Introducing Frank: Our New Guide Dog Puppy and His Exciting Adventures in Pupdates 3 and 4

It was with a heavy heart to let you all know a couple of weeks ago that we were no longer going to get Pupdates regarding Douglas and his training, so we wished him all the best for his four-legged future.

Since CTL is a keen sponsor of Guide Dogs UK - we've been introduced to a new puppy, who is of a similar age to Douglas. We'd like you all to meet Frank.

Frank from Puipdate 3

How adorable is he? Frank is a Labrador, and when he was a young pup, Guide Dogs found out he loves a nice scratch behind his ears, running around outside, and of course - taking a long nap with siblings! (Read until the end to see the most adorable puppy picture of Frank!)

In Pupdate 3 we found out that Franks trainer is called Merry, and he described Frank as an enthusiastic and energetic pup, who's a pleasure to work with.

They were working on early basic training in the form of games which provides a good foundation for the next stages. Merry says that "it's still early days for Frank, but I've noticed he's very food-motivated".

As well as Frank, Merry actually trains another 3 dogs, all of whom Frank has met (Sanders, a black golden retriever cross Labrador; Cece, a golden retriever cross German shepherd and Trelfa, a yellow Labrador cross golden retriever) and all 4 of them enjoy playing together.

Images taken from Pupdate 3

One of the first steps Merry took with Frank was platform training, where he keeps all 4 paws on a platform, and he gets rewarded (probably with some tasty treats!) This helps guide dogs find the correct guiding position, and develop awareness about their body placement. Frank will learn to walk from one platform to another, which helps him walk in a straight line, and helps him identify changes in terrain, such as kerbs.

In Pupdate 4, (4 months on from Pupdate 3), Frank had been in training school for a few weeks and is still settling in. His and Merry's bond has grown, and they've both got to know each other very well.

Merry continues saying that Frank's an enthusiastic dog, and great fun to work with. He has since mastered his platform skills, and he's progressed from the training room to real-life environments, such as towns & cities. Merry will go out for walks with Frank whilst wearing a blindfold to really get him used to walking like this (Merry always has a colleague with him to keep him safe). Merry states that he's "reduced how often I reward him with food, so he continues to concentrate and not look at me expecting treats".

Frank in Pupdate 4

Frank is working hard to overcome the distractions, especially chasing other animals! Frank has taken a liking to squirrels, birds, cats and other dogs (we think he just wants to play with them and make friends!). But this isn't safe for his guide dog owner. To help overcome this, Merry says he "ensures he gets lots of time to meet this chasing need in an appropriate way through downtime, free runs, and toy plan, in distraction-free environments".

Well I think we've all had a lovely introduction to Frank, and we'll expect another Pupdate in October, where we hope he's overcome his chasing and food distractions.

And of course, as promised, a wonderfully cute picture of Frank when he was a little puppy.. all together now... "AWWWW!"

If you'd like to watch some videos, and see some more adorable pictures of Frank, please find out more at guiddogs.org.uk/puppy-frank

All images were taken from the Pupdates we recieved, and all photos are taken by Guide Dogs, CTL do not own the images.