We are delighted to hear that Puppy in Training ‘Yarrow’ is doing very well on his Advanced Training as an Assistance Dog. His trainer expects he will be matched shortly to begin training with one of the parents of the child he will be assisting late August or early September. A week later ‘Yarrow’ will go to his new home where his trainer will assist the family in adapting to life with ‘Yarrow’. Good boy ‘Yarrow’. ‘Zabbie’ is a canine blood donor. Sometimes dogs need a blood transfusion, same as humans. To become a canine blood donor a dog must be in general good health, have up to date vaccinations, be aged between 1 and 9 years old and weigh between sixteen to twenty-seven kilos or more, without being overweight. ‘Zabbie’, puppy raised by volunteer Anne Mulligan, is also part of the breeding programme. She became a canine blood donor for Gilabbey Veterinary Hospital in Cork, the official veterinary surgery for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. Well done, ‘Zabbie’.Congratulations to our two new Ambassador Dogs, ‘Maisie’ and ‘Casper’, from Skerries who qualified recently. Owners Nessa and Padraic will bring them to local fundraising events to meet you, so please keep an eye out for them. They will wear an Irish Guide Dogs Ambassador Dog jacket or a reflective lead sleeve so you can easily identify them. ‘Adel’, puppy in training, is 6 months old now. She continues to grow in confidence every day. Good girl ‘Adel’. Following on from the success of our Tap to Donate machine in Specsavers, Millfield Shopping Centre, Balbriggan, and with assistance from Brian Brodigan, Manager, we are delighted that Specsavers are rolling out our Tap to Donate machines in their branches both in Dublin and nationwide. This is wonderful news as Specsavers have 22 branches in Dublin and over 50 nationwide. On 10th July Specsavers in Ashbourne and Navan launched their machines. Now there are more Specsavers locations where you can Tap to Donate €3. Contact us by phone/text: 085 7663107. Email guidedogsbalbriggan@gmail.com. Or on our Facebook page at Balbriggan.Branch.of.Guide.Dogs