Volunteer with dogs.

No formal dog training experience is required. We will teach you the skills necessary to raise a pup. Your main priority will be teaching them to be well-behaved pups, expose them to new and different environments and get them ready for their formal Guide Dog training with our trainers.

Many of our Puppy Raisers work full-time in normal everyday jobs. Maybe you work from home, have an accessible workplace or even a flexible schedule. Each potential Puppy Raiser and pup will be assessed case-by-case to ensure the best support for you and your pup.

Our pups will be ready for an adventure by your side and will be excitable as they settle in with you. Just like any puppy, they will need your time and attention as you both settle into a routine.

You’ll also need to travel on-site to the Bald Hills Campus for:

• on-site puppy socialisation (monthly)
• occasional on-site information sessions
• bath and vet appointments
• food and preventative collection.

*Where possible, lessons will be in your home or in your local area to ensure our puppies are trained in a range of environments.

We will provide all the support and associated costs you need while raising a puppy, including food, toys, health requirements etc. All you need to give is your love and time.

Staff from our Puppy Raising Program will be available to answer any questions or offer support with anything you may need. Puppy Raisers can access support from our team by phone or email.

During the puppy classes, you will receive individual support and advice tailored to your puppy.

Puppy boarding is available in the case of an emergency.

While you don’t need to be super fit to be a Puppy Raiser, puppy raising is a physically demanding role with a high degree of bending and lifting. You may need the ability to carry a young puppy up and down stairs (approx. 15kg), maintain a brisk walking pace daily for 30-40 minutes and safely manage up to a 30kg dog.

The short answer is yes! But this will need to be assessed case-by-case, depending on time away, location and safety for the pup. Puppy Raisers just need to check with the Puppy Raising Team for the final okay.

If you are looking for a weeknight/weekend buddy for up to six months at a time this could be the perfect role for you! These dogs will need to come to the Training Centre at Bald Hills for training each day, and would need to be dropped off by 7am and picked up after 4pm.

Our dogs will receive their formal training while on site with our dedicated trainers and will be taught many things, including impeccable manners and home behaviour (as well as lots of love!)

But a puppy doesn’t stop learning when they come home from training for the day, so we need you to help us out!

We will teach you how to maintain and enforce their training when at home and set our dogs up for sucess in their future careers.

While you don’t need to be super fit to be in this role, you will need to be able to safely manage up to a 30kg dog.

Dog experience? Not required. We will teach you the skills necessary to prepare our pups for their future career as Guide Dogs.

Boarding is a flexible arrangement and timeframes will be arranged on a case by case basis, but are usually a minimum of one week long.

As a boarding carer, you need to be able to provide a safe and comfortable environment for the dog. You will need to feed them, give them some exercise and administer medication if required. Some dogs may need to come to the Training Centre at Bald Hills for training each day, and would need to be dropped off by 7am and picked up at 4pm.

We will teach you some basic training techniques, but your main role is to ensure the dog is comfortable, healthy and happy – which they will be when they are with you! Regardless of how long you care for the dog, you will need to spend a large portion of time with them and let them sleep indoors. Most of our dogs should not be left at home alone for more than four hours at a time.

While you don’t need to be super fit to be a Boarder, you will need to be able to safely manage up to a 30kg dog.

Dog experience? Not required. We will teach you the skills necessary to prepare our pups to enter formal training for their future career as guide dogs.

Please note that boarding dogs don’t have public access coats.

We will assess this on a case-by-case basis. Usually, as long as resident pets are desexed and up to date with their vaccinations, you just need to make sure having an extra dog in the home is compliant with your council. We will organise a meet and greet with any dogs already living in the home to make sure they will get along.

Dogs join our breeding program around 18 months of age after extensive behavioural and medical assessments and will usually have their first litter at around 2 years of age. Our mums usually retire around 6 years old, and our studs may stay on the program until they are 7-8. Once our breeding dogs retire, they usually stay with their breeding carers as a much-loved pet. If you are no longer able to continue providing care for the dog after they retire, we do have a rehoming program with many wonderful families just waiting to welcome a dog into their home

Many of our breeding dogs are selected for their intelligence and drive, while dog experience is not required, not all our breeding dogs are suitable for first time pet owners, and experience with energetic, sometimes cheeky house guests is well regarded. We will provide initial training and ongoing support with lessons every 2 months here on campus to help set you up for success.

If you are caring for a brood, she will stay with us onsite whenever she comes into season (usually about 21 days every 6 months) and if she is mated successfully, she will come to our nursery and early learning centre about a week before she is due to give birth. Our vet team and dedicated staff will care for her during her whelping, and she will remain with us until the pups are weaned (about 6-8 weeks). During this time, you will have scheduled opportunities to come and visit your breeding dog and see their pups (this goes for the carers of dads too).