More than 100 Ovenu franchisees have welcomed guide dog puppy Ralph as an honorary member of the UK’s largest independent oven cleaning business.
The seven-month-old pup replaces black Labrador Selsey, which the franchisees first started sponsoring in 2021.
Despite excelling in training, Selsey developed a slight weakness in one hip, which meant she was unable to progress as a working guide dog.
However, the franchisees wanted to continue their support for the charity by sponsoring yellow Golden Retriever-Labrador cross Ralph.
Aged seven months, he is currently spending time with Puppy Raisers Adrian and Toni in their home. So far, he is settling in well.
His first ‘report card’ states Ralph is brilliant at sleeping through the night, is learning to be around people and travels well in the car. His food manners meanwhile are said to be ‘almost there’!
The pup will remain with Toni and Adrian until he’s 12 to 14-months old before going into training at a Guide Dogs centre with the long term ambition of being matched to someone with sight loss.
Toni and Adrian, together with Guide Dogs’ CEO Andrew Lennox, recently met Ovenu’s managing director Rik Hellewell and members of his head office team at one of the charity’s community facilities – where they were introduced to Ralph.
Rik said that the pup was named Ralph in honour of his maternal grandfather, who along with his grandmother, both lost their sight.
He added: “It was fantastic to meet Ralph and to learn more about his training and that he is picking up all the early skills he needs to progress to become a fully-fledged Guide Dog.
“Our franchisees were proud to sponsor Selsey and wanted to continue the relationship with this fantastic charity and are already looking forward to receiving regular ‘pup-dates’ on Ralph’s progress.
“Guide Dogs literally transform the lives of those affected by sight loss, and our Ovenu franchisees are pleased to play a small part.”
Andrew Lennox said: “It was wonderful to meet Rik and the team at Ovenu at our Reading Hub and to thank them for their generosity. It costs approximately £56,000 to support each guide dog through from birth to retirement, and without all the contributions of our donors and the efforts of our fundraisers we would not be able to do what we do.”
Jo Berry, Community Fundraising Manager from Guide Dogs, said: “Ovenu’s generous support will allow us to make a life-changing difference to someone living with sight loss. We’re really grateful that the team at Ovenu have continued their kind support by sponsoring a second puppy. By fundraising for our ‘Name a Puppy’ scheme, they are playing such an important part of a puppy’s life-changing journey.”
For further information or to donate to Guide Dogs please visit their website.