Blind Low Vision NZ is the only organisation who train and breed guide dogs for Kiwis with vision loss. We receive no government funding for Blind Low Vision NZ Guide Dogs.
To raise funds for building a new and fit-for-purpose kennel for guide dogs in training, Blind Low Vision NZ are launching Paws For Purpose. With the support of some of Aotearoa New Zealand's greatest artists, we have upcycled our old Trudy Dog collection boxes and turned them into one-off, unique works of art. By auctioning off these genuine pieces of Kiwiana collector’s items, we can ensure a greater number of guide dogs graduate each year.
Spot these strikingly artistic guide dogs in shop windows, restaurants, and shopping malls around Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland through the month of March. Around 40 artists from across Aotearoa New Zealand, including Dick Frizzell, Ian Mune, Tim Christie, Shane Walker, Anna Leyland, Francis Hooper, Dame Denise L’Estrange-Corbet have collaborated with Blind Low Vision NZ to help raise funds to have more guide dogs.
While our Trudy Dogs are embarking on a new LEASH of life, our guide dogs in training will grow to become working guide dogs, ready to take on the role of providing independence to Kiwis who are blind or have low vision.
Why now?
A guide dog gives freedom, independence, and confidence to a New Zealander with vision loss. There are currently 180,000 New Zealanders who are blind, deafblind or have low vision. It’s estimated that due to the ageing population this number will increase to 225,000 by 2028.
Each year, Blind Low Vision NZ breed around 100 potential guide dogs, of which around 40 will graduate. However, each year they also have a waiting list of up to 50 New Zealanders waiting for a guide dog to support them to live independent lives. The current waiting time to receive a guide dog is around two years. The anticipated increased demand over the coming years will extend the waiting time unless more dogs can be successfully trained as guide dogs.
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