Murphy's Puppy Page

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Murphy's forever home

Murphy sitting the grass looking at camera

Although we have a world-class breeding and training programme, not every pup will be suited to becoming a guide dog or buddy dog. Occasionally, puppies need to be taken out of training for their best interests and those of any potential future owners.

Murphy found the move to training school difficult. He developed high levels of anxiety and struggled with skills he had previously mastered, such as car travel and noise distraction. Murphy was also considered for a buddy dog career due to his loving personality and gentle temperament. Unfortunately, some of the skills he struggles with are essential to this career too. Given the circumstances, we felt it would be best to take Murphy out of the training programme and place him into our rehoming programme.

We are sad to share this news, but we hope you can understand that Murphy's well-being is our number one priority. So, we are delighted to tell you that Murphy has already been rehomed and is living happily in his forever home with Peter.

Peter is the brother of Murphy's puppy raiser and has known Murphy since he was a tiny pup. Murphy knew exactly where he was when he arrived at Peter's house and quickly settled into his forever home. Peter and Murphy are rarely apart and enjoy spending lots of time exploring local country parks.

Thank you for all your support of Murphy. During his early training, Murphy was a fantastic advocate for Guide Dogs and helped to raise awareness by wearing his puppy coat whilst out with his Puppy Raiser, Shirley.

Thank you again for all your support; we rely on donations to continue our life-changing work, which means without you, we couldn't be Guide Dogs!

Pupdate 4 - Murphy’s potential career

Hello, it’s Kim here, Murphy’s trainer.

I’ve been working at Guide Dogs for around 30 years. I started working in dog care, which helped me develop a really good understanding of the basics of dog welfare and behaviour before I moved onto training, which I’ve been doing for the last 26 years. I really enjoy my job! Every dog has a different personality with different challenges and I love getting to know each of them and their quirks.

Murphy’s move to training school

Murphy was making excellent progress with his puppy raisers and advanced onto training school, but unfortunately he didn’t adapt well to this change. Murphy is a very sensitive boy and the new environment brought out some anxiety in him that he had not previously shown. He started struggling with skills that he was previously comfortable with. For example, he developed a strong aversion to car travel and would also become distracted by unfamiliar noises or movements. I spent time with Murphy building up a good relationship with him and worked hard to help him overcome these challenges. Unfortunately, I did not see the improvements that I was hoping for and, after discussions with the team, the decision was made for Murphy to pursue an alternative career as a buddy dog. This decision has been made with Murphy’s welfare and the safety of a future owner in mind.

Buddy dogs

A career as a guide dog might not be quite right for every dog, and some will undergo a career change to become a buddy dog for a child living with sight loss. Buddy dogs can significantly improve a child’s wellbeing, like helping with exercise and building confidence, which in turn helps them to become more independent and create better relationships with others. Although a buddy dog doesn’t help with mobility in the same way as a guide dog, they can certainly have an incredible impact on the lives of the children with sight loss that they are matched with!

Murphy’s qualities

Murphy is a really lovely and affectionate boy. He absolutely loves a fuss and a play. We have a play area in our training centre and Murphy loves running around the sandpit and climbing on the apparatus. He gets so excited and plays like a small pup; its lovely to see him so happy! I think his affectionate personality would make him a wonderful companion for a child with sight loss. The skills that Murphy has learnt during his training would be beneficial to his buddy dog career. He’s got great recall and is excellent at walking calmly on a loose lead. I hope that these skills combined with his personality will help him to thrive in a buddy dog role.

Next Steps

Murphy will be assessed to see if he is suitable for a career as a buddy dog. If successful, the search will start to find the perfect family for him to be matched with.

Look out for your next Pupdate to hear how Murphy’s getting on.

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Murphy's Facebook Group

Please note, by requesting to join your puppy’s Facebook group you consent to Guide Dogs storing your Facebook ID on our database. This information will be used only for the purpose of administering your access to this group and, if you choose to sponsor another puppy in future, any similar groups. If you choose to cancel your sponsorship, or if your sponsorship comes to an end, we will remove your Facebook ID details from our records.