better suited to an older puppy.
• A transfer to a new environment can help when troubleshooting puppy behavior.
• The puppy may not be the right match for a particular household.
• Transfer requests may also be initiated by the puppy raising volunteer. GDB is always prepared to support and assist volunteers who for any reason become unable to continue raising a GDB puppy.

Walk & Talks
Puppy raising field managers (PFMs) will have Walk & Talks with puppies and their raisers, generally when the puppy is between 6-9 months and again about 6 months later. Additional informal meetings or one-on-ones may be offered. Volunteers are responsible for making the puppy available at the location and time requested by the PFM. For more information, see Puppy Check-Ins. 

Puppy Raising Reports and Surveys
Puppy reports are completed by each puppy raising household. Reports give leaders, PFMs, instructors, and other GDB staff valuable information related to specific challenges, medical or behavioral concerns, and/or trends in a dog’s history. Puppy raisers are required to complete all assigned reports and surveys, which may include periodic progress reports, health surveys, behavior questionnaires, final in-for-training reports, etc.

Assessment Homes
Placing a puppy into an assessment home offers an opportunity to observe the puppy's health or behavior outside the setting of its raiser home. PFMs may initiate a temporary transfer to an assessment home while troubleshooting puppy behavior concerns.

For details on what happens once a puppy leaves your home for recall or another reason, review Beyond Puppy Raising.