Guide Dogs charity has confirmed Covid has delayed training and matching dogs.
The charity, which trains and matches guide dogs for those with sight loss, has said Covid meant they were unable to match dogs to owners in need, which caused a backlog.
Louise Belsom, regional head of operations in the North East, said: “We had that period where we couldn’t match the dogs that were ready to become guide dogs, essentially.
“So while that was on hold, everything got blocked up. But now we’re working our way through the system again.”
Puppy raisers, volunteers who raise future guide dogs and provide initial training, have also had to keep puppies for longer.
Karen and Andrew Mallett have been puppy raisers for two years and Karen is a guide dog owner. They had to keep their last puppy, Carly, for longer than usual and said lockdown meant they couldn’t train the dog how they usually would.
Andrew said: “We missed out a little bit with Carly because we avoided buses and trains.
“Obviously, with lockdown and a lot of the stores being closed we couldn’t do as many stores. We couldn’t do coffee shops and restaurants which is all part of the training.
“But as far as the street work and the walking went, that was as normal and having Carly helped because your routine was pretty similar.”
Although the pandemic has caused a delay in matching, Covid has enabled the charity to work more efficiently and provide online support as well as face-to-face.
The charity has also accelerated recruitment and put staff in additional training and found innovative ways to train dogs during lockdown.
Louise added: “Stagecoach North East and First in Yorkshire have been amazing in letting us use their out-of-duty buses.
“While we couldn’t get on the bus with the dogs while there are lots of other people around and social mixing, we’ve had empty buses taking us for a ride and getting the dogs to practice getting on and off and finding their seats in a safe environment.”
She also noted the hard work of puppy raisers during the pandemic.
She added: “The puppy raisers have been absolutely fantastic and we would have really struggled, I think, in the last year without them. So a big thank you, actually, to any puppyraisers.”
